From the Trenches - Twilight Read-alikes for Younger Readers

Sara Grajek -- School Library Journal, 01/20/2010

Twilight catapulted vampires and other mysterious creatures of the undead into stardom with unprecedented speed. But what happens when younger kids want to read the same thing as their older siblings? I have a problem handing a copy of New Moon to a 10-year-old. Luckily, there are some good alternative titles for middle school readers with a hunger for the macabre.

Sage, Angie. My Haunted House. Illus. by Jimmy Pickering. Katherine Tegen Books. 2006. ISBN: 978-0-06-077481-3. Ages 7-10.

The “Araminta Spookie” series is a good fit for young kids. Although not every title includes a vampire, there are plenty of ghosts, werewolves, and things that go bump in the night. 

Somper, Justin. Demons of the Ocean. Little, Brown. 2005. ISBN: 978-0-316-01373-4. Ages 9-12.

The “Vampirates” series is a good choice for slightly older kids seeking adventure along with their gothic fix. When orphaned twins Grace and Connor’s boat capsizes in a storm on the way to the orphanage, Grace wakes up in the company of pirates—without Connor. What happens next will keep tweens reading through this book and the four that follow.

Perez, Marlene. Dead Is the New Black. Harcourt. 2008. 978-0-15-206408-2. Ages 12 and up.

Dead Is the New Black makes me think Nancy Drew could have been a vampire if only her writers had given her the opportunity. For a mix of mystery, teen angst, and vampires, try this book and the rest of Perez’s Dead Is … titles.

Brewer, Heather. Eighth Grade Bites. Penguin. 2008. 978-0-14-241342-5. Ages 10 and up.

Looking for a boy-friendly alternative to Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight? Try the first volume of the “Chronicles of Vladimir Tod” series. It features vampires who walk among us—and we don’t even know it. Brewer offers dialog filled with slightly sarcastic remarks and witty humor. Have some extra wax vampire teeth at Halloween? Vlad will take them. And don’t forget, it’s O positive blood and cinnamon rolls for breakfast.

Though the following titles aren’t strictly vampire stories, they have the same feel as Twilight, which should please your readers.

Gaiman, Neil. Coraline. HarperCollins. 2003. 978-0-38-080734-5. Ages 9-12.

Gaiman, Neil. Coraline the Graphic Novel. Adapted and illustrated by P. Craig Russel. HarperCollins. 2008. 978-0-06082543-0. Ages 9-12. 

Mercer, Sienna. Switched. HarperCollins. 2007. 978-0-06087113-0. Ages 8-12.

Pike, Aprilynne. Wings. HarperCollins. 2009. 978-0-061668-3-6. Ages 12 and up.