Classic novels for teenage boy

[fartmeistergeneral]

He's 14, realistic suggestions though - one list I saw had Les Mis - that would never happen!! He's just read, and enjoyed, Of Mice and Men.

[WhereYouLeftIt]

Not classic but definitely quality, my DS(14) was very determined that I should read his favourite book World War Z by Max Brooks. I was very impressed, still reading it! Very different from the film and absolutely excellent.

Also the Cherub and Henderson Boys series by Robert Muchamore. Again not classic, pretty new, but DS devours them and I have read most of the Cherub series myself.

[wigglybeezer]

DH read a lot of Sven Hassel books when he was that age, but having looked them up, thinking my 15 might like them, I am now not so sure! I liked my dad's spike Milligan books at that age but they do contain swearing and sex.

Most of my more sensible ideas have already been mentioned.

[ImperialBlether]

What sort of things does he like to read? I love reading and have read a hell of a lot of classics, but I think my heart would sink if someone only wanted me to read them.

[LearningDad1973]

If you think he will cope with an epic, The Count of Monte Cristo. For a long period of peace, the Jack Aubrey series by Patrick O'Brian (as in Master and Commander). For a slightly easier long term read the Belgariad series by David Eddings. All have been favourites of mine over the years (I was an annoyingly precocious reading type, All Quiet on the Western Front at 10 that sort of thing).

[Zadocthepriest]

My 3 slightly older teens have recently enjoyed

Dracula
Frankenstein
The Wasp Factory
John Wyndham novels

No votes for all those novels we were recommended as teenagers eg Animal Farm, To Kill a Mockingbird (No longer relevant?)

Husband and I have recently enjoyed Three Men in a Boat (Hilarious even today) and GA Henty and Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

Most of these 'old-fashioned' books are available free on Kindle and well worth a try.

[BestIsWest]

DS (15) recommends The Wasp Factory (though he said it was terrifying) and Heroes by Robert Cormier (which I think was a set text for Eng Lit this year).

[JCDenton]

If he liked or wants to get into sci-fi, he could do worse than:

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
2001, Childhood's End and Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C Clarke
The End of Eternity by Isaac Asimov

[Jenijena]

Flowers for Algernon by.. I can't remember.

[garwrex]

Franz Kafka - The Trial

[DisgraceToTheYChromosome]

A former teenage boy writes:

Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea novels

RM Ballantyne's The Coral Island

Heinlein's The Star Beast, Between Planets, and Citizen of the Galaxy.

Three Men In a Boat

[flow4]

Haha! Explains why it appealed to a rambling middle-aged man, then!

[RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie]

Why? Because it takes hundreds of pages of pointless rambling to catch up with the damn whale and by then nobody really gives a toss anyway. :)

imvho

[wanderings]

I am David - Anne Holm.

[Mumzy]

Adrian Mole aged 13 and 3/4 by Sue Townsend

[flow4]

Hahaha Remus! Why?

[LIZS]

Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes , Dr Jeckyll & Mr Hyde, 1984, The Time Machine, Frankenstein, Dickens

[RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie]

God, don't give him Moby Dick. You'd put him off reading for life.

[flow4]

(Oops, sorry! )

[flow4]

I just sat listening to a conversation between a 40-something yo male friend and my 13yo son... The friend was recommending Moby Dick... It's 'brilliant' and 'about EVERYTHING' and 'one of the best books I've ever read' and 'you should read it'. When my son asked whether they found the whale in the end, my friend refused to tell him, saying "You've got to read it yourself"! :)

[flow4]

I just sat listening to a conversation between a 40-something yo male friend and my 13yo son... The friend was recommending Moby Dick... It's 'brilliant' and 'about EVERYTHING' and 'one of the best books I've ever read' and 'you should read it'. When my son asked whether they found the whale in the end, my friend refused to tell him, saying "You've got to read it yourself"! :)

[invicta]

Sherlock Holmes

Agatha Christie

Biographies - my 13 year old loves these

[booksteensandmagazines]

For teenage boys I would really recommend:

The Outsiders by SE Hinton - written in the 1960's so the language is quite modern. The story will really appeal to teen boys

Call of the Wild by Jack London - more difficult language but great story

There are plenty of modern books which are effectively classics - well written with good stories and therefore likely to stand the tet of time. I've written reviews on a few here (recommend Bog Child): www.booksteensandmagazines.com/browse/impress-your-teacher

[fartmeistergeneral]

Thanks all, will check these out. Don't really know what I mean by classic, just looking for some quality reading I guess.

[exexpat]

DS (14) has just read and enjoyed 1984. He's now on to The Wasp Factory (Iain Banks) which he seems to be enjoying, and I am thinking of introducing him to some Graham Greene and Ernest Hemingway (we're off to Cuba, so relevant - Our Man in Havana etc - but also classics) as well as Catch 22. Day of the Triffids and Lord of the Flies also sound like good ideas.

He has read some Nick Hornby before (High Fidelity etc), but apart from that has mostly read non-fiction (travel etc) or crime/spy fiction recently.