160 Books for Boys

[faustus]

One of those let's get boys reading thingies

1. Douglas Adams The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Macmillan)
   
2. Gosho Aoyama Case Closed (Gollancz)
   
3. Gillian Arbuthnott Crazy Creatures (Barrington Stoke)
   
4. Russell Ash The Top 10 of Everything 2007 (Hamlyn)
   
5. Bernard Ashley Smokescreen (Usborne)
   
6. Dominic Barker The Boy who was Wanted Dead or Alive - or both (Bloomsbury)
   
7. Tom Becker Darkside (Scholastic)
   
8. Luc Besson Arthur and the Invisibles (Faber)
   
9. Frank Cottrell Boyce Framed (Macmillan)
   
10. Tony Bradman, edited Like Father, Like Son?: 12 Stories About Boys and Their Dads (Kingfisher)
    
11. Herbie Brennan Strange Powers of the Human Mind (Faber)
    
12. Theresa Breslin Divided City (Corgi)
    
13. Theresa Breslin Mutant (Barrington Stoke)
    
14. L Brittney Nathan Fox (Macmillan)
    
15. Kevin Brooks Bloodline (Barrington Stoke)
    
16. Kevin Brooks Being (Puffin)
    
17. Kevin Brooks Johnny Delgado Like Father Like Son (Barrington Stoke)
    
18. N M Browne The Spellgrinder's Apprentice (Bloomsbury)
    
19. Melvin Burgess Billy Elliot (Chicken House)
    
20. Melvin Burgess Bloodsong (Puffin)
    
21. AJ Butcher Agent Orange (Atom)
    
22. Bill Bryson A Short History of Nearly Everything (Black Swan)
    
23. Michael Carroll Sakkara (HarperCollins)
    
24. Dean Vincent Carter The Hand of the Devil (Corgi)
    
25. Anne Cassidy The Bone Room (Barrington Stoke)
    
26. Philip Cavney Sebastian Darke: Prince of Fools (Bodley Head)
    
27. Jeremy Clarkson I Know You Got Soul (Penguin)
    
28. Steve Cole The Moomy's Curse (Red Fox)
    
29. Steve Cole The Aztec Code (Bloomsbury)
    
30. Eoin Colfer Artemis Fowl and the Lost Colony (Puffin)
    
31. Eoin Colfer Half Moon Investigations (Puffin)
    
32. Eoin Colfer The Supernaturalist (Puffin)
    
33. Michael Coleman The Fighting Pit (Orchard)
    
34. Joe Craig Jimmy Coates: Revenge (HarperCollins)
    
35. Roald Dahl Boy and Going Solo (Puffin)
    
36. Daniel Defoe Robinson Crusoe (Puffin)
    
37. Joseph Delaney The Spook's Secret (Bodley Head)
    
38. Louisa Dent The Forgotten Spell (Wizard Books)
    
39. Joshua Doder Grk and the Hot Dog Trail (Andersen Press)
    
40. David Donohue Moon Man (Egmont)
    
41. Paul Dowswell and Fergus Fleming True Spy Stories (Spies - due out in June)
    
42. Fiona Dunbar Toonhead (Orchard)
    
43. Alan Durant Game Boy (Barrington Stoke)
    
44. Alan Durant Stat Man (Barrington Stoke)
    
45. David Eddings Castle of Wizardry (Corgi)
    
46. Sam Enthoven The Black Tattoo (Doubleday)
    
47. John Fardell The Flight of the Silver Turtle (Faber)
    
48. Anne Fine The Road of Bones (Corgi)
    
49. Cornelia Funke Dragon Rider (Chicken House)
    
50. Neil Gaiman Coraline (Bloomsbury)
    
51. Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish (Bloomsbury)
    
52. Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean Mirrormask (Bloomsbury)
    
