Getting Real with Middle Grade Boys

“Are you ever going to write books for boys?”
Never fails. Whenever I speak at schools, I get this question from boys in the audience–their assumption being that because I write ABOUT girls, I’m writing FOR girls.

Here’s how I answer:
First of all, anybody can read ANY book about ANY character. You don’t have to read only about characters who look like you. I bet the girls in the audience already know this. How many girls here have read a book (other than Harry Potter) with a male protagonist?
(*All the girls put up their hands.*)
Okay, how many of the boys here today have read a book with a female protagonist (other than The Hunger Games)?
(*No boys put up their hands. Or maybe one or two renegades.*)
Why are so many middle grade boys unwilling to read about girls, when middle grade girls willingly read about boys? It’s a question I think about often. Is it because girls are more mature, more tolerant, more people-oriented–or just resigned to living in a world that still very much caters to boy tastes? I wish I knew the answer, because there’s something wrong about the lack of equal time here. It’s hard to develop empathy if you never get into the heads of people different from you–and of course by “different” I’m thinking of race, ethnicity, culture as well as gender. And what better way for boys to understand girls than by reading a story told from a girl’s point of view?
Here’s the second part of my response:
Actually, I HAVE written books with boy protagonists. But when I showed the manuscripts to my then- editor, a prominent veteran in publishing, she told me: “You write realistic fiction. The problem is, middle grade boys don’t read realistic fiction. They do less pleasure-reading than girls overall, and when they choose a book for themselves, it’s usually sci fi, fantasy, adventure or nonfiction. Also, they don’t want to read books by women authors, which is why J. K. Rowling used initials instead of the name Joanna.”
I ask the boys in the audience if this is true. They always assure me they read books by women authors “all the time”–although (with exception of Suzanne Collins) they can’t think of any names offhand. And then they admit they typically do avoid realistic fiction, with the exception of Wimpy Kid. I glance at their teachers, who nod in agreement.
So here’s another question I ponder: why are girls more enthusiastic readers of realistic MG fiction than boys? Is it possible to overcome the anything-but-realism bias of so many boys–and even hook them on the genre?
With the help of book-loving friends–including teachers, librarians and other authors– I’ve compiled a list of some realistic MG fiction titles with potentially strong boy-appeal. Not surprisingly, they feature boy protagonists. Please suggest more titles in the comments below. Extra points for books written by women authors. Triple-extra-points for books with girl protagonists!

Angus, Sam–Soldier Dog
Clements, Andrew–Troublemaker
Curtis, Christopher Paul–The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963
Federle, Tim–Better Nate Than Ever
Gemeinhart, Dan–The Honest Truth
George, Jean Craighead*–My Side of the Mountain
Gephart, Donna*–How to Survive Middle School; Death by Toilet Paper
Greenwald, Tommy–Charlie Joe Jackson series
Hiaasen, Carl–Hoot; Flush, etc.
Hobbs, Will–Crossing the Wire; Downriver; Far North, etc.
Jung, Mike–Geeks, Girls and Secret Identities
Korman, Gordon–Sixth Grade Nickname Game; Swindle series; MacDonald Hall series; Schooled, etc.
Lupica, Mike–Game Changers series; The Underdog; Million-Dollar Throw, etc.
Morpurgo, Michael–War Horse; An Elephant in the Garden, etc.
Palacio, R.J.*–Wonder
Paulson, Gary–Hatchet; Road Trip
Rylander, Chris–The Fourth Stall
Sachar, Louis–Holes
Sonnenblick, Jordan–Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie
Smith, Roland– Cryptid Hunters, etc.
Tarshis, Lauren*–I Survived series
Trueit, Trudy Strain*– Secrets of a Lab Rat series
Vail, Rachel* and Cordell, Matthew–Justin Case series
Vernick, Audrey*–Screaming at the Ump
Williams, Suzanne Morgan*–Bull Rider
*Women authors! Hey, waddaya know!
——-
Barbara Dee is the author of The Almost Perfect Guide to Imperfect Boys, Trauma Queen, This Is Me From Now On, Solving Zoe, and Just Another Day in my Insanely Real Life. Her next book, Truth or Dare, will be published by Aladdin/Simon & Schuster in Fall 2016.

Barbara Dee
17 Comments
  1. My students don’t care who writes the books. In fact, the consensus among my students was that Lois is a boy’s name, so they often just don’t know. My boy readers tend to prefer realistic fiction, and also prefer male protagonists, but are okay with female ones if there is an acceptable level of action and adventure.

  2. Nice post. I was going to add the Origami Yoda books by Tom Angleberger but somebody already mentioned them. Rob Buyea’s Because of Mr. Terupt features boys and girl protagonists.

  3. Okay for Now, Wednesday Wars, Orbiting Jupiter, and anything else by Gary D. Schmidt. His books are terrific.

  4. *A Single Shard* by Linda Sue Park. Historical, but realistic, 13th (I think) century Korea. And very good!

  5. 8th Grade Superzero by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich. I nearly died of voice envy when I read this one.

  6. Hook’s Revenge by Heidi Schulz (and the sequel, Hook’s Revenge: The Pirate Code). Female MC and female writer. Fun for everyone!

  7. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda and subsequent books by Tom Angleberger
    The Seventh Level by Jody Feldman
    Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead
    Don’t Vote for Me by Krista Van Dolver (just came out!)

  8. My son has read a lot off the books that L mentioned, including Wonder (read by teacher) and Counting by 7s and Out of My Mind as well as many on that lisst. Since I’m a book blogger, lots of books come across my desk, and I’m aware of exposing him to things other than “boy books.” He doesn’t think twice about it, so I guess he’s unusual!

  9. Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. I’m a bit distressed over the cover of Lisa Graff’s Lost in the Sun, because I have to hand-sell that one to boy’s and/or their adults. Once I describe it, they always express surprise and definite interest. Cover art is a pretty important thing to consider, which is why I like Sharon Draper’s Out of My Mind. Boys who love Wonder tend to read Out of My Mind and even Counting by Sevens by Holly Goldberg Sloan.

    The Way Home Looks Now by Wendy Wan-Long Shang; Small as an Elephant by Jennifer Richard Jacobson. From the Mixed-Up Files… by Konigsburg (?)

  10. Also, Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass. Be back with more, likely. 😀

  11. From author Gae Polisner: My own THE PULL OF GRAVITY. Definitely a male MC and definitely MG safe. It’s really a tween/YA. I have many 6th grade readers.

    But also comes to mind, and older book but gorgeous: The Liberation of Gabriel King by KL Going, Author. One of my boys’ favorites EVER. My boys also loved most anything by Sharon Creech – didn’t matter if the MC was a girl or boy. She has both! They also loved Sarah Weeks’ So B. It and her Jumping the Scratch which has a male MC. And how about Cynthia Lord’s RULES.

  12. Lisa Yee’s WARP SPEED and the Stanford/Millicent Min series. My son’s favorites.

  13. Great list! I’d add The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher by Dana Alison Levy – four boys, two dads, female author. And it’s SO funny!

  14. Jacqueline Houtman’s THE reinvention of Edison Thomas is perfect choice- a school story, with very realistic kids/scenes/issues.

  15. Duke, but Kirby Larson. War theme and dad theme as well! I do think boys accept realistic better if it is historic or involves war/danger. And dogs.
    I was afraid my WWII story wouldn’t appeal to or be found by boys, but boys assure me they really love Odin’s Promise – (war, dog, danger).