Rules for Recommending Books

Emery is now one of the six out of ten 8-12 year olds with a cell phone. 

As I’ve stated before, I sometimes think those of us who work with children or students and who specialize in an area of interest to parents, often get called upon for advice.

For me, that can mean how to get children motivated to read and write. Now, I can make suggestions for how to get children to read or write, or what might make a good book to use with 8^th graders, but my advice doesn’t always satisfy parents’ or teachers’ expectations for their students. (For example, I may not recommend a book that fits your child’s Accelerated Reading Level).

In addition to teaching, I’ve also worked in a library, and I love making recommendations—even sometimes when I’m not asked to. But, I’ve learned the hard way that there are a few important rules to follow when recommending books:

1.     Never, ever, ever, ever, recommend (or not recommend) a book you haven’t read. EVER. I don’t care how many awards it has won or how much hype it’s received or how much your child might have enjoyed it. That doesn’t mean someone shouldn’t read a book if they don’t get a recommendation; I’m just suggesting for your own peace of mind—follow this first piece of advice.

2.     You can’t always rely on the recommended ages for a book.

3.     A slim book, large text, and lots of margin space do not always mean easy or appropriate for younger children. Neither do pictures. Trust me.

4.     I like that books win awards, but I do not find that these books always make the most interesting books for children to read. I like the awards that children vote for—such as Louisiana’s Young Readers’ Choice Book Award. Oklahoma has a similar award, and I imagine most states do.

5.      You have to know a little bit about the reader (I usually ask what they currently like to read) and what their interests are. Have a few standard questions to ask.

6.     Finally, if you suspect someone might not be a strong reader, by all means, do not insult him or her by recommending a book that is clearly written for a younger audience. This takes a little knowledge about reading levels, but you can find a book that written in contemporary language, with a slightly lower level of vocabulary and sentence structure, and still match their interests.

7.     If you give a book to someone that you haven’t read—let them know.

This post serves as a reminder to me too as I found myself today trying to make suggestions for an advanced reader who is a seven year old girl. We know this age tends to devour books in a series, but The Diary of a Wimpy Kid (which I’ve read) might not be the best choice.

So, am I forgetting any rules? (which is a coincidence because Emery is currently reading Rules by Cynthia Lord, which is a good book if your child enjoyed Wonder).