Is there a more difficult conundrum in the universe than choosing a book to buy a 13 or 14-year-old boy? Whether you have a reluctant reader or a voracious reader, it’s a notoriously tricky age group to negotiate.
In the interests of community service, I thought I’d share this list of 21 books that Book Boy, nearly 14, has read and enjoyed.
Many of these have been reviewed on his blog (now found at Mumlyfe, I’ve linked where available), some are yet-to-be reviewed, and some may never make it to the blog (mostly due to general lack of blogging motivation), but you can rest assured that these are all books he’s read and ‘rated’.
Click the titles to read more about the book and to buy at Booktopia.
Fiction books for boys 13+
Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey Full review.
Bro by Helen Chebatte Full review.
Everything Is Changed by Nova Weetman Full review.
Every Breath by Ellie Marney Full review.
The Yearbook Committee by Sarah Ayoub Full review.
Turtles All The Way Down by John Green Full review.
Paper Towns by John Green Full review.
*The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-time by Mark Haddon Full review.
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton Full review.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (“It was the first proper science fiction novel I read and I really enjoyed the story. I really liked the way the book made me think about books in a new way.” – BB)
Living On Hope Street by Demet Divaroren (“A very good book and portrait of contemporary suburban life.” – BB)
Illuminae by Amie Kauffman and Jay Kristoff (this one makes the list courtesy of one of BB’s BFFs, who is not a huge reader of fiction but is obsessed with this series)
Spark by Rachael Craw
*Different Seasons: Four Novellas by Stephen King (includes The Body and Rita Hayworth and The Shawshank Redemption)
Non fiction books for boys 13+
On Writing by Stephen King Full review.
Steve Jobs Insanely Great by Jessie Hartland Full review.
Elon Musk and the Quest For A Fantastic Future (young readers) by Ashlee Vance
Karl, The Universe and Everything by Dr Karl Kruszelnicki Full review.
The Number Games by Adam Spencer (the latest addition from a BB favourite – see earlier review here)
*I’ve put a * on the books that might need further parental consideration, depending on your kid.
Are you new here? Thanks for visiting my blog! I write two epic middle-grade fantasy adventure series for boys and girls – The Mapmaker Chronicles and The Ateban Cipher – and a new historical mystery series THE FIRE STAR (A Maven & Reeve Mystery).
Find out more about me here, and more about my books here.
NOTE: You’ll find 15 more tried-and-tested books for 13/14-year-old boys (+ 13 expert choices) here!
DON’T MISS: 60 MORE TRIED-AND-TESTED BOOKS FOR 13/14-YEAR-OLD BOYS
Interesting list! I have to be honest here – I would not have considered most of these books as suitable for my Mr 13. But he does want books for Christmas so I may look into these titles. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Annie, they’re definitely all different, but I do like to see what others are reading. Hope the list is helpful. A
What a fantastic list. I know that my Miss 16 enjoyed the Perks of being a Wallflower. She’s also read Eleanor and Park. My Mr 17 is still avoiding books!
He might well come back to reading for pleasure once he’s stopped *having* to read for school. I know that’s what happened with my brother. Fingers crossed!
Hi Cathy, I find lots of kids avoid books when they *have* to read them for school, but come back to reading for pleasure later. Fingers crossed! A