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Need books for 8 year old boy: mysteries, westerns, adventures
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I know there have been numerous posts in the past for book lists for boys. If anyone can find one relevant here, please share.
My ds8, grade 3, is really getting into cowboys and westerns. I don’t have many books on this and right now he is looking through a coffee table type of book on the Old West. I would like something a little more age appropriate and with a plot.
He also likes mysteries. He loved Nate the Great, but they are too easy for him now. He likes A to Z Mysteries, but has only read a few (twaddle?). He says Boxcar Children are too long, but I wonder if they don’t keep his interest because I think he could handle their reading level. He is not interested in the Imagination Station historical fiction series at all. He has read a few Clyde Robert Bulla and liked them.
I have heard great things about Cowboy Sam, but I am wondering if they are too easy for him. He is okay with short chapter books now. Any suggestions? This would be for leisure reading at bedtime.
Thanks.
One of my ds8’s favorite books is The Indian in the Cupboard. He has probably read it no less than 20 times! He also loves The American Boy’s Handybook…not fiction or western, but very boy-ish.
Also not cowboy or western, but these did captivate ds:
Silver Chief series
Julie of the Wolves
Sorry I can’t be of more help. My ds is really into WW2 right now…so I could offer you all sorts of recommendations for that topic!
Thank you, Lindsey. I am interested in some favorite books for WW2 as well. He has some interest in that too, although we have not gotten there yet in our history modules.
We aren’t there in history yet, either. He became interested after seeing a documentary on TV during the Olympics over the summer. These books are what he reads in his free time.
I picked some old copies of a couple of Marion Marsh Brown books at a used book store. My 10YO DS really likes them. One was a western and one about a soldier. I am on the lookout for more books by this author.
We have this one
http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Swamp_Fox.html?id=O2vBYgEACAAJ
Can’t remember name of the other one. We aren’t home for me to look. HTh
The Hatchet series by Gary Paulsen was a huge hit for my son when he was around 10 years old. Also many have highly recommended Little Britches to me, but I have not bought/read that one so can’t really give you a personal review. 🙂
What about Encyclopedia Brown? Each book contains about 10 short mysteries that the reader has to figure out for himself. (The solutions are in the back). The author is Donald Sobol.
The Billy and Blaze series by CW Anderson aren’t westerns in the classic sense, but are set on a ranch. Don’t know if they’d be too easy for your son, though.
I would like to edit my previous comment and un-include Julie of the Wolves. One of our fellow forum members PMed me regarding a scene in this book that could be construed as inappropriate content. I, personally, have not read the book. It was given to ds as a gift, and he devoured it (like most other books). I guess I need to rethink the other thread on “Do you read all your kids’ books?” Anyway, I would like to apologize for recommending this book. I have removed it from ds’s shelf, and I’m so thankful that he did not grasp the underlying meaning of the scene in question.
Blessings,
Lindsey
For mysteries at that reading level (in addition to the Boxcar Children), how about The Bobbsey Twins series by Laura Lee Hope or The Sugar Creek Gang by Paul Hutchens?
And, when he’s a bit older be sure to check out The Kingdoms Dawn series by Chuck Black and The Viking Quest series by Louis Walfrod Johnson – both series excellent for boys!
Oh I almost forgot to add the beloved D.J. Dillon adventure series by Lee Roddy’s. My boys enjoyed them!
Hi!
Ditto on the Blaze books, Encyclopedia Brown, Bobsey Twins…
The Happy Hollisters were written about the author’s own children.. they have a ‘mystery story’ bent..
What I really wanted to chime in on was the WWII selections. My youger boys wanted WWII reading material at a young age… had a difficult time finding age appropriate sources that weren’t ‘twaddle’…
Here is a FABULOUS resource list:
http://www.livingbookslibrary.com/2011/04/top-10-historical-fiction-books-about.html
They also have ‘Top Picks for Boys’ post…
Hilda
I had forgotten about the Happy Hollisters. He checked one out from the library one time and devoured it, something about a haunted house I think. I should check into those some more.
I’ll also check out Sugar Creek Gang. I’m not familiar with those.
I am on the lookout for Marion Marsh Brown now. ds8 did not care for Encyclopedia Brown. I read a few stories and did not care much for them myself.
Thank you for your recommendations.
I looked at the preview of Billy and Blaze and it looks too easy. I can’t seem to find a preview of the Cowboy Sam series to tell if they are too easy. Does anyone know what reading level to compare Cowboy Sam to? I read somewhere that they are for grade 3 and up. But I also see they are beginning readers and only 64 pages, which makes me think they might be too easy.
I’m not sure what to think, but last night he read ahead one of the books for school. I keep our books out on shelves in chronological order and they are always welcomed to the books there to “feast” on. But it took me by surprise. He surely must have had an idea that it was a school book because it was a D’Aulaire book and we have read about 5 of those for school so far. It was Buffalo Bill. I saw him reading a book, but I did not check what it was. I was pleased to see him reading on his own.
So now I wonder what to do for school. Do I read that book aloud as scheduled? His younger sister hasn’t read it. Or do I pick a different Buffalo Bill book to read aloud for school? Or skip it and move on to the next book? I am wondering if I need to put our “school” books up until after I have read them aloud for school. I want them to be available to them to go back to after we’ve read them for school.
Sarah, I’m laughing about your son reading ahead a school book. I don’t know what to tell you but I can tell you both my 10YO son and 12YO son have read ahead of schedule their independent reading books. These are the ones for their level as suggested in the SCM module.
I just decided to let them go ahead, and I asked for oral narrations. I am just starting them both on written narrations after Christmas. Our 12YO son is an English language learner, but all of a sudden his writing is blossoming AND he wants to improve in it (so I’m running with that).
I figure when we get to the read-aloud family books that correspond to the independent books, I can ask them to recap. Or they can reread them, which they sometimes will do. Can’t complain about that.
I do keep the family read-alouds out of reach, because my 10YO son will try to read those ahead and then doesn’t want to listen when I read to the whole family.
I hope that helps!
Yes, I guess it is not a bad problem to have when your children are eager to read their school books ahead of schedule! It just took me by surprise and now I know to put some of them up for me to read-aloud just for school. I should not have any problem substituting an independent reading book for school if any of those are read ahead of time, as he sometimes does, or have him re-read. I guess it was the reading level and size of the book of the D’Aulaire that surprised me. Thanks.
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