BEYOND HARRY: Books for readers who love Harry
Potter
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[Code:
B=especially suitable for boy reader; G=especially suitable for girl reader;
YA=more for the teen reader]
NOTE: to order any book, click on the 'Order' link.
1. The classics
Tolkein, Hobbit and Lord
of the Rings.
The Hobbit is accessible to younger
readers. Lord
of the Rings (YA)
takes some patience, and many Harry fans find the opening of the series slow
and dark at first.
The Hobbit
Order The Hobbit
J.R.R. Tolkien: The Hobbit and the Complete Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King/Boxed Set
C.S. Lewis, Narnia books. If your reader did not
like The
Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, try A Horse and his Boy, my favorite, and one which concentrates on a
single--very interesting--child hero. Older readers might like Lewis's
extremely Christian and allegorical science fiction series which begins with Out of the Silent Planet
(YA).
The Chronicles of Narnia Boxed Set
The Horse and His Boy
Out of the Silent Planet
E. Nesbit. The most prolific author of British
children's fantasy. Die-hard fantasy lovers should be warned that some of
her books are NOT fantasy--the Would-be-good series, for example. Her
books feature plucky British Victorian children who sometimes come close to being
caricatures but always manage to come off somehow. Most plots involve
multiple children in large, warm families. My favorites: Five Children and It,
Harding's Luck, The Magic City.
Five Children and It
Harding's Luck
Magic City
2. Near-classic
Roald Dahl. A master of dark humor and unexpected
plot twists, Dahl's fantasy books usually feature persecuted children and
ogre-like adults. The Charlie books have been a bit over-exposed; try Matilda.
Matilda
Edward Eager. A light-hearted American version of E.
Nesbit; like her, he writes some non-fantasy titles. Very witty and
engaging books. My favorites: Half-Magic, Knight's Castle. Accessible to younger
readers.
Half Magic
Knight's Castle
L. Frank Baum, Oz series. I never went for these,
but many children do--and if they like them, there are a LOT of them. G
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Barnes & Noble Classics Series)
Lloyd Alexander, Prydain series (begins with The Book of Three). The adventures of an
assistant pig-keeper and a princess in a setting based on Welsh legend.
Alexander's other books are uneven; these are superb.
Book of Three
Madeleine L'Engle. Much more science fiction than
fantasy, and can be a bit heavy on the allegory. Some non-fantasy titles,
although characters from her books reappear in other books, crossing from one
genre to another.
A Wrinkle in Time
L.M. Boston, Green Knowe series. Lucy Boston's
beloved series begins with a lonely boy discovering ghostly companions in a
magical old house. Thanks to A. P. McBride for reminding me about these!
The Children of Green Knowe
3. Highly recommended
Susan Cooper: The Boggart and The Dark is Rising series. The Boggart is very imaginative and funnier
than the series, which involves a group of modern children caught up in
an Arthurian legend. The second book in the series, Over Sea, Under Stone, is a masterpiece of children's
fantasy.
Boggart
The Dark Is Rising Sequence: Silver on the Tree; The Grey King; Greenwitch; The Dark Is Rising; Over Sea, Under Stone
Diana Wynne-Jones. Superbly written, with wonderful
plot twists. Some (Fire
and Hemlock,
virtually a romance) more suited to YA readers. For Harry fans, I
recommend the Chrestomanci series, about a Victorian magician; Dogsbody, narrated by a star who has been
punished by being reborn as a dog; Eight Days of Luke, a poignant take on Norse myth
with an engaging schoolboy hero; Howl's Moving Castle, featuring a young girl who has
been turned into a crone (recently an anime-style movie release).
Howl's Moving Castle
The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, Volume I
Dogsbody
Fire and Hemlock
Eight Days of Luke
Ursula LeGuin, Earthsea trilogy. One of the best fantasy series for young
readers ever written, featuring an alienated young hero whose training as a
wizard goes dreadfully wrong.
A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Series #1)
Robin McKinley, The Blue Sword. Great for horse-lovers; the heroine is
kidnapped by desert nomads whose magician-king has foreseen that she will save
his people. G
The Blue Sword
Joan Aiken, Wolves of Willoughby Chase and sequels. Not fantasy
(except that they are set in an England which never existed); like Dahl, Aiken
pits resourceful children against unspeakably villainous adults.
