As a boy, one of my favorite times in school was when we’d get a new Scholastic News book “catalog.” I would pour over the pages picking out which books I wanted and filling out the order sheet. And as soon I got them, I was lying under the covers with my nose buried in a book.
Unfortunately, not all boys have that kind of enthusiasm for reading. For several decades now, boys have scored lower on reading assessment tests than girls. Boys also take longer to learn to read than girls, are less likely to actually read and to value reading, and are more likely to label themselves as “non-readers” (up to 50% of high school age boys consider themselves as such). Non-reading boys do poorer academically and end up as non-reading men (women read almost twice as many books as men).
What’s the problem? Some of it may be biological (boys’ language skills develop slower that girls). But a lot of it is sociological. Boys may see reading as a passive and thus sissy activity. Boys also lack male reading mentors-their librarians and teachers are often female, and it’s mom that reads to them. And in the name of gender-neutrality, teachers are foisting books on boys that they simply do not like.
But parents are to blame too, often trying to make their sons read “important books” to build their character. Dad loved some long tome as a boy and wants junior to come to an equal apprectation of it.
But reading experts all agree that boys need to be allowed to pick the books that really interest them. Of course it’s okay to make suggestions to your son about things he might like-boys very much value the opinion of other boys and men in making their reading selections. So here are 50 books that many boys and young men will really love. We’ve included some classics, but we also threw in some more modern and accessible choices-after all, not every boy has the desire or the aptitude to dive into Dickens.
Finally, while we had boys about the ages of 9-15 in mind when we made this list, I’ve always considered the distinction between adult and young adult literature to be an unfortunate and artificial one. Putting together this list I remembered just how good these books are, and I can’t wait to read them again as a man. Whether you’re 12 or 52, grab one of these books and a bag of cookies and head out to the treehouse.
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Pretty much every boy’s favorite book. When the pilot of the small plane of which he is a passenger crash lands in the Canadian wilderness, 13 year old Brian Robeson must survive with only his wits and a hatchet. Utterly alone, Brian must learn to rely on himself. Gripping and vividly told, every boy pictures himself in Brian’s shoes and wonders whether he would have what it takes to survive.
A Separate Peace by John Knowles
Set at a boys prep school on the eve of World War II, A Separate Peace centers on the friendship of Phineas and Gene. Phineas’ seeming perfection creates a jealously in Gene that results in a tragedy that will forever change both of their lives. A piercing look at both the light and the shadows of friendship and humanity. Every boy wishes he were Finny but knows he’s more like Gene. This book has stuck with me ever since reading it as a young man and remains one of my favorite until to this day.
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Take Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book, replace the jungle with a graveyard and the animals with ghosts and you’ve got Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book. The book begins with the mention of the murder of a family, but quickly moves on from there and is not a gruesome tale inappropriate for youngsters. The sole survivor of the murder is an 18 month old baby, who toddles away to a graveyard. Here the cemetery’s ghosts and ghouls adopt the boy, give him a name (“Nobody” as he’s like nobody else in the graveyard), protect him from the still on the loose killer, and teach him the life lessons that only the dead can know. It’s takes a graveyard to raise a child, and the cemetery is a great home, but eventually Bod, as they call him, must deal with the world outside of its borders. Spooky, magical, and engrossing, it’s a must for all boys who like ghost stories (so pretty much all boys). Be sure to check out Gaiman’s other great books like Neverwhere and Anasi Boys.
The American Boy’s Handy Book by Daniel C. Beard
Long before The Dangerous Book for Boys became all the rage , there was the American Boy’s Handy Book. Every father and grandfather should have this on his shelf, waiting there for a boy to pull it off and start leafing through. Dozens of awesome (and unlike another book, some actually dangerous) hands on projects for boys to tackle from how to build kites and forts to how to rear wild birds and trap animals. Originally published in 1882 and still a must for every boy today.
