Last summer I posed an unfair question to my 10-year-old son, Sebastian. “What’s your favorite book series?” I asked, expecting a detailed explanation of one of the half dozen series I knew he was into that month.
He looked me in the eye, and deadpanned: “Who’s your favorite child?”
Touché. As he rightly implied, picking a favorite book series is like picking a favorite child. You love each one for who or what they are, you admire different things about them, and you’re willing to accept their imperfections as part of the overall, wonderful package.
Tween and teen readers today are fortunate to have many more options than I recall from my youth, ranging from historical fiction to graphic novels to fantasy, a genre that appeals to all three kids in my house: Sebastian, 13-year-old Louisa, and 8-year-old Elias.
Gail Nordstrom, youth services librarian at the Stillwater Public Library, says all metro area public libraries and some in greater Minnesota have a new online tool called NoveListK-8Plus that people can use to find books in a certain category, or to find books similar to ones they like.
She encourages kids and parents to ask local library staff for suggestions, and not be intimidated because the librarian is sitting behind a desk. “Sometimes people think, ‘I’m going to be interrupting,’ but that is our job,” she says.
What’s popular? Nordstrom says she’s continually asked for suggestions for adventures, mysteries, humorous books, and “good stories well told” — books like Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book that don’t fit easily into one category.
Titles in graphic format are wildly popular and are a great draw for reluctant readers, Nordstrom says. Informational books with beautiful photographs and detailed illustrations are also hits with readers of all abilities.
“I’m afraid too often well-intentioned parents will lead kids to novels when what kids really want to read is nonfiction,” she says.
Barbara Sippel, youth services supervisor at the St. Paul Central Library, says sometimes fiction can lead readers to nonfiction topics. When the library had a party last summer highlighting Percy Jackson & the Olympians, a mythology-based series by Rick Riordan, the staff created displays of mythology books, which attracted the interest of both parents and kids. “It’s great to read for entertainment, but when that leads to something else, that’s a positive thing, too,” she says.
Fantasy remains popular, and many Harry Potter fans have moved on to series like Percy Jackson, The Ranger’s Apprentice by John Flanagan, and Warriors by Erin Hunter.
For mystery lovers, Sippel recommends the Enola Holmes series by Nancy Springer, about the sister of Sherlock Holmes. Historical fiction for teens is a growing category and includes acclaimed titles like Laurie Halse Anderson’s Chains, about a slave girl during the American Revolution. “The main character is so well-drawn, you were rooting for her right from the beginning,” Sippel says.
Another trend Nordstrom has noticed is the creation of book-related websites. These allow kids to keep in touch with their favorite characters, like the protagonist of Jeff Kinney’s Diary of A Wimpy Kid, (which started as a web site) while waiting for the next book in the series.
Asked recently what makes for a good book, Sebastian looked up from one of the Brian Jacques’ Redwall books he was rereading.
“It should also have fighting or some kind of action, and puzzles the characters have to solve; things can’t go smoothly,” he says. “And a little bit of love here and there doesn’t hurt.”
Well put, Seb. I’m proud to claim you as one of my three favorite children.
Joy Riggs doesn’t play favorites, but she is fond of Harry Potter and of the Betsy-Tacy series she read and reread in her youth.
