Books & Novels for Boys Who Hate to Read

We all know reading is an important part of a child's education. And while most kids will develop an acceptable grasp on the mechanics of reading, not all kids will love to read. This can even be true for children who read well and who don't appear to struggle with the skill at all. The truth is, not all adults love reading, either, so it's not surprising that the same can be true of some kids. While some children love to curl up with a book all afternoon, others appear to derive no pleasure from reading at all. Boys seem to be particularly susceptible to this attitude towards reading. So, what can you do to help your son enjoy literature if he is among the many who don't seem to?

In our home we have had to address this very issue. My twelve year old son, although a fantastic reader, was for many years quite repelled by the idea of sitting down to read. It hadn't always been this way; when he first began attending public school, in second grade, he loved reading. He had been solely homeschooled before that time, and reading, and being read to, had always been a big part of his life. In fact, he himself had been reading since he was three years old, and had learned the skill with much enthusiasm. My husband and I would have never dreamed that our son would develop a negative attitude towards reading. However, after two years of public school, where the focus seemed to be solely on how fast a student could read, our son had lost all interest in it. In fact, he hated it. Reading solely for the sake of being timed, rather than for the sake of gaining information or enjoying a story, completely turned him off to reading.

We began homeschooling again as he entered 4th Grade. Three years, and many novels later, he still doesn't have the greatest attitude about reading. However, it is extremely important that he be exposed to a wide variety of literature, so we press on, trying to reignite his long lost love of reading. Along the way, we've found some titles that he has been far more willing to read than others. So, if you have a son who seems to have lost all interest in reading, and you would like to throw a few novels his way, consider the following titles:

Percy Jackson and The Olympians - This is a series of five books, written by Rick Riordan. The story begins when Percy is twelve years old (despite the fact that the movie made for the first book seems to have made the lead character a few years older), and weaves in a lot of Greek Mythology throughout. They are simply written, without a lot of detail or description, and are written with an air of tween boy humor. I read the first one aloud to my kids, and although I thought it was boring, they loved it and laughed often. When we were done, my son picked it up the following day and read the whole thing over again on his own. For a kid who hates to read, that was a pretty big deal. Usually, he only reads novels because he is forced to. These aren't challenging books by any means, but may be enjoyable to an 8 to 15 year old boy. And for parents of boys who hate to read, finding a book they can enjoy and read willingly usually outweighs the fact that the reading level isn't very challenging.

Goosebumps - Again, not very challenging material. But when we were just trying to find books that our son would read simply for the enjoyment of reading, Goosebumps usually delivered. My son outgrew them a couple of years ago, but we got some mileage out of them. If you are looking for books for a boy who hates to read, the Goosebumps series might be a good place to start.

Magic Tree House - The Magic Tree House series is very easy reading material, and many kids can read well enough to enjoy these books by the time they are finishing up 1st Grade. During 2nd and 3rd Grade, when my son was attending public school and subsequently feeling more and more negatively about reading, the Magic Tree House books really helped us out.

Harry Potter - The Harry Potter books can be just the thing to get your boy who hates to read to enjoy it again. There are seven books in the series, which follow Harry through seven years of his life as he progresses from an orphaned, abused child to a strong, courageous, and ethical adult. Reading the Harry Potter series was, by far, the most fun I've personally ever had reading a story, so I can see why kids love it so much.

The Hobbit - While scouring the 7th Grade summer reading lists of various prep schools around the country, I found that J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit was often included . Personally, I was concerned that the depth of detail in this book would repel my son. However, my husband was enthusiastic (having read it himself as a teen) and felt that our son would really enjoy it. To put it simply, my son, the one who hates to read, absolutely loves this book and read for three hours on the first day we gave it to him, even though he was only asked to read for one hour. He is more enthusiastic about this novel than any other book he's ever read, and can't wait to (get this) finish it, so that he can continue on to read Lord of the Rings! It is challenging material; in fact I really felt my son would struggle with some of it. Apparently, I was wrong. If you have a boy who hates to read, aged 12 and up, seriously consider handing him a copy of The Hobbit. Bribe him to read the first chapter if you must; after that he'll probably be hooked.

Bridge to Tarabithia - This is a good story, written in the tone of a country setting. It isn't too long, but gives kids who hate to read some exposure to literature written with southern dialogue. I won't go so far as to say my son really loved this story or anything, but he stopped complaining about halfway through it. Bridge to Tarabithia is on several 6th grade summer reading lists, but is probably suitable for kids in grades 4 through 9, depending on their reading and comprehension abilities.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid - The books in this series are sprinkled with lots of fun cartoon drawings throughout (meant to show the journal entries of Greg, the main character), and the reading level isn't challenging. I read the first book aloud to all of my kids, and then my son read it on his own afterwards, as did my 9 year old daughter. Personally, I was glad when the book was over, but my kids really enjoyed them. The story is about a boy in 6th grade, but the reading level was easy enough for a 3rd grader. If you need to find books for a boy who hates to read, Diary of a Wimpy Kid might be what you're looking for.

Trying to spark a love of literature in boys who hate to read can be a challenge. But patience, time, and a ton of really good books can sometimes do the trick. For more help, contact your child's school librarian and ask which titles are currently most popular with male students.