Another Book Idea's Needed... Thread

[kayrosek]

MY DD14 is the only one in our family who really doesn't like reading. I'd love to get her more interested in books so I've really been watching her interests and trying to find things she might like and I think I've finally figured out what kind of books she likes. I am just having a hard time finding ones she would like that would be appropriate for her. She loves biographies and true stories and is super interested in lifestyles, religions etc but isn't very interested in past era's or cultures. She likes things that are current. So far I know she want's Soul Surfer, and The Dugger's books and I feel pretty safe with those. She's also into music and teen pop singer's. She got a Justin Beiber fact book at a Christmas Party and is devouring it. She has an autistic brother and loves hearing success stories about people dealing with disabilities. Please help me with more ideas.

 

[clanmcculloch]

Have her check out some of Temple Grandin's books. She's an autistic woman who grew up in an era where autistic people were always intstitutionalized but her mother wouldn't allow it and kept pushing and advocating on her behalf and today she is not only a very vocal speaker on what autistic people can accomplish but also she completely revolutionized the cattle slauterhouses in North America and holds several Phds and patents showing just what autistic people can accomplish. She's very inspirational to my 13yo autistic daughter who also enjoys reading some non-fiction (though she also enjoys some typical teen fiction as well).

Have you considered magazines? My kids LOVE getting magazines. Reading is reading.

 

[kayrosek]

Have her check out some of Temple Grandin's books. She's an autistic woman who grew up in an era where autistic people were always intstitutionalized but her mother wouldn't allow it and kept pushing and advocating on her behalf and today she is not only a very vocal speaker on what autistic people can accomplish but also she completely revolutionized the cattle slauterhouses in North America and holds several Phds and patents showing just what autistic people can accomplish. She's very inspirational to my 13yo autistic daughter who also enjoys reading some non-fiction (though she also enjoys some typical teen fiction as well).

Have you considered magazines? My kids LOVE getting magazines. Reading is reading.

Thanks for reminding me about Temple Grandin I had thought about that and forgotten it.

 

[RMAMom]

My son was never a big reader so I always bought him an Almanac or world record book. They sell them in all the book stores this time of year they have pictures and then paragraphs to go with them. My son was always fascinated with the facts and he would spend hours reading them.

http://www.amazon.com/World-Almanac-Book-Facts-2012/dp/1600571484/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324430617&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Guinness-World-Records-Craig-Glenday/dp/0440423104/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324430652&sr=1-3

 

[cornflake]

She might like some Torey Hayden.

Hayden is a teacher who worked with special ed kids no one else could handle, in many cases, making classes out of kids that didn't fit elsewhere. Her specialty is elective mutism, but she's worked with many issues.

Her books range from her experiences with one class to one kid. There are kids in her books who suffered from abuse, who are autistic, have other organic disaibilities, etc.

Here's a bunch of her books. One Child is her first and most famous. There's also a sequel, published years later, when the girl in it contacts her as a teenager.

It was published a bit ago but it doesn't matter, there's no real way to tell, in the book, when it is or anything - I mean it could easily be today, it's a classroom with kids in the modern era.

Also, since she's interested in religions and lifestyles she might like some of these.

This book was written by a guy a little older than your daughter who was an atheist who decided to spend a year at Liberty University, an evangelical Christian school. It's a really interesting look inside Liberty, as someone who didn't grow up in that religion and how he got along with people and learned about it and etc.

There are also books by A.J. Jacobs she might like, including this one in which he spends a year trying to follow every biblical precept literally to see if he can, and this one in which he tries a bunch of different experiments, like to tell nothing but the truth for a month, to pose as a celebrity for a month and see if he can get into parties, etc.

Also Nickel and Dimed, in which a journalist goes out to attempt to make her way on minimum wage jobs to see what happens. It's very engaging and interesting and an easy, fascinating read.

There are lots in that kind of genre, the experiment deal, that she might like, but those are some very well received ones.

 

[kayrosek]

My son was never a big reader so I always bought him an Almanac or world record book. They sell them in all the book stores this time of year they have pictures and then paragraphs to go with them. My son was always fascinated with the facts and he would spend hours reading them.

http://www.amazon.com/World-Almanac-Book-Facts-2012/dp/1600571484/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324430617&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Guinness-World-Records-Craig-Glenday/dp/0440423104/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324430652&sr=1-3

Unfortunately she does not like almanacs or record books. My middle DD loves them but not DD14. Thanks for the suggestion though.

