books for 8yo DS with reading age of 15

[darleneoconnor]

DS had his reading assessed at school and he's done much better then I had expected. I knew he was a bit ahead but he doesn't like 'language' so I didn't expect too much. he prefers non-fiction to fiction but I'd welcome some appropriate suggestions on either. I dont mind him reading some things tht are a bit above his age as he is quite streetwise and pre-teenish in his behaviour/outlook but I'd imagine that 15+ books would have unsuitable themes in them.

Just see what he enjoys reading - a reading age of 15 means he can read pretty much anything, so getting him to like reading and want to read is much more important than finding books which are technically at the 'right' level.

I was reading the Hobbit and Watership Down etc at age 5 or 6; I can't remember exactly what I was reading at age 8, but I know that as well as lots of fairly challenging stuff (including plenty of non-fiction) I was also racing through and enjoying plenty of books which were officially too easy for me, like the Enid Blyton school stories and the Willard Price adventure stories.

IME books aimed at 15 year olds will not be of interest to an 8-year-old, and would contain a lot of inappropriate stuff. Things aimed more at 9-12 year olds would probably be more exciting for him to read, and not really easy, eg Anthony Horowitz, Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, Eoin Colfer etc? And for more challenging vocab but appropriate content, I'd look for non-fiction books about subjects he's interested in - the Dorling Kindersley ranges are great.

You have the perfect chance to introduce him to some classics and, at 8, you're probably still reading to him at bedtime so try Huckleberry Finn, Swallows and Amazons, The Eagle of the Ninth.

Just William has got some fantastic vocabulary.

very difficult to advise
my daughter was in the same situation and I had a nightmare in finding books suitable for her
i.e topics for her age

as a boy he may enjoy Horrible Histories/Science?Geography

all 3 books by David Walliams

Terry Pratchett children's books (Truckers etc.) would lead nicely into the main Discworld series as he gets a little older. The children's book are really fun and even the adult ones are pretty clean (although some of the ideas are a bit complex).

Does he have to always read books which are "challenging"?

Both my boys (aged 6 and 8) are pretty good readers, but I let them read what they want to read. This might be something quite "heavy" eg a 400+ page classic like King Arthur, or something easier like Mr Gum or Roald Dahl.

I'm quite a good reader too and sometimes I want to read great works of fiction but at other times I just want a bestseller to curl up with after a long day at work.

I take my DC to the library, that way they can choose whatever they like, from whatever age group's shelf.

My son loves the Discworld books. Also the Skulduggery Pleasant series are great.

You could also just post this in primary if you want more recommendations.

Ds1 was exactly the same at 7. But he was not gifted. Just very bright.
You may get a wider range of responses if you post in mainstream education.

Ds1 liked lots of classics like treasure island. And things like the hobbit and lots of factual books like the bill Bryson book of everything(can't remember the name) and poetry actually.

Just keep him away from teen real issues fiction.

I expanded my reading at that time because if in doubt I read it first

Children of the New Forest
The Children's Crusade
The Boy with the Bronze Axe

I read and loved all these at 8.

Thanks for the responses!

I've shown him this thread and he's recognised some of the authors and says he'll read the ones he hasn't already.

So I'm off to the charity shops to have a rummage.

Hitchhikers Guide to Galaxy series
Dr. Who novels
tbh, I have stupidly long list of "suitable" books for my 11yo DS, many of which may well be suitable for age 8, too. I've gleaned them from here and other websites. You can PM me and I will forward unless ppl want me to post it all here.

Eva Ibbotson books really good for a challenging but fun read. Would also look to the classics - treasure island, The hobbit, Oliver Twist, Great Expectations.

Also Phillip Pulman books.

Good to develop breath of understanding at this age and go for variety rather than just harder books on a similar theme.

Don;t go for the classics unless you want to put him off completely - too boring for an 8 year old. Honestly - none of us read them as children, apart from the ones we were forced to read at school - whatever we tell ourselves and others now!

Try Anthony Horowitz ad Charlie Higson. My ds enjoys PG Wodehouse (but he needs to have watched some Jeeves and Wooster on the TV first)

He might like Rosemary Sutcliffe.

But remember he doesn't have to read "difficult" books just because he can - there's no reason why he shouldn't carry on reading Captain Underpants and Cressida Cowell - he can read so he doesn't need to learn how to do it any better!

"Oliver Twist" and "Great Expectations" at 8? I'm not saying it's not possible, but they're pretty hard going. And why? There are so many wonderful books out there for children to read and I don't see any reason to rush into adult books unless he chooses them himself.

It really depends what he likes, too. DS2 was an advanced reader, but found things like Horowitz and Higson too old in terms of subject matter when he was 8; he's reading Alex Rider now at nearly 10, but wasn't interested a year ago. He preferred animal type stories - Michael Morpurgo, Dick King-Smith, the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness (Michelle Paver).

Lots of children really enjoy the Caroline Laurence (Lawrence?) Roman Mysteries too; I don't think they're too difficult but introduce lots of Roman stuff.

My 11 yo DS loves the Bear Grylls books - lots of adventures featuring a teenage boy who learns all kinds of survival skills and becomes a bit of a hero.

I would love to hypnitize all these "Great Expectations" and Huckleberry Finn" recommenders, and find out what they actually enjoyed reading as children!

I have asaid before that I suspect any parent who says their pre teen or very young teen is reading the "classics' for pleasure actually means that they have put a copy of David Copperfield on top of the Match Annual on the bedside table!

Reading shouldn't be hard work. Once you know how to do it, you just read what you want to read.

Hypnotize.

DS is similar to your son (7 with reading age of 14). I agree with the others that it doesn't always have to be a challenging read - DS reads everything from DS2's picture books to Oliver Twist (not my choice, but his teachers!).

He really enjoyed adventure/fantasy series like Harry Potter/Percy Jackson/38 Clues/Lemony Snickets and historical books like the Roman Series. He also likes Michael Morpurgo. For ideas, I usually look at the list of Newbury Award winners (here) and pick judiciously.

However, he still loves Beast Quest, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and the Horrible Histories books.

also bear in mind that most reading age tests are based on decoding, not comprehension. He still has a 8 year old mind and imagination and life experience.

As others have said, be a wee bit careful - just because he can read "anything" doesn't mean he should, and there's huge amounts of pleasure to be had in children's literature. It would be a shame to skip it because it's "too easy".

I was a very early reader and could read pretty much anything by the age of 6. I read a huge amount of very unsuitable stuff (Judith Krantz before the age of 10). I'm not too sure that it was a good idea - not that it's caused any lasting damage, but reading very explicit sex scenes before you've even gone through puberty can be very confusing. I also read all the James Bond books at an early age and they were very violent and one in particular gave me nightmares for a while.

Anyway, my parents were very slack about what I read - I tended to hole up in my room to read and they didn't know what I was looking at - so do keep an eye out.

I read a lot of historical fiction - I loved Rosemary Sutcliff, so that might be something to look at as they tend to be pretty safe.