What are some good books for a 14 year old boy who is a very competent reader?
Winds of War and War and Remembrance by Herman Wouk are very good World War II books. I read them at 15 for a World History class years ago so I’m sure they would be acceptable for his age and reading level. Similar to The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is The Devil’s Arithmetic by Jane Yolen. It’s not a difficult book at all, and is usually found in the children’s or young adult section of the bookstore. The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak, and Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli all offer view of the Holocaust for young people. Not sure about gritty spy stories, but he might enjoy Steve Berry novels. He writes thrillers comparable to Dan Brown but not so loose with history. I really enjoy the Cotton Malone books (the first to feature this hero is The Templar Legacy). He might like Christopher Moore for something funnier. He writes on a lot of different topics, from Christ to Shakespeare to whale research, and they all have a good