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
The story of a boy who’s boring life is interrupted by the appearance of something strange and unusual that transports him to a magical place. It’s a premise that underlies a myriad of children’s books, but few are as creatively constructed as The Phantom Tollbooth. Young Milo finds a tollbooth in his room, gets in his toy car and drives into another dimension. Boys will love the strange adventures Milo experiences, while older kids and adults can enjoy the witty satire and clever puns.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
One of the great American novels. Young Huck Finn escapes from his abusive father by taking off on a raft down the Mississippi River. He is joined by Jim, an escaped slave. The two set off on a grand adventure full of close calls and interesting characters. With both wit, action, and fun, coupled with an undercurrent of serious themes, Huck Finn is a multi-layered masterpiece for young and old.
The Last Mission by Harry Mazer
The classic tale of the collision of a boy’s idealistic view of war with it’s ugly reality. Yet the book manages to avoid being a tired cliche. 15 year old Jack Raab lies his way into the Army Air Force and finds himself flying bombing missions over occupied territory. On his 25th mission, his last mission before being sent home, his plane is shot down, and he is taken prisoner in a German POW camp. A fictional story and an easy read, but historically accurate and realistic in its details. Be sure to check out other books by Harry Mazer; his A Boy at War series is a painless way to teach boys some history.
The First Edition of the Boy Scout Handbook
If you have a son in Scouts, he’ll definitely dig this book. Today’s Scout manual is definitely watered down compared to the first edition. The first edition manual is crammed with info on tracking and trapping animals, building shelters from scratch, and sailing. Additionally, it has stories of bravery and adventure that inspire boys to be great men. Something today’s manual is sorely lacking.
Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
Known as a war book, The Red Badge of Courage is really a coming of age story set on the battlefield. Young Henry Fleming leaves his mother to fight for the Union Army. His question of whether or not he’ll have the courage to stand and fight is answered in the negative when he flees from his first skirmish. Fleming resolves to redeem himself during the next battle. A story not only of the tragedy of war, but the struggle to replace pride, weakness, and rationalization with bravery and personal honesty.
Watership Down by Richard Adams
One of my favorite books as a boy-who knew the lives of rabbits could be so engrossing? I’m sure it’s rife with rich symbolism and whatnot to mull over, but it’s one of those books that creates a world so rich and evocative that it’s best to let yourself get totally wrapped up in it instead of constantly searching for deeper meaning. When a prophetic rabbit correctly foretells that their warren will be destroyed, a band of rabbits travel in search of a new home and encounter dangerous and interesting obstacles along the way. Some authors can’t make human characters as interesting as these rabbits.
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Books I enjoyed as a kid included “The Great Brain” series by John Dennis Fitzgerald, and the Tom Swift Jr. books (very similar to the Hardy Boys, but with many high-tech toys).
+1 for the Count of Montecristo – probably not a book to get someone interested in reading, but a great adventure story. Picked this one up around 8th grade, because it was the biggest book in the library, but it held my interest to the end.
Tom Brown – both his nature books and personal biographies
Ray Bradbury – Martian Chronicles are the best for boys, IMO. Originally printed in Playboy, but since collected into books more likely to be found in the school library
I’ve been trying to figure out which Knights of the Round Table I read as a boy forever and I finally did! Thanks for including this in the list– I was actually hoping that you put it on there for boys. Incidentally– the manly man with the manly mustache John Steinbeck had this to say of King Arthur and his knights which I absolutely agree with:
“My feeling of nobless oblige, and any thought I may have against the opressor and for the oppressed came from this secret book.”
If you’re mentioning Heinlein, why not _Have Spacesuit, Will Travel_? A young man finds a way to get a spacesuit, and from there . . .
100 comments already, but I can’t help but add “By the Great Horn Spoon!” I loved that book growing up. A young boy and his butler sneak off to California during the Gold Rush to find their treasure. I loved that book growing up.
A recent discovery, which I would recommend for both boys and girls, is Arthur Ransome’s “Swallows and Amazons” series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swallows_and_Amazons). There are 12 books in the series, written mostly in the 1930′s.
Every single book by Roald Dahl is pure gold. Danny the Champion of the World and Fantastic Mr. Fox are fabulous too:)
all quiet on the western front?
catcher in the rye?
the great gatsby?
it’s like this cat?
johnny tremain?
kidnapped?
