A Book Your Son Will Read
Harry Potter doesn’t do it for my nine-year old son. While he did not start out as a reluctant reader, I’m beginning to think he’s headed in that direction. Only a year ago, he would hop off the school bus with a chapter book in hand, touting that he’d read halfway through it during the ride. Boy, it made me proud. My son, the literary whiz.
Things have changed.
I’m beginning to realize it’s not so much that my son has changed, but rather the books. He likes to complete an entire novel within an hour… Maybe two. Any book that requires focused reading for more than that is “boring.” Of course, now that he’s entered grade four, the books in his age group (officially middle-grade fare) are longer and harder. Now, when he walks in the door reading The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby, I’m not impressed. “You’ve got to move on,” I beg him.
Every once in a while I manage to bring home a book that he can’t put down. Of course, Diary of a Wimpy Kid was an instant classic in our house (he introduced that one to me.) The formula?
- Can be read within an hour and a half,
- Is very witty, and
- Has cartoon drawings.
There is another, lesser known, series out there that I stumbled upon while researching for my own book’s market. Star Jumper: Journal of a Cardboard Genius is the first in a series of three books written by Frank Asch. They follow a formula similar to Diary of a Wimpy Kid (the names sound kinda’ similar, too - don’t ya’ think?)
My nine-year-old read them back to back in one weekend. Now he’s returned to perusing the Guinness Book of World Records and re-reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I’m looking for another book with that perfect formula.
