Adult book ideas for nearly 13 year old boy please

[VanessaBet]

DS is a very prolific reader and has enjoyed all the usual suspects, loves Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Philip Pullman etc, has read Hunger Games, Watership Down, LOTR, Pratchett and so on but finds it hard to find anything in the 'teen' section at the library, claiming 'they're all either about love or someone is running away from something'!

I've introduced him to SE Hinton (one of my favourites as a teenager) and am now attempting to find less teenage/kid focussed books for him which aren't too unsuitable. (I know he'll find the less suitable stuff of his own accord - I guess I mean full on sex scenes or disturbing violence - but I don't want to be the one who gives it to him, if you see what I mean!). So far he's enjoyed the Sharpe books by Bernard Cornwell, the James Herriot vet books, Gerald Durrell's Corfu sage but he's fast and I'm running out of ideas from my shelves if I haven't reread them recently!

I'm thinking of suggesting Rebecca, The Woman in Black and Cold Comfort Farm which I remember enjoying as a teenager - any other suggestions please?

My 13 year old son is a keen reader and has read much of what has been suggested already with a fondness for Orwell, Neil Gaimon and Philip K Dick. He really liked Douglas Adams for a lighter read but has recently loved The Outsiders, Wool, Fahrenheit 431 and I Am Legend. He does however like anything by Patrick Ness so may have a different taste to your son if he didn't get on with the Chaos Walking Trilogy.
He can't quite bring himself to read Stephen king but loves Agatha Christie.

Bill Bryson - any except the Little Dribbling one which was rubbish, but the Notes From... and other travel ones are easy to dip into, ditto the factual ones.
Agatha Christie, Cadfael, Robert Cormier (the Chocolate War), Paul Ziegler (The Pigman)
Surely you're joking, Mr Feynman - anecdotes/autobiography of Nobel physicist. Lots of humour and it encouraged me and friends to learn more physics to get more of the jokes.

If he enjoys Sharpe, Cornwell wrote several other series, including The Last Kingdom. Hornblower, as posted up thread.

Kipling, Jack London, Twain... then maybe some Steinbeck, Cannery Row and Sweet Thursday are a nice start.

Tom Brown books are heavy on Victorian moralising, but Stalky & Co (kipling) might go down better.

If he likes Douglas Adams, I’d agree he could try Isaac Asimov - maybe start with the Foundation series.

I still like Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh!

As well as Cadfael and Sherlock Holmes, how about Morse, Frost, and Rumpole.

Robin Hobbs wrote a lot of fantasy not as gruesome as George Martins. Conn Igullden is good, although some gory bits. Alison Weir and Philippa Gregory might be worth a try.

Jerome K Jerome 3 men in a boat series, and if he likes them, Mark Wallington’s modern Walks with Boogie books are in a similar style.

Another vote for Robert A Heinlein, classic sci-fi. To add to the list above, Red Planet and Between Planets. Both written from the viewpoint of a boy/young man.

Also;
Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, and other books by Louis de Bernieres.

Fly Fishing by J R Hartley, Siegfried Sassoon’s Diary of a Fox Hunting Man, and Surtees Mr Facey Romford’s Hounds, and Mr Sponge’s Sporting Tour.

If Surtees’ anti-heroes appeal to him, then Jane Austen’s Lady Susan might be worth a try. Seriously!

Treasure Island, Moonfleet, Ivanhoe.

Another vote for the Eagle of the Ninth, and other books by Rosemary Sutcliffe.

Samuel Pepys Diary, Anne Frank’s Diary, When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, Goodnight Mr Tom. War, a photobook by Albert Leventhal. Succinctly informative.

Goodbye Mr Chips.

The boys at my school are all reading Ready Player One by Ernest Cline at the moment. I think the movie is coming out soon. Also popular at the moment are books by Brandon Sanderson and Jason Reynolds (his Long Way Down is a novel set in a lift, within a time frame of 60 seconds). And ever popular is Stephen King, but some of his books are enormous!

How about the Eragon series, if he liked David Eddings? Or I enjoyed Ann McCaffery and the Dragonlance books at that sort of age.

Haven't read the thread yet, so forgive me if these have been mentioned...

Michael J Sullivan wrote a series for his daughter called The Riyria Revelations. It is amazing and complete. He is now filling in the previous years of the characters with stories called The Riyria Chronicles ( I read those second even though they come before Revelations in time-line, but it works best to read them in pub order). There isn't any swearing or sex (though rape is mentioned as a threat here and there by baddies, but not carried out. Many kids might not get the reference as it's not explicit IYKWIM). The books are fantasy with fantastic characters. So far everyone I've suggested them to has loved them.

Also The Steamborn series by Eric Archer. The kids remind me of Hermione and Harry (from HP) when they are older. Lots of enormous insects and cool machinery. Definitely a series boys would love.

Fabulous that he's reading so many great books!!

Mine also loved Orwell and Douglas Adams at that age. Also Bulgakov (he read Master and Margarita). When I was his age I loved TH White’s The Sword in the Stone and Susan Cooper’s series. Kate Thompson’s The New Policeman (fantasy) is very good as is (same vein) OR Melling.

Second for Kathy Reichs- two of my Three loved them

Wow, I love all you posters! I second so many suggestions. Thrilled that your DS has read Terry Pratchett (my fav author) and Tolkein!

So many great authors mentioned: Brandon Sanderson (Reckoners and Mistborn series), Nevil Shute, Agatha Christie, Robert Heinlein, Neil Gaiman, Jerome K Jerome, Jasper Fforde, David Eddings, Diana Wynne Jones(!!) and many more...

Some other suggestions:
DL Gardner - Thread of a Spider (Irish History mixed with Irish Folklore)

Jonathan Moeller - Frostborn Series (Fantasy like LOTR). Main Character fights with a staff. Great cast of characters.

Sheri Cobb South - John Pickett Mysteries (JP is a young Bow Street Runner. Great if he likes mysteries. Start with Pickpocket's Apprentice)

Baroness Orczy - The Scarlet Pimpernel (Love that it was the precursor to many of the masked hero type stories)

TH White - The Once and Future King

Kevin Hearne - The Iron Druid series ( He will laugh through it, the dog is wonderful!)

John Buchan - Richard Hannay Series (starts with The 39 Steps)

Margery Allingham - Campion mystery series

Edward Marston - Railway Detective

PG Wodehouse - everything

Marian Babson - Nine Lives to Murder and the Perkins and Tate mysteries.

Connie Willis - To Say Nothing of the Dog, Bellwether and Blackout/All Clear

David Weber - Honor Harrington series (another outer space series)

Tanya Huff - Confederation Series (there is the mention of people going off to have sex, but it is never described, or actually happening in the story. There is profanity though. Stories are outer space. Main character Torin is amazing)

Apologies for the long post. I love readers!

So much has already been suggested but I don’t think these have:

Life of Pi
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time
The Book Thief
Mortal Instruments
The Giver
The Chocolate War
The Owl Service
The Weird Stone of Brisingamen
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
How To Be Topp

And I really recommend anything by Frank Cottrill Boyce - children’s books therefore easy to read but great stories.