Wow–someone else remembers The Great Brain series? Man, I hadn’t thought of those in AGES. LOVED ‘EM!
Without reading all the other comments, I have to add that I enjoyed the “Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators” series better than the Hardy Boys, and pretty much any of Heinlein’s “juveniles” are ones I still re-read over and over again today.
“And in the name of gender-neutrality, teachers are foisting books on boys that they simply do not like.”
I don’t think gender-neutrality plays too much of a role as to why boys don’t read – the majority of books ARE written for young boys. Trust me, it’s much, much harder to find a book for a young woman that treats her as intelligent, adventurous, and courageous than it is to find a similar book for a young man. Some boys simply won’t read a book without a male protagonist while girls are more likely to just appreciate a good story – female authors know this. Just ask Hinton, Lowry, Banks, and George. When J.K. Rowling began the Harry Potter books, she was a single mother with a young daughter – why are the books not about Harriet Potter?
Other than that minor quibble, great list. Many books on here my father enjoyed, I enjoyed, and now my kids do too.
Rumble Fish should be there for sure!
Also liked the Hitch Hiker Guide to the Galaxy at a young age even though you might miss some of the references..
Great list….Thanks for reminding me of My Side of the Mountain. Loved that book and am going to track it down again. Couple of of other suggestions:
Call it Courage by Armstrong Perry – flat out my favorite book until I was about 12 or 13.
A Day in the Life Of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn
Papillon by Henri Charriere – read it in the 7th grade when I bought it through the school book catalog. Led to some great conversations with my father and his seven brothers.
Tarzan of the Apes – Read the story and find out about the real Tarzan. The entire series is great and veers off into serious sci fi and fantasy territory. Pretty much anything by Edgar Rice Burroughs is great.
later.
While this is a pretty good list, a lot of the older titles are a REALLY hard sell, at least at the middle school. Howard Pyle? The Chocolate War? I’ve had boys return these with a mistrustful gleam in their eyes. No Anthony Horowitz or Gordon Korman? Thanks for the list, though– it’s always good to have other opinions.
Has anyone mentioned The Yearling by Marjorie k. Rawlings? One the best coming-of-age and boy-and-animal books out there. And what about Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli? And the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, although new, deserve to be on every boy’s list.
No Ayn Rand?
I started reading Louis Lamour when I was in 4th grade. They are great books and I even read the walking drum to my son while my wife was still pregnant with him!. He got to the point where he would start kicking and “sword fighting” as I put whenever I started to read it at nights!!!
Martian Chronicles is number one. Maniac McGee is number two (even better for younger boys). And though its not fiction I really like 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens which really inspired me, taught me a lot and entertained me.
Hatchet and Ender’s Game are absolutely essential too so thanks for including them.
Hatchet and Ender’s Game are absolutely essential too so thanks for including them. Really, any Gary Paulsen books are excellent. And the Adventures of Doctor Doolittle will rock the socks off any boy, or person in general. The book, so vastly different in setting and quality, completely puts the movie to shame and doesn’t have a bunch of annoying innuendos and tawdry humor.
The first edition of the Boy Scouts Manual is available for free from Project Gutenberg here: http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/29558
I always got a kick out of the Encyclopedia Brown Series. Good young detective books and a little more readable than The Hardy Boys for younger kids.
I have to say that I love seeing the books that I loved as a kid on this list. The Chronicles of Narnia were my favorite. I’ve probably read them each at least five times. James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory were two that I loved also. Roald Dahl had such a way with writing that made me feel like I was actually in the story. I wish young men would pick up books again and read. I think if those of who want to live as true men mentor the next generation to be real men, the future will be a good deal brighter.
I didn’t see this one listed, but “Nick of Time” by Ted Bell is a very new book that was written to inspire adventure in young boys. My 11 year old son and myself really enjoyed the book. It is a good page turner.
For Boys who love Baseball you have to try any books by Matt Christopher like the Home Run King.
If you like Hardy Boys you may like the Tom Swift books.
I’ve read most of these as a child, a lot of others that aren’t on the list, but we all have different influences.
