Audio books after Harry Potter?

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Manana
Posts: 710
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2011 3:22 pm

Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by Manana »

Since my 'quest to get Y5 DS to read more' despite him *hating* books (and only reading because I have made him...!), things have gone well. He has read a range of books which weren't Captain Underpants (!)-Jeremy Strong, BFG, How to train your dragon, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Mr Gum, A series of Unfortunate Events, Skellig to name a few. He's currently reading The Phantom Tollbooth and has a few waiting to start.

I've also encouraged audio books so he can access books he would otherwise think too daunting to begin reading for himself. He's also been listening to Harry Potter on MP3 at night and is nearly at the end of The Deathly Hallows. He has absolutely loved them and really enjoyed spotting differences from the film (agreeing with us that the books are always better ;) ).

Does anyone have any recommendations of things to listen to next? I'm sure there are 11+ parents out there who think I'm copping out by letting him listen to audio stories and that their children beg to read Dickens by torchlight, but I've struggled a bit with DS thinking that reading is my hobby that I'm trying to inflict on him against his will. So... I'm trying to cultivate a love of reading through whatever means I can! He's also listened to Storm Breaker by Anthony Horowitz, the first Wolf Brother (which he wasn't too keen on) and Tom's Midnight Garden. Any recommendations most appreciated!

He's working at a Level 4b/a across the board currently so isn't a *bad* reader, he just wouldn't choose to do it if I wasn't there hassling him!
Sally-Anne
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Location: Buckinghamshire

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by Sally-Anne »

Artemis Fowl were (and still are) very popular here. I particularly loved Artemis Fowl and the Lost Colony because the Demon is very funny. You do need to listen to them in order though, because you will be hopelessly lost otherwise.
la boume
Posts: 287
Joined: Fri Jun 25, 2010 7:33 pm

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by la boume »

I have a 10 yo DD, and apart from "girly" audio books, she has :The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner, Prince Caspian From The Chronicles of Narnia, The Borrowers by Mary Norton, Hobbit by Tolkien. Also she has the leftovers from her big brother, such as Wolf Brother and Shadowmancer, which she did not listen yet. And i bought her The Book Thief recently, but we both found it quite scary.
DS1 used to have Lord of the Rings BBC dramatisation, but we do not have a cassette recorder now. There are CDs, though they are quite expensive, so still sitting in the Basket on Amazon.
What about Mark Twain or R L Stevenson for the boy?
DD is an avid reader, but still loves audio books. We don't speak English at home, so it's very important to listen good pronunciation.
First-timer
Posts: 698
Joined: Wed Sep 23, 2009 1:47 pm
Location: Essex

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by First-timer »

The BBC Lord of the Rings CDs were available at £22 for the set at The Book People! Had it in my basket but didn't purchase it in time. The website says it won't be back in stock before Christmas so I'm hoping it will be back in 2012. Might be worth watching out for...
Minesatea
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Joined: Sat Oct 31, 2009 12:08 am

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by Minesatea »

I asked DS1 who has always been an avid listener of audio books - he recommends

The Bagthorpe Saga by Helen Cresswell (I remember these as a child)

or any of the horrible histories series
Minesatea
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Joined: Sat Oct 31, 2009 12:08 am

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by Minesatea »

If he is a fan of Dr Who and the like - lots of the "Sarah Jane adventures are now available on audiobook?
Red
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Joined: Thu Oct 02, 2008 10:09 pm
Location: Gloucestershire

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by Red »

My DS has enjoyed the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan as audio books -- he images the reader as a hippie; a Mark Walden HIVE book (he alternated reading and listening to this series); the first book of the Bartimaeus trilogy, Amulet of Samarkand -- but not enough to want to listen to the other two. He really likes to read the Edge Chronicles but did not enjoy the audiobook we downloaded. Sometimes we misjudge a book -- they tend to be more intense in their audio form for him -- which meant that I got hooked into the Power of Five series, which was too dark for my 10 year old, and Garth Nix's Abhorsen series, again too dark for my DS but I thought they were wonderfully written and read. I believe that they've since withdrawn the licence for (some of?) the Garth Nix audio books in the UK.

IMHO hearing words, how they sound and how they work in spoken English is an extremely effective way of learning for some...

Red
Amber
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Joined: Thu Sep 24, 2009 11:59 am

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by Amber »

You can get the rest of those Horowitz ones as audio books too- I know this because I am just chucking some out to the charity shop as mine have finished with them- pity I can't get them to you! My son also enjoyed the Lemony Snicket 'Series of unfortunate events' ones at about that age.

And never forget Mr Gum - all my lot enjoy those read out loud even now...Andy Stanton is a genius.

Robert Muchamore's 'Cherub' series was also a hit with 2 out of 3 in our house.

Colemanballs and Private Eye annuals go down well too, though the latter are probably a bit borderline for a Year 5. We haven't shared the Viz annuals yet though.

And at the opposite end of the spectrum, and I doubt if I really need to tell you this as you're a teacher- let him 'read down' sometimes too, ie books he enjoyed when he was younger and which he can gain reassurance and confidence from. "Look how easy this is now, but the story is still great" is a good outcome for any child.
aargh
Posts: 406
Joined: Mon Oct 10, 2011 7:00 pm

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by aargh »

If he likes the blasted Potter, try him on the Authors from whom Rowling nicked her ideas.
Try Diana Wynne Jones for well thought out magical worlds.
Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea series.
Eva Ibbotson's platform 13 (which was the origin of platform 9 3/4).
How about Douglas Adams?
For something heavier, Philip Pulman's Dark Materials or Philip Reeve's Mortal Engines (the first of his traction cities series).
How about Terry Pratchett? That ought to keep him going for a while if he gets hooked.

On another tack, my DS much prefers non-fiction. It does count as reading :| Has your DS some avid interest? My DS in a mad scientist so ploughs through adult science tomes of an extremely detailed sort (there seemed to be nothing between basic spot facts and thesis style stuff on dinosaurs and marine biology so he wades through the thesis stuff!) He'll get into manuals on how to be a knight and his Father's history books rather than read King Arthur.

Try Asterix. I kept all mine from my own misspent youth and they get re-read solidly. That might lead on to other graphics.
um
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Joined: Sat May 30, 2009 1:06 pm
Location: Birmingham

Re: Audio books after Harry Potter?

Post by um »

Why not try a different genre?
Having a diverse reading/listening background will be of great benefit to his own creative writing, although judging by your username, I am preaching to the converted :D

The Morpurgo audio books are wonderful.

My dcs were also transfixed (even the 4 year old) by the BBC Classics Audio books (incl. The Railway Children, Heidi, Anne of Green Gables, Treasure Island, Phoenix and the Carpet, Greek legends, King Arthur and more...)
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