Guy Books

FICTION

Bennett, Jay

• Many of his slim volumes are out of print but these crime mysteries could all be turned into TV scripts. Coverup, published in 1999, deals with a tean hit and run incident.

Cooney, Caroline

• Driver's Ed - ripped from the headlines - thrill-seeking kids steal a stop sign which leads to a fatal accident. No one will ever know. Do they confess? Even more interesting is the reaction of the parents.
• The Terrorist - all too relevant to today - Laura's brother Billy is killed when a package he is handed in the London underground turns out to be a bomb. Only Laura believes that he was deliberately chosen.

Cormier, Robert

• We All Fall Down - This book is disgusting but when I present it as a book I don't think should be on the shelves, nonreaders fight over it. Cormier died a few years ago but I'm sure his books will stay in print.

Crutcher, Chris

• Whale Talk - for the older reader - a host or unlikely heroes form a swim team to take on the jock mentality at their school. The ending is violent and hopeful at the same time.
• Ironman - the father son relationship is the focus of this story or preparing for the ironman competition.

Gutman, Dan

• His baseball card series explores various baseball greats through time travel connected to their baseball cards. Babe & Me is a great one to book talk because it deals with the legendary point into the stands.
• He has other sports books that will attract that crowd but be careful, some of the sports stars are girls and boys of middle school age will typically have none of that.

Haddix, Margaret

• Among the Hidden - the dramatic decisions made by two "third children" in a world where only two children to a family are allowed
• Among the Imposters, Among the Betrayed, Among the Barons - all sequels

Hobbs, Will

• The Maze, Wild man Island and Downriver are only a few of the outdoor adventures boys love.

Horowitz, Anthony

• The Alex Rider Series - Stormbreaker and Point Blank and... James Bond as a teen. Each one a nail biter with great covers.

Lynch, Chris

• Slot Machine - Hilarious story of a sport reject
• Johnny Chesthair - First book in the He-Man Women Haters Club - would be offensivlye sexist if the characters weren't so desparately, pathetically, funny

McManus, Patrick

• More outdoor stories served up with more humor than anything else. My favorites include Never Cry, Arp! and The Night the Bear ate Goombaw

Mikaelson, Ben

• Almost any of his outdoor adventures but Touching Spirit Bear has been stolen twice by troubled boys who recognize the main character in themselves.

Paulsen, Gary

• The Brian books beginning with Hatchet - Great survival adventures
• Harris and Me - Me (Paulsen) and cousin Harris get into all manner of good old fashion trouble with a few four letter words thrown in to guarantee interest.
• The Schernoff Discoveries - a short and hilarious story based on Paulsen misspent high school years
• The White Fox Chronicles - futuristic sci-fi adventure which reads just like an action flick

Skurzynski, Gloria

• Virtual War - 3 young people are genetically engineered to win a virual war played like a video game. They escape from their virual reality world and change their game plan when they first meet another live human being.
• Clones - the sequel to Virtual War

GRAPHIC NOVELS

You need to be careful with this one because some are a little tooo graphic

Graphic Classics - a series done by Eureka Productions

The Hobbit - Ballentine Books - ISBN 0345445600

Moby Dick - Houghton Mifflin - ISBN 0616265716

Many new Manga Series

BIOGRAPHIES

Short and simple - on just about any living sports figure

NON-FICTION

This is actually the category of choice for most male non-readers. they will read to learn what they need to know or what interests them in their real life. Lots of graphics and pictures don't hurt either. You just need to figure out what they like.