Visiting my nephew next week, who I get to see maybe twice a year. He's not a big reader, through no fault of his parents. That being said, they're not really big into imaginative storytelling or fantasy (love them both, to be clear.), and I would like to help plant some fantastic wonder in his growing mind.
What are some easier reads you'd recommend for me to gift him, possibly to start reading with him, that will help to grip his imagination and (hopefully) encourage him to read more fantasy? TIA!
Current Ideas: The Hobbit (maybe too nerdy for a "first" fantasy book?) Redwall, Harry Potter
by NevoftheWilds
18 Comments
I don’t have specific suggestions, but for a non reader at that age I’d consider seeing if graphic novels or manga grab his attention
John Flanagan,
The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Excellent story-telling and a (so far) non-problematic author. It is about a kid who discovers that his father is a Greek god, and has to go on a quest to retrieve Zeus’s master bolt, which he has been accused of stealing.
If you have no problems with Rowling’s views, then Harry Potter is great for young kids. It helped me improve my English drastically when I was ten, and although the first book took me a month to finish (because I was not used to reading English books at the time, not because it was difficult or boring), I ended up gobbling up all the next books pretty quickly (I read the last one in several hours, with a flashlight under the covers because it had been well past my bedtime).
What kind of things does he find interesting?
I fell in love with the Warrior Cat series by Erin Hunt right around that age. Great choice if he is into animals.
Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan is always a go to, especially if he finds mythology interesting.
Can’t go wrong with The Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis.
Try Rick Riordan. My brother got into the Percy Jackson books at the same age.
Eragon
One of the first stories I always read to my kids is Wind in the Willows. It isnt babyish, but it is fun and easy to grasp. It isnt wizards and dragons, but talking animals should qualify
Daughter is 10 and loves the wings of fire series
Seconding the graphic novel suggestion- there’s a series called Amulet that might be right up his alley.
The Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
The How to Train Your Dragon series by Cressida Cowell
The Book of Three (The Chronicles of Prydain Book 1) – Lloyd Alexander.
Has been a classic for a long time, and perfect for that age range.
The Menagerie Trilogy by Tui T Sutherland is much easier to read than Hobbit or Harry Potter or Percy Jackson
Her Wings of Fire series is also good
Gregor The Overlander by Suzanne Collins
Charlie Bone by Jenny Nimmo
Tress by Brandon Sanderson
Maybe – haroun and the sea of stories by Rushdie. Super fun and imaginative
If his reading level is low, then Ursula Vernon‘s Danny Dragonbreath and Hamster Princess series are great. They have lots of pictures, and there are plenty of subtle jokes for the adults.
If it is good, then Diane Duane‘s Young Wizard series is outstanding.
The Chronicles of Narnia is a classic.
Tove Jansson’s Moomintroll books
The Gammage Cup by Carol Kendall
The Lost Star by HM Hoover
Gregor The Overlander series by Suzanne Collins. It’s about a boy around 11 years old who finds an entire WORLD underground and helps save it from doom and gloom. Absolutely wonderful fantasy!
Narnia!
The Dark Is Rising series by Susan Cooper, main characters are kids from 8-12 years old, fighting against the evil of the Dark vs the Light. There’s some King Arthur thrown in for good measure, and Merlin and magic.