Oddly enough, one of the prerequisites for blogging about the Kindle isn’t a strong rapport with young people. I’ll admit right off the bat that I don’t know much about kids. They’re small and high pitched and seem to enjoy climbing on things? The few I know also seem to really like dogs. We have that in common! Anyway, while my practical knowledge of children is lacking I have been encouraged recently, in light of the Harry Potter eBook possibility, to look into some of the children’s lit that is available for the Kindle. It turns out there is a fair selection out there.
The Giver – Lois Lowry
Chances are good you’ll recognize this one. The Giver is a classic, after all. It’s a story about a seemingly “perfect” society where everything is carefully controlled. Population is limited, careers are carefully selected well in advance for children, there is no crime, no drama, and neither old age nor imperfection have any real place in it. Naturally this isn’t quite the paradise it seems at a glance.
It’s a simple but powerful book that many people definitely remember fondly with good reason. Addresses social issues, quite well in an engrossing kind of way that surely fits the educational requirement many parents have for their kids’ reading.
The Kindle Edition is $6.64
The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
I was actually rather shocked to find out that this book/series was for children, given all the adults I heard raving about it. The premise is a cross between Death Race, Battle Royale, and the Survivor Reality TV show. While it is a bit violent, I’d say it’s definitely less shocking than your average PG-13 movie, so I doubt there will be many parental concerns overall.
The response to this book, the first in a trilogy, has been overwhelmingly positive in pretty much every age group. The characters are strong and believable. The plot deals with interesting, if not entirely original social issues. There’s really nothing at all that I could find to complain about.
The Kindle Edition is $5.00
The Red Pyramid – Rick Riordan
This is the first book in the second series that Riordan has come up with so far. The first, the Percy Jackson series, you’ve probably heard of because of the movie that came out of it if nothing else. This series is based on a similar concept, but focused on Egyptian mythology rather than Greek. The story is presented through the eyes of a brother and sister in the frame of a transcript of the story. It works to provide a fairly unique multi-view perspective as he switches between the siblings, and allows for some variation in the narrative voice that keeps it interesting.
There is a lot more information presented in this book than in the Percy Jackson series. It is definitely bigger on educating the reader. This could be because Riordan simply thought it was more interesting to talk about or because he assumed that there was a greater familiarity that you could assume when dealing with Greek mythology, but either way it fits.
The Kindle Edition is $9.39
The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
I regret my time with the first two books.. blech..