A book for Dad and 13 yr old boy to read and discuss?

My son and I want to enjoy a book together so we are looking for suggestions. He wants something adult but not too taxing. I want something that is not Harry Potter! We loved Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime if that helps!

Percy Jackson, a bit immature, but very funny. Mortal Instruments, love love love these. Both Urban fantasy/supernatural.

My son is 13 and has recently finished ready 'Gone' by Michael Grant.
Review from Amazon: 'Suddenly there are no adults, no answers. What would you do? In the blink of an eye, the world changes. The adults vanish without a trace, and those left must do all they can to survive. But everyone's idea of survival is different. Some look after themselves, some look after others, and some will do anything for power...Even kill. For Sam and Astrid, it is a race against time as they try to solve the questions that now dominate their lives...What is the mysterious wall that has encircled the town of Perdido Beach and trapped everyone within? Why have some kids developed strange powers? And can they defeat Caine and his gang of bullies before they turn fifteen and disappear too? It isn't until the world collapses around you that you find out what kind of person you really are. This book offers a chilling portrayal of a world with no rules. When life as you know it ends at 15, everything changes.'
He really enjoyed it and is looking forward to the sequel. He also enjoyed 'The Knife of Never Letter Go' & 'The Ask & The Answer' by Patrick Ness. The Young Bond range of books by Charlie Higson are also worth a look.
Although these are all aimed at the teen market, they are interesting and challenging stories.

Why not try The Wishing Book by Grahame Howard. This is the first novel in a trilogy and is pure fantasy. It features 4 children - 3 boys and a girl who find a book with magical wishing powers. They have quite a few pranks with the book as they try out their new find and these have amusing results. Eventually, they wish to go to Mars and this is where the adventure and thrill really picks up. Once on Mars, they find that the Chief Highness of the Martians, wants the book for himself and will stop at nothing to gain the control of the whole Universe. He throws everything at them - Martian warriors and creatures in his quest to obtain this book.
There are twists and it is difficult for the children to know who they can trust.
Ths is an edge of the seat fantasy adventure with a sequel The Wishing Book 2 - Return to Mars out on 30 November, with Amazon.co.uk taking pre-orders now. and the third one early next year. Age range 7 - 13 but I do know that adults are reading The Wishing Book.
Check them out on Amazon.co.uk or check the author's website www.authorgrahamehoward.co.uk.

Hi Toby,

I think what you are doing is brilliant. Me and my late father were the best of mates and we would spend many an hour just shooting the breeze about stuff, it was great fun and gave us a really strong bond that I still feel today.

Anyway now the blatant plug - which my old man would endorse without pause. I will simply put the link to my book and you can read the reviews there to make up your mind about my self centred suggestion. I have not read - to my shame - 'The Curious Incident...' myself and would not claim my book is the same in any respect but you never know it may strike a chord and I hope will at least spark some kind of banter. I like to think it's quite an exciting story at least.

As another suggestion, I find there's nothing quite like some poetry to spark a discussion on things. I am by no means an expert in this field but Blake, for one, always seems to get a verbal reaction out of people. Maybe this is another route you could explore?

Anyway, the link

Jake Highfield Chaos Unleashed

Wishing all the best in your project

Alec Sillifant

Phillip Pullman's Dark Materials trilogy sounds like just the thing. It's written for teenagers, but can be enjoyed by adults and has lots of big themes and ideas. Even if (or especially if) you don't agree with Pullman's world view, there's plenty to talk about. The first in the series is Northern Lights (His Dark Materials).

Or on a completely different tack, how about The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. It's about two young boys growing up in Afghanistan in the 1970s. Do be aware that some scenes are quite traumatic, and the narrator is seriously flawed, so you'll have to rely on your judgement as to whether your son would like this book.

My son and his father are reading Eragon together well I think they are up to Brisinger by now.

How about Jack London although most people know Call of the Wild and White Fang there are loads of other fantastic stories which appeal to boys The Star Rover is my favourite

Safe Highly recommend this! esp for parents and young teens ....

