Philosophy book recommendations

[Thingsthatgo]

DS14 is taking GCSE philosophy and ethics next year, and is really enjoying the subject. He would like to do some reading over the summer mostly for his own enjoyment, but also to prep for the course.
He is academically very able, so looking for something that would stretch him. Any recommendations, please?

Look at the exam board’s reading list

Try ‘Gödel, Escher, Bach: an eternal golden braid” by Douglas Hofstadter

John Hospers introduction to philosophical analysis - gives an overview of all the big theories. So you can read alongside the original text and it helps you to understand. Tbf it was on the reading list for year 1 uni, so might be a bit much. But I found it massively simplified things.

@Werherethank you - DS wants to read around the GCSE rather than start the books now.
@LoserWinner- thank you, I’ll take a look.
@PeonyPanda I remember reading that at uni - I studied art. I’ll see if it accessible for him, thank you.

Yes but the authors

@Werhereah ok! Thank you.

Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder is fiction but it’s about the history of philosophy. I also love Mark Rowland’s books. My favourite is ‘The Philosopher and the Wolf’.

Not a book but The Good Place (TV show) might be a fun place to start- lots of riffing on ideas from ethics (such as real life trolley problems etc).

Books- The Pig that Wants to be Eaten by Julian Baggini or anything by Nigel Warburton (who also has a very approachable Philosophy Bites podcast). For a more standard, textbookish take but still approachable, Think by Simon Blackburn. There is also a vey good intro to Philosophy by Thomas Nagel.

+1 to Think by Simon Blackburn

We bought my daughter the sets of Introducing Hegel/Marx/Foucault etc. A Graphic Guide. I think there’s around 50 different thinkers/concepts.

Would he like the abridged version of Man’s Search For Meaning by Viktor Frankl? It crosses over into psychology but to my mind, that adds to the appeal. Don’t let him tackle the adult full version yet. Dd nearly 16 has read it but it has a lot of upsetting stuff about the Holocaust - important, but a 14yo can should skip the detail.