Still if I was going to pick a book for my kid to read, I’d suggest “Eragon”, especially if you have a boy who finds most books boring. “Eragon” reads like more of a graphic novel with tons of descriptions of gore and glory that seems to appeal to guys.

Be forewarned, this is a four part series of books. Once you have “Eragon”, you can’t avoid “Eldest” and “Brisingr” and you’ll have a fan on the edge of their seat for the fourth book (which hasn’t been released yet). I think it is cruel of Paolin to make us wait to find out how it all turns out!

If you’re buying for a boy or girl who’s prone to nightmares, you might want to read it out loud together or pre-read it to make sure it will be safe for your child.

If you’re an adult who loves these books, you must read George RR Martin’s series that starts with “Game of Thrones” – possibly my favorite series of books ever (read my review). Though “Lord of the Rings” is clearly in contention for that title.

If you haven’t read “The Hunger Games” you should. Yes it’s likely labelled “for teens” and no it is NOT like “Twilight“. “The Hunger Games” is a fantastic book to get pre-teen/teen boys to read.

Read my review to find out the premise of the “Games”. “Catching Fire” picks up neatly where it leaves off, and the same characters are prominent: Katniss, Gale, Peeta and Haymitch.

“Fire” is much more political than “Games” and has more of a love story as well.

But is there more of the thrilling “games” that so caught and kept my attention in the first book? Are people still fighting to the death?

Yes.

And that’s about all I’m going to tell you about that.

Naturally, the book leaves off practically in the middle of a thought, guarenteeing that there’s another book in the works.

It won’t come soon enough for me!

My first read was “Timeline“, which was also made into a movie (haven’t seen it, so can’t say how good it is).  A professor travels back in time and send a message to his current day students asking for help. They have to travel back to try and save him and quickly end up in over their heads in a medieval world few of them understand.

It is fun to see how Crichton paints academics struggling to translate their book learning into real life. It’s a fun read with plenty of suspense and drama (even a little love). I thought the ending (particularly the “punishment” of the main antagonist) left a bit to be desired.

Then I followed that with “Airframe“, about an executive at a jet company whose asked to investigate a horrific air accident. Is there a problem with the plane? Along the way her life is threatened, company politics explode around her and an investigative reporter tests the limits of the truth.

Perhaps my favorite Crichton novel is “Jurassic Park“. The book is WAY better than the movie (and much scarier, are there Raptors in your closet?).

First off, a graphic novel is not a comic book. It may look like a comic book, but it’s more than that. And “Watchmen” is especially more complex and mature than a traditional comic. If you’re looking for a fun gift for your 10 year old nephew, this is NOT it.

In fact, I would suggest that the R rating on the movie is probably a good reflection of the rating I would give the graphic novel. There’s a lot of violence (and it’s not sugar-coated), plenty of swear words and a few sexual situations. If you’ve got a mature high-schooler that wants to read it, that’s probably fine. If you have a middle-schooler who’s interested, I would suggest that you read it first before you make your decision.

“Watchmen” is also not what I’d call a “feel good” read. It’s political, it’s characters are often morally ambiguous and there’s an armageddon theme running throughout. You’re not going to finish up the story and want to go to a child’s birthday party.

If you’re a comic book fan, this may be right up your alley. Personally, my favorite graphic novels would have to be Frank Miller’s “The Dark Knight” series.

If you enjoyed other graphic novels like “The Crow” or “The Sandman“, you’ll probably like “Watchmen“. But don’t say I didn’t try to warn you…

I will give Meyer kudos for writing a series of books for teens that is not full of obscenities and sex. And they are interesting, certainly the romantic aspect (and the fact that they’re being made into movies) is what is driving the popularity. While the vampire heroes in this book don’t drink the blood of humans, their friends and counterparts do. I think Meyer wants to believe that she’s created a group of “moral” vampires, but I would argue that she hasn’t achieved that.

If your teen is reading these books, talk to them about them. Consider reading them together. Personally, I think the “Golden Compass” series is better. “Harry Potter” is even better still. For the absolute best fantasy series, have them read “The Lord of the Rings” and then watch the movies together. Now THAT’s a series worth sinking your teeth into.

The characters are fun and once the action starts, it’s fairly non-stop. There are some politics which will likely annoy the youngest readers. And there’s some sexuality, so I wouldn’t recommend these books for kids under 12 (particularly as you get to “The White Dragon”). There are enough strong female characters to make the series appealing to women.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read “The Rowan” series by Anne McCaffrey, but I remember liking it. If you’re looking for a Sci-Fi/Romance, it’s one of the only books that I can think of that thoroughly fits that bill. If you’re just looking for great Sci-Fi/Fantasy books for kids, I also recommend “A Wrinkle in Time” by Madeline L’Engle or “The Golden Compass” by Phillip Pullman.

