Children’s author Jon Scieszka is on a mission to get boys aged 8 and up reading and keep them reading, and he’s doing it with his excellent Guys Read series of anthologies.
Scieszka remembers what it’s like to be a boy, and he knows that boys often struggle with reading and comprehension skills. For far too many boys, reading soon becomes a dreaded chore instead of the gateway to imagination it needs to be for all young readers.
That’s where Guys Read comes in. Each volume is packed with short, easy-to-read stories that are filled with adventure, excitement, humor and action, specifically designed to pull boys from ages 8 and up into the books and keep them reading all the way through to the end. Scieszka is the curator of the series, which features such award-winning and beloved authors as Kate DiCamillo (The Tale of Desperaux, Because of Winn Dixie), Patrick Carman (Atherton, 39 Clues, Skeleton Creek), Margaret Peterson Haddix (The Shadow Children books) and even James Patterson (Middle School series, I, Funny series.
Wherever your reluctant reader’s interests lie, you’ll find something to spark his interest in this series (all prices set by the publisher):
Guys Read: Funny Business (avg review rating 4/5 stars, $5.99) – humorous stories
Guys Read: Thriller (avg review rating 4.5/5 stars, $5.98) – mystery / thriller stories for young readers
Guys Read: The Sports Pages (4.5/5 stars, $5.98) – sports stories
Guys Write for Guys Read: Boys’ Favorite Authors Write About Being Boys, the book that launched the Guys Read movement, isn’t available in Kindle format, unfortunately. This book features recollections from famous authors like Stephen King and Neil Gaiman about their own boyhood experiences, some about writing and reading, but many just retelling funny, exciting or touching anecdotes. You can get it in paperback here (avg review rating 4.5/5 stars, currently priced at $8.42).
Please also be sure to visit the Guys Read website, where you can find book reviews and recommendations, author interviews and articles, all geared toward advancing the cause of boys’ literacy.