Christmas gift

I have a 13 year old grandson and I would like to buy him a couple of really good SF books for Christmas. He hasn't turned on to the joy of reading yet, and I don't think he has read any actual SF yet, so I am looking for suggestions of books that are proven favorites of the young readers. He is a typical sports and video game junkie but is doing pretty well in school. It has been too long for me to remember what I liked when I first started (even though I remember being excited over SF pretty early on) and all of my SF reading lately has been a little to dire for him I am afraid.

Depends on what he likes of course, but Ender's Game is always a good stand-by. Has action, is about a child and has some literary merit.

Another thought is maybe some Star Wars novels. If he likes the movies, maybe some of the books set in that universe would kick start a reading habit? I don't read them myself, so couldn't recommend a good one to start with.

Thanks jserger9000. I had thought of Ender's Game. That is definitely a possibility. It has been awhile since I read it but I remember it being pretty approachable.

The kids nowadays are pretty sophisticated what with all of the explicit video games, computer gear and high tech movies. I was hoping to find something he wasn't familiar with from popular movies and games so that he would have to get hooked just from the book itself.

Yeah I would say Ender's Game too.

Another idea would be Stephen Baxter's The H-Bomb Girl if it is available in the US yet (it is only a hardcover in the UK). It is a teenage/young-adult book. Although the main character is a girl so it might not immediately work for some boys.

Maybe Isaac Asimov's The Caves Of Steel. I think it still works well for the teenage reader.

Hienleins Have Spacesuit will travel
Tunnel in the Sky, Farmer in the sky,The Star beast. Starman Jones The Rolling Stones,Between Planets or any of his early so called juvenile books. Iread these at that age an they hooked me on to Sci-fi.

In terms of SF, there's a Philip Reeve YA book called MORTAL ENGINES that's very good (my sons loved it). My favorite YA novel of all time (sorry, this is non-genre) is Rich Wallace's WRESTLING STURBRIDGE. It is a magnificent effort and I cannot recommend it highly enough...

Yep, I'd say early Heinlein as well. The Day After Tomorrow aka Sixth Column thrilled me at about 13: of course, after that most stuff seemed pretty palid. Depending upon the level of sophistication, I'd always recommend Dune, but that's pretty much kill or cure. Harry Harrison's The Stainless Steel Rat is a bit of knockabout. Consider Phlebas is a rip-roaring story, but maybe for someone a bit older.

The first science fiction I read (and loved) as a junior high school student was The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I know they're a bit dated by now, and there's been the major movie, but they're just insane enough to overcome all that.

When I read the first message, Ender's Game is the first thing that came to mind. I would also suggest The Bicentennial Man and I, Robot by Issac Asimov in addition to The Caves of Steel that has already been mentioned.

Thanks everybody. Some good ideas for sure. I have been away from the computer most of the day so I was happy to see all of the ideas. I had forgotten I, Robot. If I remember it was a lot better than the movie. I wasn't aware of the YA Heinlein books. I will look into those for sure. I also was thinking of some of the old Ray Bradbury and Arthur Clarke books as well. Does anybody remember Earthlight. I loved that but I was a little older than my Grandson is now.

Another Clarke book that I really enjoyed as a kid was A Fall of Moondust.

As a former bookseller, I have to add my vote to the others for Enders Game. Too many times parents try to interest their children in the favorites they loved and, for the most part, it doesn't work. Enders is a plus also because Ender, although six years old, functions in the novel like a 12/13 year old, and there is the game-playing connection with your grandson (albeit Enders is somewhat dated).

Also, I recommend checking out some of the newer YA titles (CliffBurns mentioned one above). For example, Gwyneth Jones writes YA under the name Ann Halam. I think she has three out now. Also Scott Westerfeld. Westerfelds are usually a good combination of action and ideas. A quick browse through the books' synopses should be interesting for you.

Be prepared though for the possibility of him not connecting with SF (one can lead the horse to water....). If that happens, try him with a Neil Gaiman.

thank you Avaland,
Very good ideas. I hadn't thought of Gaiman. Even though I have only read his adult books, I remember now that some of his books are specifically YA. I am prepared for a big yawn. Kids nowadays are bombarded with so much information and I know they tend to associate anything printed on paper with school and old people. But it is worth a try.

pamur, one of the last books I read with my son before he became 'too old' to read with his mom was The Positronic Man by Asimov. As he got older, mechanical and computer things became even more interesting to him and books seemed to interest him less and less. He did not continue with SF, nor did he read the epic fantasies that were becoming so popular then (Goodkind, Jordan...etc). The only books he seemed to like in high school were Gaiman's American Gods, Good Omens, a couple of China Mieville bas lag novels, and perhaps a Jonathan Lethem (all of these actually caught on with his friends also). He is 23 now and an embedded software engineer and doesn't seem to read fiction at all (but as he says, reads enormous amounts on nonfiction on line). The moral of my story is that SF may or may not speak to your grandson but there is (I know this may sound like heresy) other great stuff out there.

btw, I gave my then 13 year old nephew last year the 'Alex Rider' series of YA novels. It's a sort of young James Bond type story - lots of action and good gadgets, I'm told.

For this year, I tried to get him the graphic novel Grease Monkey by Tim Eldred, which is a YA SF story, but it's being reprinted and due back out in February, I think. He is fascinated with graphic novels at the moment.

edited to correct name of character...

Speaking of YA James Bond, there are two YA James Bond novels: Silverfin and Blood Fever. There's also the Alex Rider series of books. Stormbreaker was made into a movie and the series in general is massively popular with teens.