What Are They Reading for Fun?
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Compiled by Marlene Charnizon -- School Library Journal, 2/13/2008
What Are They Reading for Fun?
In this week’s issue, we hear from public librarians.
Ieva Bates, Ann Arbor District Library, MI:
It’s a wonderful moment in a kid’s life when they discover they can handle those big, scary chapter books. They whiz through those series like gangbusters: Mary Pope Osborne’s “Magic Tree House” (Random), Joanna Cole’s “Magic School Bus” (Scholastic), Geronimo Stilton’s books. Young children are also going after graphic novels: Jeff Smith's "Bone" series (Scholastic), Jennifer L. Holm & Matthew Holm’s “Babymouse” books (Random), James Proimos’s “Johnny Mutton” titles (Harcourt). “Garfield” (Ballantine) is still HUGE, and we have lots of fathers come in with their sons and ask if we still have the “Asterix” (Orion) and “Tintin” (Little, Brown) books. We do.
Julie Roach, Cambridge Public Library, MA:
While a steady stream of kids come in for a fiction fix from Erin Hunter’s “Warriors” (Tokyopop) or Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series (Hyperion/Miramax), many children like nonfiction about cute or disgusting animals. Ann Hodgman’s The House of a Million Pets (Holt, 2007) is rarely on the shelf, and books like Knut by Isabella Hatkoff et al (2007) and the “Owen & Mzee” titles (all Scholastic) enjoy a lot of attention. Drawing and craft books circulate heavily. Boston’s successful year in sports keeps our 796’s in high demand. Teens’ favorite nonfiction seems to be of the self-improvement variety: makeup, hair, how-to. They also gravitate to books about stories that involve struggle, like Brent Runyon's The Burn Journals (Knopf, 2004). Nancy Garden’s Hear Us Out! (Farrar, 2007) circulates quite a bit. Kids also love nonfiction stories of the fantastic or unusual. “The Unexplained”series, featuring titles like Judith Herbst’s Aliens, ESP, and Beyond the Grave (all Lerner, 2004), are popular.
Sarah Krygier, Solano County Library, Fairfield, CA:
Teens arm themselves with graphic novels that both their peers and the critics in magazines like Shonen Jump and Shojo Beat enjoy, along with the latest “Gossip Girl,” and piles of fantasy tomes. They look for more urban fiction, as they have read everything their friends have suggested. Some of my most successful sells among reluctant readers and below-grade readers are Gennifer Choldenko’s Al Capone Does My Shirts (Putnam, 2004), David Hill’s Running Hot (Simply Read, dist. by PGW, 2007), and Tim Tharp’s Knights of the Hill Country (Knopf, 2006).
Robyn Walker, Elgin Court Public School, St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada:
To engage students, and boys in particular, in reading, I needed to give them the opportunity to pick what they want and the time to read. We run a drop-in program the first 25 minutes of each day where small groups of boys come to the library and have the whole facility to themselves. They are just required to read for enjoyment. Top items for boys in grades 4-6 include Anthony Horowitz’s “Alex Rider” books (Scholastic), the “And Then It Happened” series (Books For Boys), and Boys’ Life magazine. Top choices among both boys and girls include Ian Whybrow's "Little Wolf" books (Lerner) and Geronimo Stilton (Scholastic).
