I feel like we are "out of books" for my just turned 10yo very advanced reader (Lexile measured at something over 1000 last year). I am the child of a children's librarian, so I am pretty familiar with the classics and try to keep up with the new stuff. He is voracious, and I just feel like we have been through almost everything, so now he just kind of motors through whatever semi-garbagey new middle-grade fantasies appear at the library and it's like nothing is really available to excite or stretch him anymore. The issue is that he is definitely still a kid...the most adult books he has read (and liked) are all of Tolkien, Hitchhiker's Guide, Once and Future King, and some Terry Pratchett, but you do have to be a bit careful with Pratchett. Just looking for some good titles that we might have missed, because it feels like we're just...out of books!! (He isn't much on nonfiction.)

Does he like science fiction, as well as fantasy? If so, he might enjoy the David Brin Uplift series (first book in the first one is Startide Rising. Or some John Scalzi? I guess he sometimes has some sex in his books, so you'd want to screen a bit. My kid loved The Martian at that age, although I did have to have a talk with him about just because we were letting him read a book with the f-word in it didn't mean he was allowed to say it at school. Ender's Game often resonates for gifted kids.

How about Watership Down? Or The Wednesday Wars? (That might get him to read some Shakespeare, too!)

A big seconding to Ender's Game and all of the related books... honestly, I find the stories about Bean to be more interesting than the ones about Ender.

Because he likes Pratchett and Adams, he might very much like Carl Hiassen... different genre, but very similar humor. He's primarily known for the piles of stuff he has written with strongly adult themes, but he's now doing some for the young/teen reader group. Start with Hoot and see how that catches on.

Mark Twain is another great source of that sort of humor, with little worry about adult themes.

Some fantasy I was reading in my middle school years that I'm reasonably sure is free of adult themes:

The Belgariad/Mallorean - David Eddings
The Sword of Shannara (there's a related Netflix series my daughter and I are currently enjoying) - Terry Brooks
Riftwar Series (enormous, begins with Magician: Apprentice) - Raymond Feist
Guardians of the Flame series - Joel Rosenberg

There are a bunch of book lists on this forum under "Recommended Resources":

http://giftedissues.davidsongifted....recommendations_age_9_12.html#Post193027

Also I love the Mensa for kids Excellence in Reading lists. Plus the kids get bragging rights and a free t-shirt if they complete every book on the list.

https://www.mensaforkids.org/achieve/excellence-in-reading/excellence-in-reading-4-6-list/

Does he like mysteries at all? Classics like Agatha Christie are often good forays into "adult" books for this age. Also Tony Hillerman's mysteries, which contain some interesting cultural and regional-specific information which could be followed up with interesting nonfiction books.

Has he read any Robert Louis Stevenson? What about a nonfiction adventure tale like "Endurance" (about the Shackleton voyage)?

To Kill a Mockingbird might be great at this age, but obviously with parental guidance to discuss the more disturbing or mature themes. My father read it to me when I was only 7 and it was OK.

I second Mark Twain, though again with parental guidance on certain language/themes. Definitely second Ender's Game and sequels/relatives. And I'm assuming he's already read The White Mountains and sequels.

Amazon has a way to sort by award winning books - Newbery, Caldecott, maybe other (it's been awhile) - plus age, subject, etc., etc. We found many books we had never heard of that turned out to be of great interest to DD. (and I was re-acquainted with Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, my childhood favorite )

I suggest focusing on quality writing and interesting subject matter over Lexile ratings. DD was supposedly "Lexile 1419-1569" at 10, but picking up Don Quixote would have been a pointless exercise. The important part is the act of reading itself, IMHO.

Harry Potter's in the past, I assume...

Wow - we have never come close to running out of books! On second thought, the pool is much larger when you include non-fiction and teen/young adult books. Perhaps he may find some web serials that are high quality although I know DS has read many junky serials. Perhaps consider translations of foreign titles. By that age, DS will sometimes just browse the library shelves alphabetically to find new (to him) authors.

When searching for books based on Lexile, one may also wish to consider that measures of Lexile usually focus on instructional level, whereas leisure reading should typically be at mastery level, which for most readers is about 50-100 Lexile points below instructional. So a child measured at 1000L would be expected to have the most enjoyable and successful pleasure reading with texts at or below 900L or so.

I'm not ready for him to read anything with sex or profanity. I think To Kill a Mockingbird, etc is probably over his head thematically. Don't want to go into YA. That's the issue, really...Trying to keep him a kid a little longer. I haven't gotten Ender's Game because I'd heard it was more YA?


I'll look at these. I was warned that Sword of Shannara has aged very poorly as far as attitudes towards women.

The book lists in Resources I've been through. We've kinda done the Newberys that are of interest. The Mensa list (dated list, I gotta say) does have a few he's missed (Cheaper by the Dozen--he'll like that!), so I'll get them, but mostly done.