No matter what your beliefs are, you will surely find something to laugh about.

Terry Pratchett is the author of what seems like millions of novels, most of them are funny/cute and fantastical. One of my other favorites of his is “Mort” about a kid who’s apprenticing to be the grim reaper when he grows up. Obviously, you need to have a bit of a twisted sense of humor to enjoy his books. But if you’re like me, and I pity you if you are, then you’ll love “Good Omens” or “Mort”.

Teens will be especially attracted to these books which are irreverent and have Monty Python-esque humor. If you have a teen who loves “The Holy Grail”, “Good Omens” would be a good book for them.

And reading this book requires an acceptance of fantastical elements. Maguire forces the reader to just keep accepting terminology and references to people, places and things that we can’t even fathom. While many people feel that this is a book about the nature of evil, I would argue that’s it is largely about how power and politics can corrupt a leader.

What’s great about this book is that it takes a story that we all think we’re familiar with – Wicked Witch of the West is out to get an innocent kid from Kansas and the kid wins out – and twists it all around until we’re unsure of who’s right, who’s evil and what’s really going on. I like books that challenge the mind and force us to examine our prejudices, and if you can stick with “Wicked” this book will do that.

Be forewarned that there is some bizarre sexual content in the book. Because of the musical, many teens are interested in the book. I would say that the book is probably okay for those 14 and older, but you should probably preview it or read it along with a teen.

I’ve read some of Maguire’s other books with mixed reviews. Knowing how much that I enjoyed “Wicked”, I expected to love “Son of a Witch” and stood in line for some time to get a copy signed by Maguire. Then I could never get into it! I did enjoy “Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister”.  ”Mirror, Mirror” was not worth reading. And “What the Dickens” a kids’ book about a rogue tooth fairy was cute for young children (under 9) but nothing that I’d put on my shelf for keeps.

If you love novels that immediately immerse you into a different time/culture/fantastical world, I would also suggest any of the “Game of Thrones” series by George RR Martin, or for younger readers, “The Golden Compass” by Phillip Pullman.

And that’s about the extent of the appeal. While it’s about vampires, it’s no “The Historian” by Elizabeth Kostovo or Bram Stoker’s “Dracula”. And while I’ve heard it compared to the Harry Potter series, I don’t see that connection. The Harry Potter books are fantastical and appeal to both adults and children. “Twilight” and it’s series of books are geared towards teens with some adult appeal but lack the imagination, fun and stunning visuals of Harry Potter (and perhaps the moral lessons as well, it’s a bit too early to tell).

“Twilight” reminds me more of “The DaVinci Code”. It’s fast paced, easy to read and suspenseful. “Code” made me think. I actually went to the library to review books of DaVinci paintings (because I couldn’t believe some of what the book asserted). “Twilight” did not strike the same amount of curiosity in me. You probably won’t be rushing to the library to look up information on vampires. Let’s hope that the movie version of “Twilight” is a bit better than the movie version of “The DaVinci Code” – how they could take a wonderfully thrilling suspense book and turn it into a dull and boring movie is still beyond me.

Thanks to Michele W for loaning me “Twilight” and suggesting it to me! I am intrigued enough to want to read the next one.

This book is probably appropriate for kids 13+.

Unfortunately, “Prey” quickly turns to the gross aspect and loses a lot of the science that I’ve enjoyed in his other books. I would also be reluctant to recommend “State of Fear”, which started out as a FASCINATING read and then got uber-disgusting right at the end for no good reason. It’s one thing to want the bad guy dead, it’s another thing to kill him in such a wretched way that you throw the book across the room.

If you love a good thriller, especially an intellectual one, I would stick to Crichton’s “Jurassic Park” (a classic, and way better than the movie), “Congo” (scared me half to death, light years better than the movie) or “Timeline” (haven’t seen the movie so can’t speak to that comparison).

Crichton may give some people a headache, who just want to read a good thrilling book without all that science. If that’s the case for you, skip directly to Dean Koontz (if you like happy endings) or Stephen King (if you prefer death and destruction).

For the medical version of Michael Crichton, head for Robin Cook. He’s the John Grisham of medicine (and a real doctor, so his books have just enough reality to be intriguing).

And if you want to read truly horrifying non-fiction, read “The Hot Zone” by Richard Preston. It will make you scared, you just might vomit and it’s all true.