Books for Boys

Today Dr. Mohler pointed out on his blog that a major reason many guys don't like reading is that they don't have reading material that captures their interest and fires their imaginations. He recommended a list of books that sound fascinating, but are definitely for older teenagers and adults.

When I was a boy I had no such dislike of reading. I read just about everything I could get my hands on. Visiting the library was a several-times-a-week occurrence. When I was disobedient and in need of correction, my parents found that one of the most effective punishments was not to let me read anything for a period of time.

I thought I'd list a few of the books that I loved when I was a kid, in case you know a boy who is always in search of new reading material. Most of these will be appropriate for kids who have graduated from Dr. Seuss but aren't yet ready to tackle unabridged, adult-oriented novels.


The Hardy Boys, by F.W. Dixon. The classic boys' mystery series, and I read them all. The woman who evaluated my homeschooling work told me one year that I needed to read fewer Hardy Boys and branch out into other material.

Tom Swift, by Victor Appleton. Original science-fiction for boys, these books have been around since 1910. I read the atomic-age books (the New Tom Swift, Jr. Adventures series) that were written in the '50s and '60s.

The Chronicles of Prydain, by Lloyd Alexander. Alexander draws on Welsh folklore to tell a fantastic store of Taran, a boy who doesn't know he's a king.

The Dark is Rising sequence, by Susan Cooper. Cooper's stories incorporate Welsh and English mythology, including Arthurian legends, and revolve around five kids who are caught up in a climactic struggle between good and evil

Grimm's Fairy Tales. The original stories are nothing like their Disneyfied modern incarnations, and will appeal to boys' love of monsters, witches, gore, and adventure.

The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien. I can still remember discovering The Hobbit on the shelves at the library for the first time. Probably the best fantasy stories ever written.

The Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis. These really need no introduction, given their current publicity with the movies.

The Borrowers (and sequels), by Mary Norton. A Carnegie Medal-winning story about little people who live in the walls and borrow things from big people.

Doctor Dolittle, by Hugh Lofting. The 1967 film adaptation with Rex Harrison is a classic; the books are even better.

The Redwall series, by Brian Jacques. A fantasy series about talking animals. I only became aware of these books as a teenager, but I read a bunch of them and thoroughly enjoyed them. Jacques has a gift for adventurous plots.

The American Girl books, by various authors. Yes, that's right. I secretly read every single one of my sisters' AG books, and was fascinated by them. It has taken me a decade to find the courage to admit it, though. :-)

Perhaps a better series of historical novels, for boys who can't bring themselves to read American Girl books, are the books written by G.A. Henty in the late 19th century. Each focuses on a boy who lives through an important historical time or event. They've recently been republished by Dover. I only read a couple, but they're great.

I should also mention that I was introduced to many of the great classics by Moby Books' "Illustrated Classic Editions." They're abridged, illustrated versions of classic novels that are perfect for younger readers. Some of the ones I loved include:

A Journey to the Center of the Earth, by Jules Verne
The Time Machine, by H. G. Wells
Around the World in 80 Days, by Jules Verne
The Three Musketeers, by Alexander Dumas
The Man in the Iron Mask, by Alexander Dumas
The Swiss Family Robinson, by Johann Wyss
Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson
Robinson Crusoe, by Daniel Defoe
The War of the Worlds, by H. G. Wells
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, by Jules Verne
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, by Mark Twain
Ben-Hur, by Lew Wallace
Captains Courageous, by Rudyard Kipling
Moby Dick, by Herman Melville