It's not that I'm so focused on Lexile as that I just want to make it clear that he CAN read just about anything. He's been expressing boredom with some kids' books, too. A series he used to like came out with a new sequel and he felt sad to find that it didn't interest him anymore. I get a sense that he's just chewing through pap middle-grade fantasy restlessly.

Send more if you've got 'em. Like, big thick kids' books that are still kids' books. An example of a series that kept him nice and busy was Redwall.

He really reads a lot...

Lexile website is suggesting Anne McCaffrey. Is that appropriate or is she YA?

Regarding Anne McCaffrey: mostly going to be female protagonists, will your son be ok with that? The Harper Hall trilogy (Dragonsong, Dragonsinger, Dragondrums) fine for 10 yr old -- my kid read them age 10.

But be careful with McCaffrey's other books -- they'll tend to have a bit of romance-novel-light-sex, and you mention you're trying to stay away from sex yet. For instance, Dragonflight, her very first "Dragonriders of Pern" book (which the Harper Hall trilogy fits in sort of sideways with), while I enjoyed it myself when young, has a almost-rape-that-turns-into-love-relationship. It's not at all graphic, at least as I recall -- but maybe a dubious message for a 10 yr old.

Other books for a 10 year old:

My kid enjoyed Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians,
and the next couple books after that (about the 4th? book they went downhill), by Brandon Sanderson. With a librarian in the family, maybe they'd be amusing. I will add that with the first book (the only one I read), I was pleasantly surprised to realize towards the end was NOT just goofy, disconnected humor, but things had actually been building up and clues had been scattered along the way and it was actually clever!

I second Watership Down, mentioned by others.

I'd second Ender's Game as others have mentioned; I think it's fine for kids. But I have reservations about some of the other Ender books -- it'd be a book-by-book question. I recall domestic abuse and just an icky family situation, and grotesque killings, in Speaker for the Dead.

Jules Verne -- The Mysterious Island, in particular, is fun.

Runemarks, Joanne Harris
The Prophecy, Hilari Bell
Powerless, Matthew Cody
Heart of a Samurai, Margi Preuss -- based on fascinating real-life person
The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn (mystery series start, set in 18th century Japan), Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler
Happy Kid, Gail Gautier
a time-travel trilogy by Maiya Williams, starting with The Golden Hour -- first set in French Revolution time, 2nd in Cleopatra's time, 3rd in Gold Rush

More books:

Ready Player One, Ernest Cline -- I don't recall there being anything too problematic for a young reader in this book. Video game treasure hunt -- the Steven Spielberg movie version is coming out next month!

Summerland, Michael Chabon -- a great writer writing a kids book -- culturally diverse fantasy plus baseball

The King in the Window, Adam Gopnik -- author mostly writes adult books

Gregor the Overlander series, by Suzanne Collins -- this earlier series by the author of The Hunger Games is enjoyable, and makes moral points (against racism, against war), and ok for much younger kids than The Hunger Games

The Chronicles of Kazam trilogy starting with The Last Dragonslayer, Jasper Fforde -- another author who usually writes adult books

The Schwa Was Here, Antsy Does TIme, Neal Shusterman -- bit of magical realism, these books are addressing some interesting issues in a subtle way

No Castles Here, A.C.E. Bauer -- fantasy in a gritty urban setting but at a kid-appropriate level

Adam Canfield of the Slash, Michael Winerip -- middle school boy dealing with ethics of journalism, has a couple sequels; author is a Pulitzer Prize winning writer for the New York Times

The Boys of San Joaquin, D. James Smith -- set in the 1950s in Fresno, California, the writing style is good (and if you enjoy things like Cheaper By the Dozen, or Knucklehead: Stories of Growing Up Scieszka, you may like it); has two sequels

Ways to Live Forever, Sally Nicholls -- 11 year old with leukemia trying to fulfill his bucket list; there's a movie version (haven't seen it)

Down the Mysterly River, Bill WIllingham and Mark Buckingham -- lots of references to character types from literature, and kind of post-modern meta-fiction-y meets Hardy Boys type main character; (note that these collaborators are primarily known for their work on the Fables comics series)

--- Some more books for fun ---

Sisters Grimm series, Michael Buckley -- this series is more appealing to
boys than one might guess; the author is very funny

The Mysterious Benedict Society series

books by Roland Smith, e.g., the I.Q. series

Dark Lord series, Jamie Thomson -- a kid who's read and enjoyed Tolkien will enjoy the central conceit: it's essentially Sauron put into a young teen body. (Be aware that these books have been published under two or maybe three different sets of titles.)

H.I.V.E. (Higher Institute of Villainous Education) series, Mark Walden -- fun anti-heroes

Flawed Dogs, Berkeley Breathed -- note treats some hard topics around pet ownership, including abuse and abandonment of pets

---- Some classics

Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson

Swallows and Amazons series, Arthur Ransome

I can't say, as it's been too long. I found that they didn't age well based on writing quality, but they were fine for me as a middle-schooler.

