Boys and reading. The two are not often thought of in the same sentence. There are many fine series of books aimed at boys that offer humor and adventure while getting boys to enjoy reading.
The Animorphs Series by K.A. Applegate
The Animorphs (Scholastic) is a series of 54 books. The series begins with The Invasion (Scholastic, 1996). This book introduces the four main characters, kids who can morph into animals. The kids are quickly called upon to use their powers to fight an alien race that is threatening the world. Throughout the series as the animorphs change into various animals an examination of the special features of these animals is discussed, ie how a hawk flies and how good a lizards eyesight is. The animorphs feature lots of adventure and even a few battles. These books will excite readers as they want to continue reading until they have read the whole series.
Maximum Ride Series by James Patterson
The Maximum Ride Series (Little Brown and Company) is a series of 5 books with more planned. The series begins with The Angel Experiment (Little Brown and Company, 2005). The series is about the adventures of a group of mutant children. Scientists have conducted experiments on them giving them wings and other powers. The children must use their powers to solve problems in the world. Although, Max is a girl, the series is appealing to boys because of the adventure and 4 of the other children are boys. These books will have readers anxiously awaiting the next chapter in the adventures of Max Ride.
Captain Underpants Series by Dav Pilkey
The series concerns the adventures of George and Harold, two elementary school boys who write comics about Captain Underpants. In the first book of the series, The Adventures of Captain Underpants (Scholatic, 1997), finds the boys turning their hypontized principal into Captain Underpants. The books are full of toilet humor and adventure as the underwear clad principal continues throughout the series to fight crime. Boys love toilet humor and find underwear very funny. These items combined with large pictures and easy to read print make these books favorites of boys.
The Redwall Series by Brian Jacques
The first book in the series, Redwall (Puffin, 2002), introduces the reader to Redwall Abbey and it's many animal inhabitants. The animals have to fight off evil Cluny the rat overlord. A young mouse named Matthias rises to the challenge and defeats Cluny saving Redwall and its many inhabitants. Throughout the series Matthias, his friends and descendents have many exciting adventures. This series is good for young adults who are ready for more challenging reading but not quite ready for adult books. The entire series which is over 8000 pages in length will keep readers thrilled with the adventure and excitement for long after the reading is done.
Boys can be turned onto reading if given a series of characters to relate to in many books.
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