I’m really surprised that The Hatchet was on the list. I thought that was the biggest waste of 48hrs I’ve ever had. Then again I was forced to put down The Hobbit and read it in grade 7. The thought that a 13 year old kid didn’t know how to survive by himself irritated me. I’d been spending weekends up in the woods behind my house since I was 10 and building fires since I was 7. The fact that it took him a week to figure out that you had to put the spear into the water first is what really got me though. It’s like the kid never took a science class or observed the world around him. And yes, 15 years later I still hold this resentment. The book irritated me that much.
The Space Trilogy by CS Lewis is awesome and has good Christian meaning.
-Out of the Silent Planet
-Perelandra
-That Hideous Strength
Wonderful mix of modern and classic books for boys. I look forward to turning to it when my 12-year-old is looking for his next read.
I would say that some of my favorites would be:
White Fang by Jack London.
The Earthsea Triology by LeGuin.
Later it became anything by Dean Koonts, Cussler and L’amour.
I agree with the Louis Lamour post, the “Last of the Breed” is an amazing story of the adventure/survival type for any teenage boy. Also, Lamour’s shourt stories are excellent in the way that he truthfully protrays life in many aspects. Mainly, because he lived through many of the settings. “Education of a Wandering Man” is a great book for anyone to read that really had a hard time in school because he shows that not everything you learn in life is learned in school (as society would have you think, nowadays). Life is out there for learning, enjoy it.
i love the tarzan book its great babe xx]
I read “My Side of the Mountain” three or four times! Great book. I think I could read it again today and I’m 52 years old.
i appreciate your list. regarding c.s. lewis and the chronicles of narnia…so what if it is a christian allegory. jesus was about as manly as it gets. the dude took a beating, a roman flogging, and extreme body trauma that would have made any dude whimper like a girl scout….what’s more is that he didn’t have to, but chose to for the salvation of man. very manly if you ask me….
You have many good listings, but should also include the Historical Fiction collection of G. A. Henty. These are now in public domain and can be obtained from Project Guttenberg or from Amazon.com as Kindle edition e-Books.
Great list…but how can you have a list of books for boys and not have any books by G. A. Henty. Unthinkable!
John Christopher’s “Tripods” series was all the rage back when I was in sixth grade:
The White Mountains, The City of Gold and Lead, and The Pool of Fire.
A great sci-fi adventure about growing up, camaraderie, and the ultimate sacrifice.
Also recommend Ray Bradbury’s The Halloween Tree for similar reasons.
Eh, sorry no booklist on a site with “manliness” in the title that lacks a single Hemingway novel is a sham. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? You mean you couldn’t have even mentioned “farewell to arms” or “death in the afternoon”? Needs more “manly” books.
Notable omissions:
The Education of Little Tree, by Forrest Carter (on my personal list, that would be #1)
Alongside Night, by J. Neil Schulman
Wildside, Jumper, and Helm by Steven Gould
Red Planet and The Star Beast by Robert Heinlein
The Warrior’s Apprentice, and other Miles Vorkosigan novels by Lois McMaster Bujold
Ender’s Shadow and most of the other sequels to Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
The Once and Future King by T.H. White
Santiago, by Mike Resnick
Norstrillia, and The Best of Cordwainer Smith, by Cordwainer Smith
H.M.S. Ulysses, by Alistair MacLean
This may be a book list for boys, but it contains most of MY favorite books. I can’t believe it’s got The Thief of Always on it! I read that book out loud to my 6th and 7th graders over and over–always their favorite book. I also taught Ender’s Game to 9th graders. Now you’ve given me a few more to find and devour. The only one I agree is actually just a “boys” book is Lord of the Flies. I hate that book.
Wow. All 5 pages and not one G. A. Henty novel. I fondly remember reading Louis L’Amour’s western novels and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Holmes mysteries. I also think Stephen Lawhead’s Pendragon Cycle is a better telling of the Arthur legend, although perhaps better for older readers.
Robert Ruarke’s “The Old Man And The Boy” would be a great addition to your list. And the follow-up “The Old Man’s Boy Grows Older”. Thanks for the list.