The Netflix series, I was pleased to note from the very beginning, features two very strong female main characters, and several women in leadership positions, including an Elvish military captain (hero) and a human Queen (villain). However, I would not recommend the series to your 10yo. I give it an unofficial PG-13 rating for sexual situations.


Ender's Game itself contains domestic abuse (Ender's brother) and grotesque killings (Stilson, Bonzo, the giant from the virtual game, the Formics).

My 9-year old son's class (mostly high readers) have loved the Wings of Fire series by Tui Sutherland (There's 10 so far in the series, mythical books about dragons). They can be kind of gory, but it doesn't seem to bother the class. What I have loved about them is how they showcase the different strengths and characteristics of each character. While there are several characters that are very academic and highly intelligent, there are others who are brave, funny, positive thinkers, etc. I thought it was an excellent choice for gifted kids to learn how to appreciate non-academic strengths.

How about Arthur Conan Doyle, Jonathan Swift or Mark Twain?

Thanks for the recommendations! He has read or tried some of what is suggested, but I have added some to our list. Peony2, your suggestions look especially up his alley!

Keep them coming if you've got more.

Has he read the Cat Warriors books and the Rick Rordan stuff? They're hecka thick books for kids but my daughter adored them for several years. She also loves the Wings of Fire, which do have some gorey bits but even my sensitive 8yo was ok with them (we have been doing them as audiobooks in the car).

We also did the whole Harper Hall trilogy on audiobooks. My 8yo loved them.

The Redwall series might also fit the bill.

Right - Brian Jacques has a much broader vocabulary than is typical for books targeting 8-10 year olds.

Our daughter lapped the stories up when she was younger - she still has a poster showing a map of their world somewhere.

ultramarina, Thank you for your post. I feel like I am in a very similar situation with my 10 yo DS. His preference is fantasy. Among the many already suggested including Enders Game, Hitchhikers, Rick Riordan series, Gregor series, Tolkien, my son has enjoyed:

The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel (6 Books) Michael Scott

The Keepers (3 books so far...) Ted Sanders

The Thickety (4 books) J. A. White

City of Ember (4 books) Jeanne DuPrau

The Secret Keepers - Trenton Stewart Lee

What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions - Randall Munroe

DS is currently finishing Watership Down.

Keep the suggestions coming... lots of good new titles to research, thanks.

Yes, he's read all of Redwall (this was a huge favorite and kept him busy for a long time! Thank you, Brian Jacques!) He read some Warriors, some Wings of Fire, and some Rick Riordan, but never loved them as much. City of Ember he has read and enjoyed. The Thickety--he just noticed there are some new ones and is excited to get to them. I'll look at the others!

I loved science fiction as a kid. My favorite author was Isaac Asimov. I think his stuff would be suitable, because they have interesting philosophical themes, but not a lot of romance etc. I also loved Arthur C Clarke.

Another cool book is Sophie's World, it's a fictional novel about the history of philosophy, but the main character is a teenage girl. It has a super cool plot twist in the middle.

I had already responded awhile ago, but just thought of another book that was inspirational to my 9-year old. "A Long Walk to Water", though nonfiction, is told in more of a story narrative than. It has some acts of violence, but the character was a child so I figured if he lived it, my child can read about it! My son thoroughly enjoyed researching the authors current projects online afterward.

Hi--I need more books! My son is frustrated with middle grade fantasy, commenting that he finds it boring/babyish. I find him rereading Calvin and Hobbes and Bloom County or other comedy books a lot.

I would like to thank you all for these past suggestions, some of which he loved (Summerland and the Schwa was Here were two hits that surprised me a bit). There was one big failure--he actually got upset at me for giving him Ender's Game (which I have never read). He said it was really disturbing and he hated it and wished he'd never read it. So, although he has read plenty of books with violence etc, apparently there is a level of disturbing that is too much for him and I need to be more careful. YA dystopia seems to be out.

ETA: He is currently reading Anne of Green Gables, which he likes pretty well, but I'm not sure I see him progressing through the series.

Dan Gutman's books (The Genius Files (series), Flashback Four (series), a variety of sports-related realistic fiction). TGF has a nice road trip/US geography element to it, plus spies, GT protagonists. FF has historical elements. DG was a teacher (social studies, I think), which adds some fun factoid/edutainment qualities to his writing.

Also, DC picked up Call of the Wild, and really enjoyed it. This was in the midst of a similar Warriors/Redwall phase.

We also liked the Asian Children's Favorite Stories series (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indian, etc.), which is a collection of folktales from traditional Asian cultures.
(search Amazon for "children's favorite stories", and most of the series will come up) Beautiful illustrations, too.

DS11 recently read and loved Watership Down, My Side of the Mountain trilogy, Old Yeller, and Savage Sam. He is currently reading Call of the Wild and likes it.

I realize those aren’t off the beaten path but thought I’d mention them in case he hadn’t read them.

I have a ton of Anne McCaffrey novels that I’m holding off on for my son because of the romance elements.