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase
Alan Garner, The Owl Service. Dark and compelling modern
fantasy based on Welsh legend.
Owl Service
E.L. Konigsburg, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E.
Frankweiler.
Not fantasy, but the setting (the Metropolitan Museum, where the heroine hides
out after running away from home) creates the same sort of magical atmosphere.
From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Gail Carson Levine, Ella Enchanted. One of the best retellings of Cinderella
ever--and far better than the recent movie version. G
Ella Enchanted
Eva Ibbotson, The Secret of Platform 13. In this humorous tale, as
in the currently popular movie Shrek, the 'monsters' are the heroes, venturing from the magical world into
ours to rescue a lost child.
Secret of Platform 13
Sylvia Waugh, Mennym series. Not just for girls,
even if it is about dolls who come to life. Very funny and poignant.
The Mennyms
Natalie Babbitt, The Search for Delicious. Comical tale of a boy's quest
featuring a gloomy mermaid; accessible to younger readers. G
Search for Delicious
John
Christopher, The
White Mountains
and sequels. Superb science-fiction series about a boy who pits himself
against aliens who have enslaved the earth. Makes 'Animorphs' look like
the back of a cereal box. B
The White Mountains (The Tripods Series #1)
Megan Whalen Turner, The Thief. This stunning book, with one of the best surprise endings
I've ever read, is narrated by a young pick-pocket and set in a version of
ancient Greece where the gods are real. The sequel, The Queen of Attolia
(YA), is darker
and verges on romance; it, too, is superbly plotted. The King of Attolia (YA), a third book, is just out.
Thief
4. Current favorites with preteen/young teen
readers
Patricia Wrede. A local Minnesota author, whose
witty and imaginative books about a princess who takes refuge with a clan of
dragons are accessible to fairly young readers. G
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles: Dealing with Dragons; Searching for Dragons; Calling on Dragons; Talking to Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles Series)
Susan Fletcher, Dragonsmilk. For hard-core dragon lovers.
Dragon's Milk
Tamora Pierce. Several series, usually with feminist
heroines, all in a quasi-medieval setting.
Squire
Brian Jacques, Redwall books. Mighty medieval
magical mice.
Redwall
Philip Pullman, Golden Compass and sequels. Brooding, metaphysical fantasy
about the nature of god and the boundaries between worlds, with a hero and
heroine who are not always very likable. Perfect for adolescents in their
darker moods.
His Dark Materials Box Set
Ioain Colfer, Artemis Fowl. Cool-headed boy crime lord meets high-tech
leprechauns. Very funny, but the sequels are not as good as the first
book. B
Artemis Fowl
Suzanne Collins, Gregor series. A boy ventures down beneath the earth into a world of
goblins and giant rodents. B
Gregor the Overlander
K. P. Bath, The Secret of Castle Cant. Wry, edgy fantasy set in a Joan Aiken-like world of
threatening adults and complex children.
Features a feisty and delightful maidservant heroine.
The Secret of Castle Cant
5. School stories--not fantasy, but some Harry
fans like the school setting as much as the magic
Owen Johnson, Lawrenceville Stories. Dated, with lots of slang,
and hard to get hold of, but these are the classic American tales of boys at
boarding school. Some truly hilarious episodes. B
Lawrenceville Stories
Enid Blyton. The queen of the boarding school story,
this British author is nearly unknown in the US. My daughter devoured her
girls' school books--the Malory Towers series and the St. Clare series. Currently only available as Audio Tapes in the US. G
In the Fifth at Malory Towers
Noel Streatfield. The Shoe books (Circus Shoes, Ballet Shoes, etc.) feature
children who are suddenly thrust into intensive training for performing
arts--sometimes in school settings, sometimes not. G
Ballet Shoes
Kipling, Stalky and Company. The ultimate boys' school book, now dated and
reeking of British colonialism, but still a comical and true-to-life portrait
of boys' friendships. B
Stalky And Company
