Book recommendations for 8 year old DS

[applepudding]

Can anybody recommend suitable books for my 8 year old DS? He is now probably about average for his age in reading (due to begin Y4), although he didn't really begin to 'get it' properly until end of Y2.

He has read all 'Horrid Henry' series, 'Secret Seven' series, a couple of Roald Dahl and has just started a series about 'Marvin Redpost'.

I've just been on a thread in AIBU re Enid Blyton books and somebody commented that it was sad that an 8 year old now was having to read books written in the 50's because we couldn't find any more recently which interested him. I totally agree with this.
However, we have started so many books from the library and which he has brought back from school which just haven't kept his interest. He doesn't like 'Captain Underpants' which somebody previously recommended to me (and I don't either)and has tried some Jeremy Strong books but found some difficult to understand.

Any ideas please?

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MNHQ Update
This is an old thread, but if you’ve come across it while searching for book recommendations for your child, our guide to the best books for eight-year-olds has been recently updated to reflect current availability and new releases. It includes a wide range of tried, tested and approved-by-Mumnsetters recommendations, from classic tales to the latest five-star reads. We hope it’s helpful!

Ds1 is keen on the Willard Price books (various Adventure books) and is addicted to Asterix.

My dd liked the Lionboy series (she's 7, first read to her as bedtime stories, but she then read them herself), and I'd think they'd appeal to a boy (adventure stories and the main character is a boy).
She also likes the Cressida Cowell How to Train your Dragon books, first passed on to her by a boy and the books about a boy called I think Akimbo having adventures in Africa by Alexander McCall Smith.

Mine liked Dick King-Smith at that age. Plus the dreadful 'Captain Underpants'! Sort of one extreme to the other - cute animal stories and rock-bottom toilet humour. Still... variety is the spice of life!

Ds started the Goosebumps series of books when he was 7. He was going through a ghost and monster phase so he enjoyed them!

Jiggy McCue series, Astrosaurus series, Cows in Action series, Jack Stalwart series. also Goosebumps as mentioned already. All devoured by my 8 year old, and often on 'Buy 2 get 3rd free' offer.

The great thing about Goosebumps is that if they enjoy one, you can go out and buy more as there are loads of them. I find when ds enjoys a book he wants to read part 2 and part 3 and then he gets fed up that there is no part 4. He read Eragon 1 and 2 and was waiting for part 3 to be published but the author hadn't even finished writing it so he followed his website for news and we bought it the first day it was out!

Genie Us- Linda Chapman & Steve Cole- long but worth it!

Anything by Alex Cliff (Linda Chapman writes under this name for boys)- Superpowers and the like.

Horrible Histories? Or too old?

Non-fiction- the set of Little Encyclopedias by Usborne are fantastic!

we are in dragon quest so just behind you
we read emil and the detetcives, famous five, dint like the stupid dragon ones

Artemis Fowl? Might be a little old for him, but I'm not sure (I don't have an 8yo DS). CS Lewis?

DS liked the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. And has also just finished 3 Dirty Bertie ones.

Has a bookshelf of stuff I have bought that he won't read though!

thanks for your suggestions - we will look for some of these next time we visit the library.

DS does like non-fiction by the way - books about sport and dinosaurs - but I like him to have mix of fiction and non-fiction.

The Hank Zipzer series by Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver.

The Cressida Cowell 'Hiccup' books my DS recommends.

I think Artemis Fowl might be a bit old, but Eion Colfer has written the Spud Murphy books which are very good.

Also Michael Morpurgo. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

+1 for Jiggy McQue and the Wimpy Kid.