So these are the books for the guys who spend too much time getting beat on and thus have a lot of unresolved anger issues to deal with. They are often even more overwhelmed with anger than the jerks making their lives a living hell and they do have a habit of exploding. Here are some books that might make them feel less alone in the world and hey - couple one of these with some karate lessons and they just might get the tools to do some ass-kicking in return. (Not that I advocate violence or anything, but please - sometimes you need to learn how to take a bully down in a non permanent and totally "at one with yourself and the universe" kind of way.
I'm just saying.
London Calling by Edward Bloor. I's in my column this month and a great look at a boy who has had his fair share of bullying but still manages to pull it together when faced with an enormous and puzzling mystery. Instead of being crushed by life at All Souls Prep, Martin manages to cling so his own form of inner strength and when an antique radio somehow sends him back to WW2 London he might be terrified but he still keeps his wits and pays attention. Over the course of the novel he gets braver and smarter and uncovers all sorts of secrets and does all sorts of cool courageous things and all in all shows that in the end you can win - and you can do it without letting the other get an inch.
It's an adventure, a mystery and a dramatic family novel. Boys will love it and might not even realize just what they've learned until it's over.
Kingdom of the Wicked by Ian Edginton & D'Israeli. This is an amazing graphic novel about a children's writer who has suddenly taken ill and is beset with headaches and blackouts that once affected him a a child. He finds himself one night back in Castrovalva but it isn't at all the bucolic land he remembers - or the one he has been writing about (very famously) as an adult. There is a war in Castrovalva, one that looks remarkably like WWI with its trenches and gas masks. This would all seem to set up an impressive fantasy story except Chris has to face a bully - a truly horrific bully if he wants to save his surviving friends and their world. Because Castrovalva is real, and the bad guy is all Chris' fault. Any one who ever wondered what they would when faced with an impossible situation will love this novel and as it is about a boy, the man he became, and another boy who must be stopped, then it is the perfect AYM title.
Chuck Dugan is AWOL by Eric Chase Anderson. This was actually a title from last year, but it fits so perfectly here that I can't resist adding it. Chuck Dugan learns on his 18th birthday that his mother is remarrying - to a bad guy named "the Admiral". He also receives a treasure map from his dad. Chuck immediately goes AWOL from the navy to stop the wedding and find the treasure.
This is James Bondish - but in a most excellent way. It's copiously illustrated with all sorts of maps and drawings and Chuck is ten different kinds of smart and determined. He's a geek though - a really technologically adept geek. Chuck will stop at nothing to rescue mom and the treasure and he's awesome, even when the chips are down and he's stuck with the Admiral - who is truly the ultimate bully. There's supposed to be a sequel in the works and I'm so looking forward to it. Consider this another one that will slip past the "uncool" radar and teach a kid a way to be tough, in the best way possible.
And finally - King Dork by Frank Portman. I loved it, Michael loved it - shit everyone loved it. Read my review and then just buy it for the boy in your life who needs it. Trust me - it might be the thing he has been looking for all these years. (Oh and don't miss Nailed in the same column - also great and perfect for this sort of reader!)
