MAUS for a 12 year old reluctant reader?

[farrowandballs]

My nephew is 12. He has been through a lot (mother left), has an older sister (16), whom he is very close to, and he is very bright (G&T for maths and science). But he's a reluctant reader. I want to get him the Maus graphic novels for xmas but I'm not sure if it's too much. I LOVED them but I was older (in my 20s) when I read them. But I think they're so important! I got him 3 of the Artemis Fowl books last year but he didn't bother with them (computer games addict). He plays COD and I feel this might provide a sort of psychic counter vibe to all that dissociating experience... (I almost want to ask AIBU)!!!
Any thoughts or alternative ideas gratefully considered.
thanks

doesn't he like the Diary of Wimpy Kid?
there are quite few to make it into a set

Thanks for replying! I don't know, happyA. His mum is my Dsis so I have to be honest and say I don't know what he's in to because I just don't see him that often. Just that I know he's bright and old for his years but also, from speaking to him, a little prone to dissociation and flight into computergameland. I just thought MAUS would give him some perspective and empathy? What's Diary of a Wimpy Kid about ( and woudl he not interpret that as me saying he was a wimpy kid? :)

no , it is the most loved book which I think has been made into www.imdb.com/title/tt1196141/

my son owns and loves every single of them (he is 12) but my daughter who is 14 reads them too

iot is very hard to make boys like reading, you have to be watching them and encourage

would he maybe like the idea of owning a Kobe or a Kindle, you coul set him an account and top up with money he can spend there?

I can also recommend much loved by my son Percy Jackson - series of 5

my kids never got into Artemis Fowl books

what I did for my son when he was younger - I got them one by one Harry Potter books read by Stephen Fry

so he heard them first, then watched films and now he is reading them one by one - at last ;)

my best advice - take him with you to the bookshop, a big one

go with him to a book sectio nfor the kids and let him roam ;)

tell him he has say £20 to spend, do not criticise - he will lead you , you can suggest - but let him make the final choice

those trips helped my son as he had no pressure he was given something he was finding too hart to read, allow say up to 2 hours for that visit, and then take him for a cake and hot chocolate to the cafe where you both can read your books and share your thoughts ;)

in fact - Dairy of Wimpy kid is a series of books ;)

I would have thought Diary of a Wimpy Kid was a bit too young to be honest. My children (11 and 12) like re-reading them, but first read them when they were 8 or so. I think you might run the risk of potentially offending him.

I've not seen the Maus novels, but a graphic novel sounds like a great idea to me (and I understand your feelings on COD).

Maus is a wonderful book, my DS read it when he was in Y8.
I agree with releasing him into a book shop and letting him choose, and not being critical of whatever he picks. It has to come from his own interests if he is going to read by choice, and I think it is great that you are trying to encourage him.
COD?
Has he tried these? My DS enjoyed them.

www.amazon.co.uk/soldiers-Childrens-Andy-McNab-Books/s?ie=UTF8&keywords=Soldiers&rh=n%3A69%2Ck%3ASoldiers%2Cp_lbr_books_authors_browse-bin%3AAndy%20McNab&page=1

The Alex Ryder series by Anthony Horowitz is another possibility.

My dd was a reluctant reader (a bit younger, started at 8) so I got lots of audiobooks out of the library for her and loaded them onto her ipod. Also let her check out lots of graphic novels out of library (they're quite expensive to buy). It was a real miracle worker. She now (age 9) reads all the time (still listens to her audiobooks too). It also turned out that she needed glasses. It was a very slight prescription (optometrist said that she wouldn't normally prescribe for that age, but since she was complaining that reading was tiring, she felt glasses would be helpful). And they were.
Might be worth getting your nephew's eyes tested by a good quality optometrist.

My 12 yo requested the latest Diary of a Wimpy kid for Christmas and he is reading other books too, but maybe other children will feel offended if it was the main present.

It probably depends on why the nephew is a reluctant reader. If he struggles technically then something like Wimpy Kid might appeal, but if he thinks books are boring, or for little kids then they might not go down so well. I have to admit that my ds would probably like the latest Wimpy Kid for Christmas, but I think he should be reading something more challenging now, and have told him he can get it from the library. But then he is not (although he certainly was) a reluctant reader.

My ds is not allowed to play COD, but is a Halo fan, and read all the Halo books (which I suspect are quite trashy) which I suppose might be an option but I think the OP wants to give a book that encourages her nephew to be more thoughtful.

I would have thought Maus is potentially a bit heavy for a 12 year old- obviously it depends on the individual of course. What sort of stories dies he generally like (eg on telly / film)? I do think a graphic novel or comic can be a great way of encouraging a reluctant reader - or a non reluctant one too, I loved and still love comics and was never reluctant at reading!

Other graphic novels I can recommend: Persepolis, about growing up in Iran just as the Ayatollah came to power (the protagonist is a girl which he may or may not like, but the themes are universal); Laika, about the dog sent into space (very sad at the end), and I'll think of others shortly I know.

*does not dies!

If he likes maths and science, he might find Logicomix challenging and interesting - it is a graphic novel about Bertrand Russell, a number of other logicians, and the search for logical certainty.

There is also a graphic novel of the first one or two Alex Rider books.

Logicomix sounds fascinating. I might look out for that for ds. I can't believe someone has made a graphic novel about Betrand Russell!!

Yes, it's astounding that someone thought it was a good idea and then actually did it! It is actually a great book, really well done, very readable, very interesting, very well told, but I am also astounded that it ever got made at all, sort of thing.

wow thanks for all this help. sorry i went ahead straight after writing the post and bought something else entirely: my skateboard life by a guy whose posters i remember from the manchester club scene of my own misspent youth
he's into skating so I'm hoping he'll enjoy it...

I read Maus at 13 and I'm very glad that I did!

If he plays a lot of violent computer games then I'm sure he can cope with Maus.

The hard part with kids and books nowadays is persuading them to turn off the xbox and start reading! Once he gets into it though I reckon he'll love it.

Haz

Oh wow! Thanks for the link, farrow - I was wondering yesterday what to buy for my 11 yr old nephew, who is also into skateboarding! I'm sure he won't have that, definitely one to get.

I'd recommend the Cherub series for reluctant readers. Both my boys couldn't put them down.

What did you get in the end?

I got the MAUS book for my kids - they both are looking forward to reading it ;)

comixminx - did you get your copy of my skateboard life? Mine still hasn't arrived. Ended up amazonpriming a copy of Maus for Dneph at the eleventh hour. Not sure if he has read it yet/will ever read it but I feel at peace with my decision.