Have her check out some of Temple Grandin's books. She's an autistic woman who grew up in an era where autistic people were always intstitutionalized but her mother wouldn't allow it and kept pushing and advocating on her behalf and today she is not only a very vocal speaker on what autistic people can accomplish but also she completely revolutionized the cattle slauterhouses in North America and holds several Phds and patents showing just what autistic people can accomplish. She's very inspirational to my 13yo autistic daughter who also enjoys reading some non-fiction (though she also enjoys some typical teen fiction as well).

Have you considered magazines? My kids LOVE getting magazines. Reading is reading.

She does like magazines (teen, etc.). I'm just trying to broaden her horizens a bit.

She might like some Torey Hayden.

Hayden is a teacher who worked with special ed kids no one else could handle, in many cases, making classes out of kids that didn't fit elsewhere. Her specialty is elective mutism, but she's worked with many issues.

Her books range from her experiences with one class to one kid. There are kids in her books who suffered from abuse, who are autistic, have other organic disaibilities, etc.

Here's a bunch of her books. One Child is her first and most famous. There's also a sequel, published years later, when the girl in it contacts her as a teenager.

It was published a bit ago but it doesn't matter, there's no real way to tell, in the book, when it is or anything - I mean it could easily be today, it's a classroom with kids in the modern era.

Also, since she's interested in religions and lifestyles she might like some of these.

This book was written by a guy a little older than your daughter who was an atheist who decided to spend a year at Liberty University, an evangelical Christian school. It's a really interesting look inside Liberty, as someone who didn't grow up in that religion and how he got along with people and learned about it and etc.

There are also books by A.J. Jacobs she might like, including this one in which he spends a year trying to follow every biblical precept literally to see if he can, and this one in which he tries a bunch of different experiments, like to tell nothing but the truth for a month, to pose as a celebrity for a month and see if he can get into parties, etc.

Also Nickel and Dimed, in which a journalist goes out to attempt to make her way on minimum wage jobs to see what happens. It's very engaging and interesting and an easy, fascinating read.

There are lots in that kind of genre, the experiment deal, that she might like, but those are some very well received ones.

Oooh these sound great. I think she would especially love the Jacobs one where he tries to be a celebrity.

 

[AnninIowa]

"Heaven Is For Real" is one I bet she would like!

 

[Priorityonecb]

My dd14 requested the Seventeen magazine sponsored book series this Christmas. You can find them all on Amazon. I got her the Style book, and the college and careers one.

 

[Cindy B]

At 14, they do read more mature or adult material in school. For example, in my daughters 9th grade English class they are reading the Odyssey (sex, violence) and Oedipus Rex (sex, violence, incest). In 8th grade they read Flowers for Algernon (sex, bullying, medical ethics) and Milkweed (violence, Holocaust themes)


They hear things, see things and dare I say do things that we don't know about.

I have a 14 year old daughter and I also teach middle school. A common book in 8th/9th grade reading list is A Child Called It.

I would just ask her what she wants to read. I think she should be able to choose her own titles. She may be a reluctant reader because of limitations.

I'd give her a GC to a bookstore and give her the freedom of choice.

 

[cornflake]

At 14, they do read more mature or adult material in school. For example, in my daughters 9th grade English class they are reading the Odyssey (sex, violence) and Oedipus Rex (sex, violence, incest). In 8th grade they read Flowers for Algernon (sex, bullying, medical ethics) and Milkweed (violence, Holocaust themes)


They hear things, see things and dare I say do things that we don't know about.

I have a 14 year old daughter and I also teach middle school. A common book in 8th/9th grade reading list is A Child Called It.

I would just ask her what she wants to read. I think she should be able to choose her own titles. She may be a reluctant reader because of limitations.

I'd give her a GC to a bookstore and give her the freedom of choice.

I don't think the OP said she was limiting her daughter's choices? I'd agree with you that'd be bad.

However, I also have known a number of both reluctant readers and kids who enjoy reading but get overwhelmed by a bookstore or Amazon or whatever and have no idea what to pick, so just abandon the deal.

It's much worse if they're not enthusiastic readers to begin with, because they find less engaging so it's harder to pick and the less they read the less able they are to discern stuff they like from stuff they don't and the less motivation to try stuff to see.

If a person is an avid reader, they may love to peruse book stores, will read anything, try lots of stuff, because all reading is fun to an extent. If a kid doesn't have that...

Though even the most enthusiastic and voracious readers ask for recommendations. Books are awesome and happily, ridiculously numerous. There're always going to be books you didn't hear of, didn't pick up but might like, didn't get a chance to try yet, whatever, that someone else might love.

