Ten Books to Read If You Don’t Want To Read Harry Potter

Without getting into too much political discourse, it’s high time we moved on. Fandoms fade (look at superheroes, and at Star Wars) and sometimes, they burn to the ground for a whole mess of nasty asshattery.

But kids still need magic, they need imagination and they need cool stuff to read. So, what else can we recommend? Here are ten suggestions of fantastic books that’ll give them a new viewpoint and something else to love.

Heartstopper by Alice Oseman

The queer sensation, real and warming and gentle. It’s not wizards or fantasy, but it deals with schools and with first loves, and in a healthy and supportive way. It’s most definitely the Next Big Thing, and if your kids are reluctant readers, this is a graphic novel and they may engage with it more easily.

Tyger by S F Said

Two children find a beautiful, magical tyger, lost in a rubbish dump, and then take on the fight to save the creature and their world. Illustrated by Dave McKean, this is gorgeous book, a dance through London’s history, with ghost-memories of an older city that both educate and linger.

My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell

A childhood fave, as Durrell tells the tales of his youth, and of his family’s move to Corfu. The antics of his mother, brothers and sister, and of the creatures that he finds and brings home (to their frequent distress) are gleefully hilarious. A regular recommendation to customers, this is a lesser-known book that always needs more love.

Loki by Louie Stowell

A diary-style tale of utter mischief, as Loki is trapped in the body of a normal schoolboy, and prevented from using his powers. Wackiness ensues, along with some wonderful doodles, as the confused God struggles to tell good from evil. Very funny, and there are more in the series!

Amari and the Night Brothers by BB Alston

Losing her brother, Amari finds herself slap in the middle of the supernatural ‘Bureau’, dealing with a whole new reality. It’s a cool riff on the ‘learning wizardry’ story, with a sharp and modern take, a lot of high-action adventure, and a genuinely lovable main character.

The Earthsea Series by Ursula Le Guin

A classic for good reason, and a perfect ‘magical coming of age’ recommendation, as Ged the goatherd learns the wonders of wizardry. Beautiful prose, vivid backdrops, strong and memorable characters, as well as vast labyrinths and insightful intelligence, and all of it accessible, and easy to read.

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

An alternative ‘high school’ story, this one dealing with the half-God son of Poseidon, and some classic, helter-skelter adventure. But y’know, when you accidentally vaporise your maths teacher, you do need to jump around a bit to get out of trouble with Zeus…

Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy

Gags and wise-cracks, magicks and dirty tricks and a certain amount of light-fingered shenanigans (for the best reasons). Plus, not only is Skulduggery dead, but his sidekick is twelve and she takes absolutely no nonsense from anybody. Evil, as the blurb says, won’t know what’s hit it.

Eight Days of Luke by Diana Wynne Jones

There are far too many DWJ books to pick just one, but this has lingered with me for years. Another ‘young Loki’, though slightly darker, navigating secrets and mythology and a lot of mysterious questions. And who doesn’t like seeing the Gods with all their ingenious mortal names and guises?

The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

Pitched slightly older, this is a shortlisted debut dealing with a black, queer teen regaining his identity as a drag artist. It’s a story of freedom, of embracing our real selves, and of stepping from the wings into the spotlight.

Of embracing who we really are.

This list is far too short to do the wealth of books out there justice. I remember loving Watership Down and Duncton Wood, Carbonel and Thunderhead (always about the animals), Swallow & Amazons and Narnia, The Owl Service and Five Children and It.

The list goes ever on.

Commercialisation can tear the heart from things, particularly fandoms. It forgets the simplicity and innocence with which we started reading, and expands beyond saturation and into outright manipulation and greed. And on top of that, of course, there’s JKR herself and the toxins and hatred she’s so busy flooding into her following and readership.

Like I said, time to find that music somewhere else.

Reading: Back to my Manga, with the fourth instalments of both Cat + Gamer by Wataru Nadatani and Man & His Cat by Umi Sakurai, both personal faves. There’s an awful lot of kitty Manga out there, and these are two of the best, very heartwarming. They’re also perfect bath length, so you can enjoy the story and not get crinkly toes.

Watching: A DS9 rewatch with my son, with particular attention to Quark and Garak. TNG was particularly guilty of the single-facet race (Kingons are always warriors, etc), but the layers to the characters on DS9 are much better and more subtle. Better series all round, I reckon.

Playing: Second time at Baldur’s Gate sees my first run at the Adamantine Forge, where I’m trying to get Karlach some new armour. Was a royal PITA to reach, and the big nasty is proving very hard to put down. If only he’d stand on the bloody hammer!