What is good reading material?

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Pratz
Posts: 20
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 4:48 pm

What is good reading material?

Post by Pratz »

My Son is in Year6.
When i asked him to get some reading material from the library, he got Cherub books..
Now, i am not sure how good the books are, if the grammar and content is good or not...

I would like him to read Enid Blyton ( that is what i read when i was growing up...). He doesnt like them and thinks they are really old books... He somehow goes by the age of everything.. books or movies... doesnt like reading/watching anything old...

Is it ok for him to read the Cherub books? How do i get him interested in the old classics??
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by Yamin151 »

Hmmmmm, I struggled similarly. the touble with Cherub is that it grows up as the books go on and the content becomes more adult, well, teenager-y. This was fine when the books were written as the children reading them grew, but now they are all available. I have two very keen readers, one of whom enjoys that kind of book, and the trouble is I think Enid Blyton IS old fashioned, all the more charming in my oipinion for that, but maybe not to a child who fancies reading Cherub's taste. Having a quick think about recommendations.....
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by Yamin151 »

Since Cherub, The Hunger Games etc are all available in the school library I think its really hard to stem the flow of them reading them. From what I can gather at this 'age' group it is always the goodies who win, its just far more gory or adulty themes. Mild language, even ******** reference, but dipping in I haven't seen anything explicit. For my boy (one of 2 aged 10) who likes this type, he also likes
Young Bond
Hunger Games
Five
Chris Ryan, the younger adult books
Anything by Anthony Horowicz
Anything about Zombies for teenagers. I know! Yucky!
When he picks up a new one I do leaf through it, but although not to my taste, I THINK, (note emphasis) that they are ok, if a bit grim.
If you really want milder for him then this boy also enjoys the Gladiator series.

My other boy loves fantasy, and in his own words 'steam punk' (Victorian Sci fi I think). Not anything vampire, but anything that would sit well with a Lord of the Rings Fan. He is also 10 and actually loves Tolkein, including the Silmarillion, then The Inheritance Series (all big thick ones with a dragon on front cover), anything by Chriss Riddel, The Wizard of Earthsea (thats from the 70s), Wereworld series, and loads more if you are interested. I can supply authors too then, these are off top of my head.

Both enjoyed Lemony Snicket Series of Unfortunate Events, very dark, but plenty of them and age appropriate. Also Harry Potter of course.
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by Yamin151 »

I'd also add Robert Westall, Machine Gunners. We have had more success with 'classics' reading to them (we still do that when we can), including classics like Treasure Island and at the moment the Viking Dawn series, also all the Narnia books and about to do Goodnight Mr Tom, (they could read all these themselves and sometimes do but reading to them great way to get them interested.
Read them Toms Midnight Garden too
Penelope Lively has some good old fashioned adventures with plenty to accupy modern mind, Ghost of Thomas Kempe is really good, also the Whispering Knights (spooky!)

Oh and second son been enjoying dipping into some gnome world created by Terry Pratchett.
MadHatter
Posts: 95
Joined: Mon Apr 09, 2012 4:00 pm

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by MadHatter »

Hi, my eldest son is also in Y6 and has read and enjoyed these. He's an avid reader of this kind of genre plus far too many books of the teen zombie variety but I do also wish he would read more of the 'classics'. Enid Blyton sadly didn't cut it for him either, nor Swallows and Amazons etc.

We picked up some useful reading lists when we did prospective school tours last year but the best I've come across was this one, recommended by someone on this site (there are lots of threads on Y6 boys' reading material on here, it's worth digging a bit).

[/url]http://www.dulwichpreplondon.org/page/? ... id=211[url]

This list is broken down into genres and I found that once he'd exhausted his obvious choices my son was happy to surf around a bit and get ideas on other stuff to read as well. The entire Sharpe series and various others by Bernard Cornwell were a particular hit and CJ Sansom and Marcus Zuzak (sp?) also went down well. Of course these aren't old classics although he has managed The Hobbit and Treasure Island, but they seem to provide him with an acceptable alternative to his usual zombie/spy fodder none the less.

That said, this list also contains plenty of the latter as well, which makes me feel slightly better about him reading it!!
MadHatter
Posts: 95
Joined: Mon Apr 09, 2012 4:00 pm

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by MadHatter »

Hmm, any advice on how to post a link?!
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by Yamin151 »

Yours had 'url' at each end, did that interfere?

http://www.dulwichpreplondon.org/page/? ... 14&pid=211" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by Yamin151 »

Oh I am such a Tecnical Wizard!!!!! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by Yamin151 »

Can't spell though (or type) :oops:
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: What is good reading material?

Post by Yamin151 »

Not reading anything recommended by that shabby school.................. :lol: :roll:
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