 

[kayrosek]

"Heaven Is For Real" is one I bet she would like!

Sounds good thanks

My dd14 requested the Seventeen magazine sponsored book series this Christmas. You can find them all on Amazon. I got her the Style book, and the college and careers one.

Ooh there are a few of those sh might like

At 14, they do read more mature or adult material in school. For example, in my daughters 9th grade English class they are reading the Odyssey (sex, violence) and Oedipus Rex (sex, violence, incest). In 8th grade they read Flowers for Algernon (sex, bullying, medical ethics) and Milkweed (violence, Holocaust themes)


They hear things, see things and dare I say do things that we don't know about.

I have a 14 year old daughter and I also teach middle school. A common book in 8th/9th grade reading list is A Child Called It.

I would just ask her what she wants to read. I think she should be able to choose her own titles. She may be a reluctant reader because of limitations.

I'd give her a GC to a bookstore and give her the freedom of choice.

Awww I can see how the comment about appropriateness might have been a bit confusing. It's not that I want to limit her choices per say more that I want to be aware if a books content is very graphic. If once told about the book DD wanted to read it I would still let her but I would be better prepared for questions. Also DD is very sensitive. She once read a book at school that had something disturbing to her in it and it upset her for weeks. I know the themes that would bother her and I just want to be able to warn her ahead of time if a book contains one of those so she can decide if the book still interests her or not. Also I have taken her to Barnes and Noble with a GC. She was completely overwhelmed and unable to choose a book to read. She ended up choosing a How to draw.... book and a music cd. So while I encourage her interest in art and music I don't want her to choose nothing but those things because she's too overwhelmed by her choices to find something to read.

I don't think the OP said she was limiting her daughter's choices? I'd agree with you that'd be bad.

However, I also have known a number of both reluctant readers and kids who enjoy reading but get overwhelmed by a bookstore or Amazon or whatever and have no idea what to pick, so just abandon the deal.

It's much worse if they're not enthusiastic readers to begin with, because they find less engaging so it's harder to pick and the less they read the less able they are to discern stuff they like from stuff they don't and the less motivation to try stuff to see.

If a person is an avid reader, they may love to peruse book stores, will read anything, try lots of stuff, because all reading is fun to an extent. If a kid doesn't have that...

Though even the most enthusiastic and voracious readers ask for recommendations. Books are awesome and happily, ridiculously numerous. There're always going to be books you didn't hear of, didn't pick up but might like, didn't get a chance to try yet, whatever, that someone else might love.

This exactly. Book stores overwhelm her and if she picks anything at all she ends up picking an art how to book or other project book like 101 things to do with duct tape or she just veers off to the music section and while all those things are perfectly fine I want her to find things to read and I know she would be much more likely too if she had some suggestions ahead of time.

 

[clanmcculloch]

If she's very sensitive then the book A Child Called It would be VERY disturbing to her. It's a great book but it's a true story written by a man who survived brutal abuse telling his own story. It's heart-wrenching.

 

[Sandy321]

My DD is 15, and a voracious reader - but I think if your dd wants some lighter reading choices (I have to say I love some of the recommendations already made here! ) so I'll add the author Meg Cabot - DD really loved the Princess Diaries series - it was different than the movie... and her 1-800 books my DD loved as well...

you might want to check those out at the library, my dd was reading them so fast - but she does re read them! even the Princess Diaries...
http://www.amazon.com/Princess-Diar...=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324476035&sr=1-1

at Amazon you can click on the book, then click to read inside the books to see if it might interest your DD.

 

[Cindy B]

Barnes and Noble doesn't even have a music section anymore. (At least the three in my area).

It does come across as limiting and/or censoring. By "pre-screening" it may also come across as not really wanting to tell you what they want to read because you may not approve... trust me I see that all the time. My whole class is full of reluctant readers. THey will say to me that they like certain books (ie Twilight, Harry Potter, etc.) but thier parents won't like them reading them for various reasons so they just don't read or they just tell the parents a different genre or book title just to keep them quiet.

My students -although younger- love graphic novels. Granted some of the content is edgy, but they love them. Most of my kids love the gore, the violence and deep stuff. You won't see them reading biographies or religious items "I read that enough in church"-- but the gorier, crazier, more intense the better.. even for the girls.

Some of my sensitive girls really like the A Child Called It.. they would tell me that thier lives weren't so bad after reading that. THey also liked the Precious book as well. (And considering this is deep inner city in one of the most dangerous cities in America.. that is saying something).


