Recommend some good books for young adults

[Elok]

While I stand by what I said about starting off with baby steps, once they get in the swing of reading I can't recommend M.T. Anderson's two "Octavian Nothing" books strongly enough, especially if they've inherited their dad's interest in history. They're about a slave raised and educated by philosophers trying to prove black intellect--and then thrown into the middle of the American Revolution. Well researched, funny, moving, and he never, ever patronizes his readers. Which also means they're written in authentic eighteenth-century English, and quite long, so I'd save it for later high school.

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

Ursula K Le Guin's 'Earthsea' cycle.

I'm a huge fan of those, but kid#1 gave up on the first one.

[DaShi]

You aren't criticizing them hard enough.

[molly bloom]

I'm a huge fan of those, but kid#1 gave up on the first one.

Also:

E. Nesbit's ghost and horror stories, Joan Aiken's novels and stories, Mervyn Peake's 'Gormenghast', Anne McCaffrey's 'Dragonflight', and 'The Ship Who Sang', Jacqueline Wilson's books, Joyce's 'The Portrait of the Artist', Katharine Mansfield's short stories, Mary Renault's novels, E. F. Benson's ghost stories, M.R. James's 'Ghost Stories Of An Antiquary', the poetry of Emily Dickinson, Dorothy L. Sayer's translation of Dante's 'Inferno', Daphne du Maurier's short stories....

[The Mad Monk]

I will second Jon's recomendation of C.J. Cherryh's Chanur books, or pretty much any of her other books; she's a wonderful story teller.

[Proteus_MST]

If the kids love Horror in style of Stephen King, maybe they should try to read the stories of the man who was some kind of model for King: Howard Phillips Lovecraft

[Elok]

Is he at all related to the "H.P. Lovecraft" specifically excluded in the OP?

[Proteus_MST]

Is he at all related to the "H.P. Lovecraft" specifically excluded in the OP?

Ooops, you´re right
Obviously I didn´t read everything thoroughly enough

[Egbert]

Some authors:

C.S Lewis
Anne Mcaffrey
Mark Twain

BUT NOT:
Apolyton Off topic

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

Well we had a trip to the bookshop, and she's now reading "Junk" by Melvin Burgess.

[Alexander's Horse]

I gave my son a novel about mermaids at around that age. He still hasn't forgiven me. I could ask him to send it to your daughter.

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

So, finishing the book about heroin addiction and moving on to mermaids next?

[-Jrabbit]

Natural progression...

[Alexander's Horse]

So, finishing the book about heroin addiction and moving on to mermaids next?

Er sure, you need to change it up or just be like me and pick out whatever is in the discount bin and looks possibly age appropriate.

There is far too much "worthy" teen lit.

I just finished Hitler's Furies: German women in the killing fields

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/oct/05/hitlers-furies-wendy-lower-review

but I suggest this book is best left for when they go through their femminist "all men are bastards" phase. The book shows convincingly that women, in much larger numbers than was previously thought, can be just as beastly as the men.



I would warn though that the crimes of these women are unremittingly awful and even for a hard case like me, shocking. Definitely not what a young teen, with all their beautiful hopes and dreams, should be reading.

[Dr Strangelove]

Anything by Ken Kesey, Alan Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, Karl Marx, Mao Tse Tung, Fredrich Neitsche or Hunter Thompson.