Our son has a book report due in a couple weeks. It needs to be a fantasy/action type book (he lucked out on book category). He hates to read and it can be a slow process with him, despite reading above grade level. We don't have time for the big Percy Jackson type books, although he does enjoy that series when he's forced to read. He needs to read the book and then prepare a fancy report, so we're limited with time.
Can anyone recommend a shorter book that's still age-appropriate? I figure we'll ask the librarian for help later today, but thought maybe some parents here would know of books their boys enjoyed that would suit this project.
Thanks!
ETA: He also has ADHD and gets easily distracted when reading. Percy Jackson books take him a month to finish, reading every day after school.
We ended up getting The Time Hackers by Gary Paulsen (which was one of the authors mentioned). So many of the ones mentioned here were checked out (or just not there). My son thought this one looked good, so we're set now. Thanks, again!
The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S.Lewis. Great book for this age. The first in a series, so if he likes it he might keep reading. You could tell him that he could celebrate finishing his report by watching the film version, which is pretty darn good.
CS Lewis' books are pretty short. I'm also including a tiny url that will take you to Scholastic's book search by grade level. I entered in 5-6 for grade level.
ETA: I just thought of the Black Stallion series by Walter Farley. I LOVED them as a kid. They're about a boy and a wild black Arabian stallion. They go on all kinds of adventures. (added about 4 hours after original comment)
When I was in 5th grade, our teacher read us a fantasy trilogy, which started with "The White Mountains" by John Christopher. It is still high among my favorites.
Simple and short, it's action-packed and fascinating. The main character is 11 year old Will, who lives in a futuristic Earth that has been taken over by an alien robot race called the Tripods. He becomes a part of a revolt and LOTS of interesting stuff happens.
Be sure your library has the 2nd and 3rd books, your son will want them. Or buy the set.
http://www.amazon.com/The-White-Mountains-John-Christophe...
A Geronimo Stilton book, Shiloh, The City of Ember.
When I taught 5th grade the kids LOVED the books "There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom" (Louis Sacher), "Hatchet" (by Gary Paulsen) and "The Sign of the Beaver" (the author is escaping me at the moment).
Shoot! Just saw the fantasy/action category! City of Ember should still work. Sign of the Beaver and Hatchet should be o.k. too I think. Ask the teacher though.
The Warrior s series or the Ranger's Apprentice series. I haven't read the warrior's books but I have the Ranger's Apprentice. It is a fast read that will appeal to boys.
My son is in 5th grade and my mom gave him the book Hatchet last year. He loved it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatchet_(novel)
That's just a little review of the novel. It's a survival book, so I don't know if it's action? Read the review and decide. Either way it was greatly loved by my son.
L.
Wings of Fire:The Dragonet Prophecy, or for something shorter, The Infinity Ring series Book 1
I just asked my "panel of experts," my 4th grade and 7th grade children. My 4th grader sounds a lot like your son. He reads well above his grade level, but is not interested in reading. Stories have to grab his attention immediately and hold it, or he won't bother. Here are their recommendations. All of these are fairly quick reads:
The first book of the Sisters Grimm series, The Fairytale Detectives, is relatively short, a quick read, and lots of fun. Plus if he does get interested there's an entire series he can follow up with.
Would his teacher accept a report on a graphic novel? (I would, but some teachers will not. You'll need to ask. I find well-written, well-drawn graphic novels to be a great gateway for reluctant readers.) If so, try the Amulet series. The first book is called The Stone Keeper. These are richly illustrated, well-written, and interesting.
Has he read How To Train Your Dragon? The reading level may be a little simple, but the story is original, engaging, and quite funny. And it is very short, which could be helpful if your son is still dragging his feet about doing this as you get closer to his deadline.
Lloyd Alexander's The Book of Three is brilliant. It is short, well-written, entertaining, and thought-provoking. It is based on the folklore of Wales, and along with a great story provides a chance to reflect on what actually makes someone a hero. It is a stand-alone story, but is part of a five book series, The Prydain Chronicles, so if you son does end up liking it, there's more.
Time Cat, also by Lloyd Alexander, is a more light-hearted time travel fantasy. A boy discovers that his cat can travel through time and goes with him for adventures. You see, cats do have 9 lives, but what that means in the story is that they can travel between lives in 9 different time periods.
My daughter recommends Coraline and The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. My son has not read them yet, so I don't know how well they would fly with a reluctant reader.
Another thought - how would you (and his teacher) feel about reinforcing/supplementing his reading by allowing him to listen to parts of the book on CD? This is a tool I used to help my son get happy about reading, and for us, it was very helpful.
Good luck!
Time Warp Trio books
Zak Files
Have fun!! I hope these books put the fun back in reading for your son!!!
at that age my son loved the following series
ranger appretice (there are bout 10 or 12 of these books)
gregor the overlander (I think 5 of these)
redwall (loads of these)
charlie bone (5 or 6)
harry potter (7)
percy jackson
eragon (I think there are 3 of these)
Don't assume that just because the books are long he won't be able to read them. When he finds the right series he will inhale them.
"The Guardians of Ga'Hoole" is a great series....
You can't go wrong with the Myth Adventures books by Robert Aspirin.
"Another Fine Myth" is the first book and it's hilarious and punny.
http://www.goodreads.com/series/42225-myth-adventures
Read through the rubric about what he's suppose to do for the report.
Have him read several 3-5 chapters per night (more on weekends), then have him make an outline, answer what's required, flesh out the paragraphs then have him write out his final version or type it up if that is allowed.
Keep him on task and shoot to have it finished several days before the due date.
If he's done early and something needs fixing then he has time to fix it.
If he waits till the last minute then it won't be his best work.
A couple of weeks is plenty of time to to get a book read and a report completed.
Can he read a Greek myth? D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths is filled with short stories of the myths. Your son could browse this book, find a myth he is interested in and then find another full book up to 100 pages that expands on the story. Also, Jane Yolen has a series of Young Merlin books. You could try him with those.
My son read The Hunger Games trilogy last year in grade five. The first book was the quickest read of the three. It is definitely action/fantasy.