G.A. Henty wrote a very lengthy list of accurate historical novels especially for boys, ranging from the Punic Wars up through the late 1800′s. Also a genius new author, N.D. Wilson has published a trilogy that brings the magic of British authors like Tolkein and C.S. Lewis here to American boys through the main character, Henry York. The three titles are 100 Cupboards, Dandelion Fire, and Chestnut King. Which reminds me to mention N.D. Wilson’s first book, Leepike Ridge, the adventures of a 12 year old boy who inadvertently ends up stuck in a cave (the ordeal of which has a feel of Homer’s Odyssey). Which leads me to say that the Illiad and the Odyssey ought also to be on a boy’s reading list.
Against the Fall of Night (or The City and the Stars) by Arthur C. Clarke are great too!
For those who think “Hatchet” or “My Side of the Mountain” are not relatable for urban or suburban boys now, “Slake’s Limbo” is a story similar to My Side in which a kid runs away to live in the subways of NYC.
http://www.carolhurst.com/titles/slakes.html
I feel compelled to add one more book to your excellent collection. ‘T-Model Tommy’ from Stephen W. Meader, had a great influence on my life during those periods when I was practicing entrepreneur. I date back to an era that includes the ‘Great Depression’, when there frequently weren’t any ‘all ready made jobs’ available.
This is a fascinating thread. Its introductory comments (“What’s the problem?”) are instructive to an old man like me. Part of the problem may be biological, i.e., today’s boys’ language skills develop slower that girls. Maybe it is sociological. Maybe boys see reading as a passive and thus sissy activity. Maybe boys lack male reading mentors-their librarians and teachers are often female, and it’s mom that reads to them. I wonder though.
I am in my early 70′s. I grew up in an era when, to use a cliche, “men were men.” WWII and Korea saw to that. But I learned to read by the time I was 5 years old. In fact, boys who couldn’t read were looked down upon by other boys. How could you know what was in the Sporting News or on that 78 RPM record label if you couldn’t read. When I wasn’t playing basketball, or football, or selling newspapers, I very often went to the local library.
Yes, the female librarian there recommended books, but she never forced any of them on me. (I liked her and thought she was cool because she smoked, always in the ladies room secretly, of course, never in the library proper. But I knew.) My parents watched what I read but never forced any books on me either.
Here are a few I sstill remember fondly. All are non-fiction works that I chose on my own to read. They are likely out of print (I understand Neider’s book was republished in 2000) and would be considered quaint by today’s standards.
High Conquest (The Story of Mountaineering) by James Ramsey Ullman. Great Shipwrecks and Castaways by Charles Neider. The Occident, and The Orient, both by the once famous but now forgotten explorer Richard Halliburton. Outdated? Perhaps. Spellbinding for a boy or a young man? Most definitely. Also, I read every issue of Popular Science and Popular Mechanics that I could “appropriate” from my older brothers.
Finally, a question: Great poetry is anything but unmanly, so shouldn’t some poetry be on this list? Probably not. It should be kept separate. But someday I would like to see a list of manly poems (or poets, or both) on this website. The WWI British poets would be a great starting point.
1984. Animal Farm. Brave New World. The Sovereignty of God. The Last Kingdom. Bones of the Hills. The South Was Right. That Devil Forest (Gen. NB Forest) A Good Man is Hard To Find.
The Education of Little Tree–Forrest Carter. (He also wrote the story of Josey Wales–not for young boys; and also “Watch For Me on the Mountain,” a can’t-put-it-down book on Geronimo. Little Tree is a fantastic book for boys–growing up as a Cherokee.
More Indian stories:
“The Story Catcher” and “The Horse Catcher”–both for boys, by the great author Mari Sandoz, who wrote “Cheyenne Automn”–not for boys.
I loved James Willard Schultz’s books of his life among the Blackfoot:
“My Life as an Indian,” “Blackfeet and Buffalo,” “Why Gone Those Times?,” and many more.
And his novel, “The Quest of the Fish-Dog Skin,” is perfect for boys. He is a great story teller. He did what a boy would dream of: left his home among stuffy New Englanders and went to live with the Indians.