53. Ricky Gervais Flanimals of the Deep (Faber)
    
54. Alan Gibbons Setting of a Cruel Sun (Orion)
    
55. Clive Gifford So You Think You Know the Simpsons? (Hodder)
    
56. David Gilman The Devil's Breath (Puffin - due out in June)
    
57. Morris Gleitzman Once (Puffin)
    
58. Julia Golding Mines of the Minotaur (OUP)
    
59. Julia Golding The Ship Between the Worlds (OUP)
    
60. Guinness Book of Records 2007 (Guinness)
    
61. H Rider Haggard King Solomon's Mines (Penguin)
    
62. JA Henderson Bunker 10 (OUP)
    
63. Carl Hiaasen Flush (Corgi)
    
64. FE Higgins The Black Book of Secrets (Macmillan)
    
65. Jack Higgins and Justin Richards Sure Fire (HarperCollins - due out in May)
    
66. Jason Hightman Samurai (HarperCollins)
    
67. Charlie Higson Double or Die (Puffin)
    
68. Stuart Hill Blade of Fire (Chicken House)
    
69. Sharon Holt It's True You Can Make Your Own Jokes (Allen & Unwin)
    
70. Richard Horne 101 Things You Need To Know (And Some You Don't) (Bloomsbury)
    
71. Richard Horne 101 Things To Do Before You're Old and Boring (Bloomsbury)
    
72. Anthony Horowitz Nightrise (Walker)
    
73. Anthony Horowitz Ark Angel (Walker)
    
74. Elizabeth Singer Hunt Great Britain (Red Fox)
    
75. Sam Hutton Meltdown (HarperCollins)
    
76. Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone Bloodbones (Wizard Books)
    
77. Brian Jacques High Rhulain (Puffin)
    
78. Robin Jarvis The Dark Portal (Hodder)
    
79. Paul Jennings Unreal! (Puffin)
    
80. Pete Johnson Help I'm a Classroom Gambler (Corgi)
    
81. Tom Kelly The Thing with Finn (Macmillan)
    
82. Kazu Kibuishi Flight (Image Comics)
    
83. Darren King Mouse Noses on Toast (Faber)
    
84. Derek Landy Skulduggery Pleasant (HarperCollins)
    
85. Katherine Langrish Troll Blood (HarperCollins)
    
86. Elizabeth Laird Crusade (Macmillan - due out in June)
    
87. Elizabeth Laird Secrets of the Fearless (Macmillan)
    
88. HI Larry Deep Waters (Egmont)
    
89. Michael Lawrence Ryan's Brain (Orchard)
    
90. Catherine Macphail Under the Skin (Barrington Stoke)
    
91. Guy McDonald The Boys' Book; How to be the Best at Everything
    
92. Oisin McGann Small-Minded Giants (Corgi)
    
93. Andy McNab Avenger (Corgi)
    
94. Cliff McNish Breathe (Orion)
    
95. Catherine Macphail The Beast Within (Bloomsbury)
    
96. Graham Marks Takedown (Catnip)
    
97. Nicola Morgan The Highwayman's Footsteps (Walker)
    
98. Michael Morpurgo Billy the Kid (Collins)
    
99. Michael Morpurgo Private Peaceful (HarperCollins)
    
100. Joshua Mowll Operation Typhoon Shore (Walker)
     
101. Robert Muchamore The Fall (Hodder)
     
102. Natasha Narayan The Paradise Plot (Egmont)
     
103. William Nicholson Jango (Egmont)
     
104. Garth Nix One Beastly Beast (HarperCollins)
     
105. Garth Nix Lady Friday (HarperCollins)
     
106. Mick O'Hare Why Don't Penguins' Feet Freeze? (Profile Books)
     
107. Ian Ogilvy Measle and the Slitherghoul (OUP)
     
108. David Orme Boffin Boy and the Invaders from Space (Ransom)
     
109. James A Owen Here There be Dragons (Simon & Schuster)
     
110. Christopher Paolini Eldest (Corgi)
     
111. James Patterson Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports (Headline)
     
112. Michelle Paver Soul Eater (Orion)
     
113. Mal Peet The Penalty (Walker)
     
114. David Petersen Fall 1152 (Archaia - due out in June)
     
115. Dav Pilkey Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People (Scholastic)
     
116. Kjartan Poskitt Urgum the Axe Man (Scholastic)
     
117. Tom Pow Captives (Corgi)
     
118. Terry Pratchett A Hat Full of Sky (Doubleday)
     
119. Philip Pullman Northern Lights (Scholastic)
     
120. Bali Rai Dream On (Barrington Stoke)
     
121. Philip Reeve A Darkling Plain (Scholastic)
     
122. Philip Reeve Here Lies Arthur (Scholastic)
     
123. Philip Reeve Larklight (Bloomsbury)
     
124. Justin Richards Time Runners: Freeze Framed (Simon & Schuster)
     
125. EE Richardson Devil for Sale (Barrington Stoke)
     
126. EE Richardson The Intruders (Corgi)
     
127. Philip Ridley Zip's Apollo (Puffin)
     
128. Robert Rig Goal! II: Living the Dream (Corgi)
     
129. Rick Riordan Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters (Puffin)
     
130. James Riordan Rebel Cargo (Frances Lincoln)
     
131. Robert LeRoy Ripley Ripley's Believe It or Not! (Century)
     
132. Malcolm Rose Final Lap (Kingfisher)
     
133. Chris Ryan Flash Flood (Red Fox)
     
134. Angie Sage Physik (Bloomsbury)
     
135. Eric Schlosser Chew on This: Everything You Don't Want to Know About Fast Food (Puffin)
     
136. Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith The Stinky Cheese Man (Puffin)
     
