Feature: Boy Books
With so many Class of 2k7 authors writing books for boys, we thought we’d close the year with an article on what makes a book a good choice for teen male readers. G. Neri offers both suggestions and questions to ask when making the selection.
As an up-and-coming author of young adult books for boys, I’m always being asked for book recommendations for young male teenagers. Action, adventure and humor sell (see Harry Potter, Holes or Hoot), but what about the books that portray the real-life issues and concerns of boys and young men?
There are many great YA and MG books for boys that deal with challenging issues. But these books must compete with the likes of video games, cable, iPods, and the internet. Which means they must speak to today’s youth in ways that may, on the surface, make parents uncomfortable.
Book characters are generally ahead of the curve from the reader’s perspective, so the great thing about these books is that the reader can live vicariously through a character and his issues, before deciding how to deal with said issue himself. Protecting young men from the evils of the outside world may be a natural instinct for a parent. But exposing them to honest portrayals of today’s issues will help make them the healthy adults they can be.
So what makes a great book for teenage boys?
* They have a male protagonist with an authentic voice.
* They deal with issues only boys would know about (and girls want to know about).
* The books have to look cool and edgy enough so the reader won’t be embarrassed to hold it.
* They involve issues compelling enough for boys to want to read them. And that often means the hot topics: sex, drugs, violence, experimenting with the unknown.
* They should not be heavy-handed in preaching a moral message (i.e. drink and you will die). Books need to be real and open enough to let the readers make up their own minds.
* Size matters: books under 175 pages will probably find more reluctant readers.
Both of my upcoming books, Chess Rumble and Yummy, deal with issues of the inner cities in America: gangs, violence, disintegrating families, and the choices male teens must make in order to survive. The books are specifically aimed at groups often overlooked: reluctant male readers from urban America. Targeted for the ages where heavy choices come into play, they deal with relevant issues - gangs vs. school, violence vs. love, giving up vs. rising above the ills that surround you. The stories are deliberately open in their approach, showing many aspects of the issues involved to allow the reader to draw his own conclusions.
These books, as well as many listed below, depict the hidden worlds of American youth not often seen in print. Male readers will recognize themselves in these characters even if the specifics are radically different from their own lives. These books may plant seeds of hope so that when readers deal with these problem areas themselves, they will have something to think about, instead of rushing blindly into a situation they may later regret.
- G. Neri
A Class of 2k7 Bibliography
Not all of these books tackle the big issues cited in G. Neri’s article above, but they do all featuring male protagonists. There’s something here for every guy (and curious girl) reader:
Head Case by Sarah Aronson (YA)
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher (YA)
No Castles Here by A.C.E. Bauer (MG)
This Is What I Did: by Ann Dee Ellis (YA/upper MG)
Brendan Buckley’s Universe & Everything In It by Sundee T. Frazier (MG)
Blood Brothers by S.A. Harazin (YA)
Toby Wheeler: Eighth Grade Benchwarmer by Thatcher Heldring (MG)
Kimchi & Calamari by Rose Kent (MG)
Big Slick by Eric Luper (YA)
Chess Rumble by G. Neri (MG)
To Catch a Mermaid by Suzanne Selfors (MG)
Reality Leak by Joni Sensel (MG)
First Light by Rebecca Stead (MG)
For an more book for boys, visit G. Neri’s reading list page.