Fiction at Half Past Eleven

One continues to read more fiction than any one child should consume; when he's not reading a new book he's re-reading (and re-reading and re-reading) something like a Harry Potter or a Percy Jackson. Since my last post on his fiction habit, he has read:

The rest of the Hornblower series. We're thinking about buying him one of the Patrick O'Brien books to see if these are as much fun for him.

The Throne of Fire, the second of Rick Riordan's Kane Chronicles. I've read the first one and I think they pale in comparison to the Percy Jackson books, but One likes these quite a bit.

The Green Glass Sea, about children growing up in WWII-era Los Alamos. I had to badger him to start this one for some reason, but once he started it he ate it up.

My Family and Other Animals and Birds, Beasts and Relatives, both by Gerald Durrell. One loved the first and liked the second. Both are set in Corfu, where 10 year old Durrell moved with his family from England in the 1930's.

Frontier Wolf, set in Britain at the end of the Roman Era, and The Shield Ring, set shortly after the Norman Conquest. Both by Rosemary Sutcliff, who we love.

Black Horses for the King, by Anne McCaffrey.

The Eagle of the Ninth, The Silver Branch, and The Lantern Bearers. A trilogy by Rosemary Sutcliff about Roman Britain. One loved these, although we did miss the Eagle movie in the theater, unfortunately. We may have to catch it on DVD instead.

The Cabinet of Wonders and The Celestial Globe. A bit of a knock-off of Percy Jackson, but One enjoyed them all the same.

Cosmic, by Frank Cottrell Boyce, about a 12 year old boy sent into space. Another one of those "I'll give you a dollar if you read this next" books that One then turns around and loves. When will he learn, I ask you?

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate. Yes, a book starring a girl - and he still liked it. I see nothing wrong with encouraging him to read about strong-minded, intelligent girls. He's going to like girls someday - might as well start getting him interested in the right ones early on. Or that's my theory, anyway. Anything to stop him from getting crushes on cheerleaders...

The Wild West, by Henry Brook. A collection of western stories.

The Shining Company, set during a Saxon invasion of Britain. Yes, you guessed it: Rosemary Sutcliff.

The Unnameables, by Ellen Booream. One is really liking fantasy books these days, so this was well-received.

School of Fear, by Gitty Daneshvari. One loved this - it's been re-read several times by now. Very funny and cleverly done.

Nick of Time, by Ted Bell. History, time travel, adventure. What's a boy to not like?

Al Capone Shines My Shoes. The second book about Moose Flanagan, a boy growing up on Alcatraz. For me a bit of a hat tip to my dad, who was a prison guard himself in a prior life. One approves.

Dormia, about a sleepwalking hero.

Ring of Fire: four kids, four cities. That's all I've managed to glean, but One liked it.

Summerland, by Michael Chabon. Magical places, heroes - the whole gumbo that makes One happy.

Number 11 of the 39 Clues series.

When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead. I've had this in mind since Melissa Wiley recommended it, but I waited for the paperback to come out (same thing with Calpunia Tate). A good read that pays homage to Madeleine L'Engle, my favorite children's book author by far.

Adam of the Road. A 1943 Newberry winner that's still a good bet.

The Bronze Bow, by Elizabeth George Speare. A Newberry winner about a young Jewish boy at the time of Christ.

The Silmarillion and The Children of Hurin. He likes to read the genealogies aloud to his dad. It's about as exciting as the "begats" in the Bible, but does that stop him? Nope.

Now do you see why I had to do a half-year post on this child? He's reading even more these days, which I didn't think was possible. And none of this list counts what he picks up at the school library and I never see, or his still-inexplicable love of The Warriors series and other similar books. If you look in the dictionary for the word "bibliophile", you'll see this picture:

Oy.