I have been reading A LOT of the literature out there about what boys like to read. Instead of posting a bunch of articles about the topic, I thought I would make things easy and create a brief summary of what boys like to read and share it with you all. Let me know what you think!
First, did you know that a lot of boys are having trouble reading? (From Michael W. Smith and Jeffrey D. Wilhelm in Reading Don’t Fix No Chevys: Literacty in the Loves of Young Men (Heinemann, 2002))
- Boys develop slower than girls.
- Boys take longer to read than girls do.
- Boys read less than girls.
- Girls tend to comprehend narrative and expository texts better than boys.
- Boys do not value reading as much as girls.
- Boys have trouble relating to the feelings and emotions of a lot of fiction.
- There is a lack of positive male role models in literacy.
So, what do boys want to read?
- Boys are more inclined to read informational texts, magazines and newspaper articles.
- Boys are more inclined to read graphic novels and comic books.
- Boys tend to enjoy escapism and humor.
- Boys enjoy science fiction and fantasy.
- Boys like to read about hobbies, sports and they they like or would like to do.
- Boys to read books in a series.
Did you know?
- Boys resist reading stories about girls (girls don’t mind reading about boys)
- Boys read less fiction than girls.
Want some more information? Check out this article:
- Why Johnny Won’t Read–Schools often dismiss what boys like. No wonder they are not wild about reading. http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA439816.html
I have found this to be true with my second son. He has now begun to read daily and willingly since I’ve allowed him to read comics and books like Diary of a Wimpy Kid. He’s re-reading them and actually read the third book in one day.
I’ve always read to him and chose fiction which he loves to have read to him but he often asks me to read things like The Story of D-Day or The Lego Visual Dictionary.
My oldest son read fiction, non-fiction and comics/graphic novels but he’d read his sisters’ books too just to have something to read.
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I can see this being the case. It appears that the really good books for boys like Hardy Boys, 3 Investigators and Tom Swift don’t come in to play until much later. Though I’m holding on to my copies for when that day finally comes. Now to bridge the gap until then, hmmm.