A lot of boys like the OZ series, which is an American classic.
Oops–that should be “Cheyenne Autumn,” of course.
Other than the tripe by Lupica, it’s a great list. Happy to see Calvin & Hobbes included.
Whole-heartedly agree about poetry. Robert Service’s poems about the Yukon during the goldrush (Cremation of Dan Magee, etc) are as manly as anything I’ve ever read.
My favorite books as a boy were Robinson Crusoe and The Count of Monte Cristo.
Great list. I’d add Frank Miller’s “The Dark Knight Returns” as another great graphic novel. Batman! C’mon!
I have read quite a few american author books.
of course everyone has their own fav list.
Is E.Hemmingway / Somerst M / or the amazing vet books of James Herriot included in this list.
Herriot has been my fav series which i treasure.
Is Good Earth type books too young for kids to read, I read it when i was about 13 and it did leave an impression.
Thanks for the book list, I will browse in my local library / Gutenberg.
signing off from half way around the world
Regards
I would have expected to see the Harry Potter collection from J.K. Rowling mentioned. She has been attributed to have had an extraordinary influence on reading, both for boys as well as girls since the first volume was published.
I don’t know what it was about Hemingway’s the Old Man and the Sea that got my son reading by himself, but apparently I couldn’t read it fast enough for him and so he took it over until he finished it, he was about 9 years old then.
Also V.S Reid, the Young Warriors was a favorite of mine, which I read to all three of my kids as soon as they were old enough to understand, then they read it again and again on their own. It is a coming of age, clever resistance of young boys, story of honesty, integrity, forgiveness and overcoming personal weakness that I loved. Also nice to see a different kind of hero – this time from the Caribbean.
I’m a girl and I read The Graveyard book and loved it!!!! :)
I also read the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, Eragon series, Indiana Jones series, THE FIRE WITHIN series, Fablehaven series, Harry Potter series, and The 39 Clues series. :)
I personally find non fiction writing more satisfying
I find the library or second hand bookshops are great refuges of interestingness in towns and cities .there are plenty of all sorts of age groups in second hand bookshops including young men and nice girls too and charity shops where you get great stuff for very little money , there are some gems there if you look diligently and hard enough
reading is a great way to relax and learn about the world and can be a great sorce of empowerment and education
in my local secondhand bookshop
there are plenty of ‘lads’ there hanging out talking ,playin chess or whatever
the library ios also a great place to find out whats happening in your local area
including other actiovities , groups and possibilities of education
my local also has dvds to borrow now
I got ‘ the magnificent seven ‘ recently
now that would be a movie to recommend to young men
I’m usually thrilled by the selection of books in secondhand shops
and the value for money is unbelievable, one visit can keep you goin’ for months
reading is definitley way to learn and relax
and it improves your ability to articulate what you want to say
your writing and oratory skills
I’d recommend this guys stuff for empowerment and self suffiency
he grew up without a father and a recoverted alcoholic but over came it and became a self made succcesful man and geat modern teacher
http://www.drwaynedyer.com/
and after all the internet is about reading and writing anyway
reading is a cosier easier less stressed /pressurised way to study and learn
and there this social network for readers
http://www.goodreads.com/
worth checkin out
must be on my way
things to take care of elsewhere
take it easy
good luck everyone
I’ve started collecting books from both this list and the 100 Manly Books list.
Out of all the selected pieces I’ve read so far (about 10, considering I’m only 14), I must say that Ender’s Game found its way to becoming my new favorite.
These are great selections, and I hope to keep reading more of them and eventually finding a suggestion for them. Thanks.
Great List! If you’re having trouble getting your son to read try the Alex Rider Series by Anthony Horowitz. My son couldn’t put these down and would request the next one as soon as he was done with one. The key to getting your kids to read is finding what genre they enjoy reading. As a rule my son reads tons of non-fiction stuff – trains, planes, cars, etc. When he was younger he hated fiction and never wanted to read. Thank goodness I figured out he loves non-fiction. Now he reads both and reads all the time!
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