137. Marcus Sedgwick My Swordhand is Singing (Orion)
     
138. Andy Seed How to Spot a Hadrosaur in a Bus Queue (Hodder)
     
139. Jak Shadow The Crime Lord (Wizard Books)
     
140. Darren Shan Blood Beast (HarperCollins)
     
141. Alex Shearer Tins (Macmillan)
     
142. Mary Shelley Frankenstein (Bloomsbury)
     
143. Matthew Skelton Endymion Spring (Puffin)
     
144. Alexander Gordon Smith The Inventors (Faber)
     
145. Jeff Smith The Great Cow Race (Cartoon Books)
     
146. Lemony Snicket Book the Thirteenth: The End (Egmont)
     
147. Justin Somper Tide of Terror (Simon & Schuster)
     
148. Ali Sparkes Running the Risk (OUP)
     
149. Art Spiegelman It Was A Dark and Silly Night (HarperCollins)
     
150. Robert Louis Stevenson (adapted by Alan Grant) Kidnapped: A Graphic Novel in Full Colour (Barrington Stoke)
     
151. Robert Louis Stevenson Treasure Island (Bloomsbury)
     
152. Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell The Curse of the Nightwolf (Doubleday)
     
153. Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell Clash of the Sky Galleons (Doubleday)
     
154. Jonathan Stroud Ptolemy's Gate (Corgi)
     
155. Robert Swindells BurnOut (Barrington Stoke)
     
156. Mitchell Symons How to Avoid a Wombat's Bum (Doubleday)
     
157. JRR Tolkien The Hobbit (HarperCollins)
     
158. John Townsend Deadline (Barrington Stoke)
     
159. Mark Twain The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Penguin)
     
160. Mark Twain The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Penguin)
     
161. Eleanor Updale Montmorency's Revenge (Scholastic)
     
162. Steve Voake The Web of Fire (Faber)
     
163. Mark Walden H.I.V.E. (Higher Institute of Villainous Education) (Bloomsbury)
     
164. Bill Watterson Scientific Progress Goes "Boink": A Calvin and Hobbes Collection (Time Warner)
     
165. Catherine Webb The Obsidian Dagger (Atom)
     
166. Chris Wooding Storm Thief (Scholastic) (Buster Books)
     
167. EL Young S.T.O.R.M. (Macmillan)
     
168. Bejamin Zephaniah Talking Turkeys (Puffin)
     
169. Markus Zusak The Book Thief (Bodley Head)
     

Gaiman and Reeve looks like top dog, and I don't think I'd choose that Pratchett for boys. Or that Lemony Snicket...

Coverage: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article1796075.ece
http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,2080753,00.html

Comments

[sam-t.livejournal.com]

It does seem odd to recommend books which are in the series and not the first book, especially where the books are explicitly numbered. It's good to see that the compilers haven't gone for the old 'books for boys' = 'books with no girls in', as several on this list have girl protagonists (although it would be interesting to see proportions - I don't know many of these). I'm surprised by how little non-fiction there is.

[drasecretcampus.livejournal.com]

Books on dinosaurs. All that Doring Kindersley type stuff.

I think I would have gone for Johnny Maxwell rather than Hat Full of Sky (but then Only You Can Save Mankind is set against the context of a pointless Gulf War so would clearly be dated ...)

No Diane Wynne Jones, no Anne Halam, no Charles Butler.

I'm not sure about pushing Hitch-Hikers as a children's book, though I did read it when I were a lad.

[lamentables.livejournal.com]

I was also going to comment on the listing of books which are not the first in the series - just at a glance that includes Horowitz, Reeve, Nix, Snicket, Mowll.

I'm curious about the authors who go by intials - whether the obscuring of gender is still a good idea for f writers. I know NM Browne and EE Richardson are female...the interwebs reveal FE Higgins is also f, JA Henderson & AJ Butcher are m, HI Larry's identity is secret and I can't dig up anything on EL Young. Nothing to conclude there really, other than to observe the proportion of f writers amongst those identified only by initials is higher than on the list as a whole.

[drasecretcampus.livejournal.com]

I think the rule of thumb is to assume that it's a woman hiding behind initials (see UK Le Guin in Playboy. Because I'm a boy and I don't read girls cos there smelly.

Or something.

J.R.R (and C.S., omitted here) the historical exception(s).
M.T. Anderson (not here) in some markets.

Not sure if the Higson is the first Bond book or not.

The last Snicket is just a perverse choice.