The London Eye Mystery my son has even re- read this one

Or these by Morris Gleitzman
(if you liked 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' by John Boyne you will love these)

Once Brilliant reads for all ages teens upwards ..

followed by ...
Then

BOTH BOOKS NOW OUT IN ONE ...
Once and Then

Hi Toby

You may like to try my books 'The Talent Thief' and 'The Storm Maker'. The first is a chase fantasy with a boy throwing himself into the action, driving cars, flying planes - The Independent compared it to Ian Fleming which was a great compliment. The 2nd book is about a family working together to overthrow a villain. It has twists and turns and inventions. I'm pleased to say that although my books are classed as children's books adults seem to really love them.
You can find out more here...
www.alexwilliamsbooks.co.uk

All best wishes and happy reading
Alex

How nice to hear of such a fantastic relationship between father and son. What a good dad you are. Do you both like fantasy? Terry Pratchett is a must for any age. He's such a talented and funny writer. If you want to give a new writer a chance, Lynne North is worth checking out. 'Zac's Destiny' is aimed at just the right age group for your son. Hope you find what you are looking for!

How about The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series (Wolf Brother is Book 1) by Michelle Paver. They are about a boy called Torak who lives in the past, can talk Wolf language and who needs to fulfil his destiny by destroying the Soul Eaters who killed his father. Me and my mum love these books. There are 6 books in the series.

Try The boy in the striped pyjamas. Lots to discuss in that.

Then there's The Nightingale Floor ( first of a series).

The Book Thief.

To Kill a Mocking Bird.

Catcher in the Rye.

Last of the Mohicans. (sp?)

The one with Piggy and other boys cast away by themselves on an island - can't think of the name of the book. Hated it myself, but it gives a lot to discuss.

The Cherub series by Robert Muchamore is worth a try. Cherub is a secret part of British Intelligence where children are trained as agents. These books are addictive, so don' just order the first one (The Recruit).

Go for a classic - To Kill a Mocking Bird can be read and discussed at many levels. Your son is definitely old enough to read this book and it will invoke many memories from your own childhood which will lead to more story telling and discussions to share.

LEP - The one with Piggy is Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I remember reading this when my son had to read it for school - we both disliked it too! What is it about school choices that seems to take the pleasure out of reading?

Try The Magic Scales by Sam Wilding. It's like a combination on of Tolkien and JK meets Tom Sharpe. Funny, big battles and inventive magic.

Cherub series by robert muchamore or darren shan's vampire saga by darren shan
two of the best series of books i have ever read.

That's it, J Watson, Lord of the Flies.

Re. School, I think it has something to do with being forced to read and analyse it and get the Letts Notes etc., for examinations. Not my personal choice at all. Nevertheless, it does make good discussion points.

Have you tried The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series? My 14-year old son loves them. He also loves The Lord of the Rings and the Alex Rider books by Anthony Horowitz.

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Agree with all the stuff mentioned above but I can think of some more. What about Michael Morpurgo books? They can have fairly heavy content but are written for children very sympathetically. If you're into fantasy then I would always go for Diana Wynne Jones or Susan Cooper. If his reading is pretty good then maybe some classic stuff, my little brother loves Sherlock Holmes, and Isaac Asimov, there's also always Jules Verne and H Rider Haggard, can't go far wrong with those.

I'm a girl, but I have read all the book that the boys in my class have read. So I suggest:

Percy Jackson: Lighting Thief / Sea of Monsters / Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson and the Olympians)- totally hilarious, but badly written.
Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment- quite strange,but good.
The Demon's Lexicon-reallly good, equiped with demon killing and a great twist at the ned. hehehe
City of Bones (Mortal Instruments)- I would actually aim this at girls. But it still is a great book. My favourite. READ IT!

Hope that helps,

Chloe

http://thebookbugbooksfortweensandteens.blogspot.com/

My dad read me Kierkegaard when I was 14. Well worth the nightmares

The Outsiders by S.E Hinton - growing up, finding yourself amongst social stereotypes and dealing with gangs

The Magic Scales by Sam Wilding - because, there are great battle scenes, weird magic and troublesome family members to figure out.
The Magic Scales: Book One of the Denthan Series