Just be wise.. they may just be telling you something they want you to hear- the genre. They also may be interested in something you don't want to know about - vampires, gothy stuff, even sex. They may be overwhelmed with choices because of limits.

Personally, I'd ask your childs teacher or school librarian for recommendations. They have a pulse on adolescent fiction and what make reluctant readers go. And some kids just aren't readers no matter what you put in front of them.


My daughter liked the The Lovely Bones-- it is different than the movie.

 

[Sorsha]

My DD17 has always been a reluctant reader, and the spark that finally got her reading was Anime/Manga graphic novels. She will now devour them voraciously.

Her current favorite is a series called "Hetalia", where each of the Axis/Allies countries is portrayed by one character. The books and animated cartoons have even gotten her interrested in the actual history of that time period, and made her want to learn more about it. Unfortunately the books are OOP, but can still be found - just a wee bit spendy.

Here's a review from Amazon:

What if all the nations of the world were anthropomorphized hunky bishounen (or the very occasional cute bishoujo)? It would certainly change one's view of history, wouldn't it? It's the eve of the Second World War, and Germany is gearing up to invade Poland. Germany is a serious soul who takes both his orders and his vast responsibilities seriously. He has also acquired two important allies: Japan, soft-spoken, hard-working, and a bit naïve because he was until recently a shut-in, and Italy, a cheerful but profoundly spineless soul whose incompetence seems to undermine the so-called Axis Powers at every turn. As a consequence, Italy's nickname is "Hetalia."

The title of this popular webcomic turned printed manga Hetalia: Axis Powers by Hidekaz Himaruya is a portmanteau of the Japanese word hetare ("useless" or "incompetent") and Italia (Italy). Despite extensive footnotes supplied by the original Japanese edition and an invaluable new four pages of endnotes exclusive to the Tokyopop English-language edition, this portmanteau is not explained anywhere in the first volume. Fortunately, it's not "need-to-know" information, and Hetalia is an enjoyable piece of entertainment that takes one of the grimmest periods of 20th century history and transforms it into a most bearable lightness of slapstick--and on occasion bawdy--comedy.

This is not satirical social commentary. This is fun. It is therefore important not to try to take Hetalia seriously, either for its nuanced view of geopolitics or its depiction of the anthropomorphized countries. Both are consistently disappointing. The countries themselves are based upon broad-stroke national stereotypes--apparently American in origin, according to Himaruya--that are, if anything, divorced from historic context. The cheerful coward (Italy) and the straight man (Germany) make for a classic comic combination, and an ever-growing supporting cast of characters provides virtually endless opportunities for situational comedy, most of it delivered in the popular Japanese yon-koma (four-panel) format.

It is very much to Himaruya's credit, actually, that the large cast of characters remains distinguishable. Besides the Italy, Germany, and Japan trio, other recurring dramatis personae in volume one alone include the United States, Great Britain, France, Russia, China, Austria, Spain, and more. Each country has distinctive personality traits and character designs. Particular idiosyncrasies include the United States being on good terms with extraterrestrials (obscure reference to The X-Files, perhaps?) and China's penchant for ending every sentence with the nonsense syllable "-aru." Naturally, the characters are all attractively drawn, providing an abundance of surefire fan fodder.

In fact, Hetalia is already a heavy-hitting fan-favorite. The animated adaptation has a devoted following worldwide, which is bound to make the manga, handsomely published in a deluxe trim size with eight full-color pages, a popular proposition as well. Readers will come for the characters, stay for the comedy, and perhaps a few will even graduate to serious accounts of global history. At the very least, this is the wackiest story premise to cross manga in a long time--and that's saying something--and even casual readers will find themselves--perhaps in spite of themselves--eagerly wanting more.

 

[mjantz]

My daughter (11) LOVES Hetalia. She loves manga in general. I bought her a few books for her Christmas. Be warned that not all manga is kid appropriate but there are ratings on the back of most books.

 

[englishteacha]

A book I really enjoyed, and many of my students loved, was Rules, by Cynthia Lord. It's about a teen girl with a younger brother with autism. The main character writes a book of "rules" for her brother about how to survive in the world...like "Knock before barging into the bathroom" and stuff. The main character is an artist and meets a nonverbal boy her own age and helps him communicate by creating pictures for his communication book (she says all teenagers need sarcasm and makes him cards like "Whatever!"). It's SO good. I bet your DD would like it.