Recommendations please - I've got one shot at this!

[SheenMcQueen]

I am an avid reader as is DS
DD, not so much
Apart from books assigned by school, she has failed to finish a book in years (and I'm not convinced she even reads her English set books properly).

She is 15, bright but just not a reader. We both know that her English tests and comprehensions suffer due to a general lack of 'language' going into her head and she also accepts that too much time on her phone/social media/youtube etc has not helped with her concentration levels. She been reading a short book I bought her a few Christmas' ago for about four years. She says it's ok and she quite likes it but she can't get lost in it (Eleanor and Park).

I suggested audible to her as a way. to ease herself back into finding a love for stories and she is very skeptical. She listens to music all the time and thinks this is 'stealing' her music time. But she knows she has to do something. So she has agreed to 'try one book'.

One!
The pressure to get it right is high!

It can't be too challenging initially and she needs to be drawn in quite quickly. Nothing 'fantasy' or twee. She is a typical teen (whatever that means). She into music and skating mostly and is quite 'streetwise'.

I wondered about something with a big twist like 'We Were Liars' as I think she'd like the jolt at the end and also the element of 'angst' or 'Girl in Pieces' for the same 'angsty' vibe, but wondered if anyone had any good suggestions. If she hates it, I'm going to have to work hard to make her try again so it would be brilliant to find something that she likes.

Sorry for the essay but I thought background would be useful!

I'm an avid reader. Have been all my life. My husband doesn't read at all. Told me it's boring.

I asked him to read one book and if he found it boring, I'd never hound him again about reading. He agreed.

I had him read 'Dead Simple ' by Peter James. For someone who said books are boring he was hooked in the first chapter and read the whole thing and loved it !

I recommend this book to everyone and everyone has had the same reaction.

Would she like a biography or autobiography of a person she is interested in.
What about non-fiction?
What is she interested in?
Books that mine have liked are things like freakanomics.

You have my sympathies. My DD doesn't read for pleasure either and she wants to be a primary teacher!
I started reading teen fiction myself to see if I thought anything would grip her. Read one called They Both Die At The End and thought she might like it but she wasn't interested. I liked it though so there's a recommendation for you!

Oh and she did love Adrian Mole- she read it at about 13 and 3/4😂 and found it hilarious. Think it was the last thing i forced her to read.

Thank you for the continued share. I had a copy of We Were Liars, so I've left it by her bed and I'm going to pick one of your recommendations to download as an audible. She has agreed to try one 'read' and one 'listen'. I'll let you know how i get on.

@Squidgyflump. I might try that on DH who is the same as DD. Me and DS both love reading and we feel sorry for them. We know they are missing out :)

I came on to say The Hunger Games. It’s so well-paced, every chapter ends in a cliffhanger, I couldn’t put the sodding thing down. My DS has just finished it after I bagged him to, and he devoured it in 3 days.

My dd's not a particularly keen reader but loved A Monster Calls (Patrick Ness) and Wakenhurst (MIchelle Paver)

Wonder. 100%. I’d bet the house on that one.

How about trying her on the Stephanie Plum books by Janet Evanovich. They are great.

One Sarah Crossan
Panic Lauren Oliver
Flawed Cecilia Ahern
The Girl in the Blue Coat Monica Hesse
Boys Don't Cry Malorie Blackman
When I was Me Hilary Freeman
Fire Colour One Jenny Valentine
The One Memory of Flora Banks Emily Barr
I have no Secrets Penny Joelson

@joanneg36

Wonder. 100%. I’d bet the house on that one.

Good shout.

Wonder, Auggie and Me (& Holes) are DS's favourite books.

I've asked him to casually offer to lend it to her this evening.

@ragged thank you for compiling a list. I'll add all of them to my 'master spreadsheet'.

Dd isn't a massive reader but has read The Fault in our Stars three times and says it's the best book ever.

Agree with Wonder. The only book DS(14) would read for a while, and I really enjoyed it too., I am a teacher with a year 9 form group and lots of them say it's their favorite book.

Would she read a graphic novel? DD1 (13) loved On a Sunbeam, it started as a webcomic and is still available online here if she wants to try it.

Or would non-fiction be more interesting? Does she have any hobbies that you could use to choose as a hook?

I was reading Flowers in the Attic at that stage but not sure I'd recommend that! The transition to adult books is hard and I think genre is often the way in.

I think Children of Blood and Bone.
Or The Hate U Give.

What about Bill Bryson's travel books - funny and very inviting and easygoing.

Or could you let her read an adult thriller that would be very pacey and exciting but not too horrifying like 'The Girl on the Train' or something by Linwood Barclay or Nicci French.

'How to be Famous' by Caitlin Moran

Or 'Cows' by Dawn O'Porter

I'm a high school librarian so often hear this from students. Just to rule out - she isn't dyslexic or suffers from any other learning difficulties does she?
I found that that age group tend to read by what's popular on Netflix/TV/Cinema. There's already been some great suggestions but also check out Noughts and Crosses - we have 3 copies in our library and they're always out!
My DS12 struggled to get into reading, until he got a kindle. I think some kids just see the size of the book and thinks it's too much hard work, and get put off. With a kindle that's less of an issue!

DD (avid reader a bit younger than yours) isn’t a Terry Pratchett fan but she loved Good Omens the series, the book and all the TikTok dressing up videos. They focus on the angel-demon “relationship” (not gay IMO) played by Michael Sheen and David Tennant which really made the series.

Steven King is a good shout. IT was remade recently.

There's also graphic novels too which could be a good starting point. 'Thornhill' by Pam Smy is beautifully illustrated and the plot is full of mystery so keeps you turning the pages!

Agree with Wonder and hunger games or similar the Divergent series?
How about His Dark Materials (Philip Pullman) or the Uglies trilogy (Scott Westerfeld) or the Unwind series (Neal Shusterman)

I see you’re probably sorted now, but wanted to chip in to say teen DD was exactly the same! She did enjoy a couple of books in her teens though - not including some more contemporary ones - including -

I capture the castle - Dodie Smith
Purple Hibiscus - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Power - Naomi Alderman
The Girl on the Train - Paula Hawkins

Quite an eclectic mix - the only thing they really have in common is being quite short!

Loads of great suggestions, especially Emily Barr - The Girl Who Came Out Of The Woods is a good one too.
My daughter, who hadn't read a full book for 4 years, got into watching Twilight films (thank you Robert Pattinson) and is now ploughing through the first book and loving it. I am agog! I was surprised that there is some challenging vocabulary too, that she has asked me about.
Over Easter, I've been sitting down for 30 mins to read and encouraged DD to join me with the Twilight book which she has appreciated for the first time ever - it helps divert her attention from her phone.
Stephen King worked for my DS at a similar age.

My daughter struggles with reading due to dyslexia. Graphic novels have been a great way for her to access content which is at the right level but more easily 'consumed'. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson was a great gateway for us, as well as Marvel tie-in novels.

I'm sure op is sorted now but I did want to suggest the Reading Agency's Quick Reads series, these are short books by popular adult authors, new ones published every year. If the reader likes the short story it hopefully encourages them to read more by that author, and the length makes them less daunting.

I used to work in an FE college library and these were popular with the reluctant readers in the 16-18 age group when they were expected to read more fiction.