Sometimes getting a kid to read is all about finding the right book. With summer break underway, that may be a tall order for some parents but Hennepin County Library has a few ideas for boys that might spark some interest.

The following titles were provided by Joanna Redman, teen services librarian at the Plymouth Library.

FOR ELEMENTARY-AGE BOYS:

Dark Life by Kat Falls
When fifteen-year-old Ty, who has always lived on the ocean floor, joins Topside girl Gemma in the frontier's underworld to seek and stop outlaws who threaten his home, they learn that the government may pose an even greater threat.
Click here for the audio book.



Plunked by Michael Northrup
Sixth-grader Jack Mogens loses his nerve after getting hit by a pitch, and has to dig deep within himself to avoid giving up the sport he loves.





The Bad Apple by T.R. Burns
After accidentally killing a substitute teacher with an apple, twelve-year-old Seamus Hinkle is sent to Kilter Academy where, in order to excel as he always has, he must behave badly and pull pranks on his teachers, but along with new friends Lemon and Elinor he discovers that there is more to the Academy than meets the eye.



FOR TEEN BOYS:

Death Cloud by Andrew Lane
In 1868, with his army officer father suddenly posted to India, and his mother mysteriously "unwell," fourteen-year-old Sherlock Holmes is sent to stay with his eccentric uncle and aunt in their vast house in Hampshire, where he uncovers his first murder and a diabolical villain.
Click here for the audio book.  Click here to download.

 
 
Planesrunner by Ian McDonald
When fourteen-year-old Everett Singh's scientist father is kidnapped from the streets of London, he leaves a mysterious app on Everett's computer giving him access to the Infundibulum--a map of parallel earths--which is being sought by technologically advanced dark powers that Everett must somehow elude while he tries to rescue his father.



The Project by Brian Falkner
After discovering a terrible secret hidden in the most boring book in the world, Iowa fifteen-year-olds Luke and Tommy find out that members of a secret Nazi organization intend to use this information to rewrite history.
Click here to download.

 


Book summaries from Hennepin County Library catalog. 
ASK HCL: Find many more reading suggestions for kids and teens here.