In Get Those Guys Reading!: Fiction and Series Books that Boys Will Love, authors Kathleen A. Baxter and Marcia A. Kochel provide compelling and current reading suggestions for younger boys—information that educators, librarians, and parents alike are desperate for.

Comprising titles that are almost all well-reviewed in at least one major professional journal, or that are such big hits with kids that they've received the "stamp of approval" from the most important reviewers, this book will be invaluable to anyone whose goal is to help boys develop a healthy enthusiasm for reading. It includes chapters on adventure books; animal stories; graphic novels; historical fiction; humorous books; mystery, horror, and suspense titles; science fiction and fantasy; and sports novels. Within each chapter, the selections are further divided into books for younger readers (grades 3-6) and titles for older boys in grades 5-8. Elementary and middle school librarians and teachers, public librarians, Title One teachers, and parents of boys in grades 3-9 will all benefit greatly from having this book at hand.

Review
Booklist, starred review
Every once in a while a book comes along that makes you wonder how you ever did your job without it. ... Because getting boys to read is such a perennial hot topic in schools and libraries, this resource is highly recommended for public and school libraries—parents of boys may also be interested, so a copy for circulation should be considered. —Dona Helmer

School Library Journal
Baxter and Kochel group the books into nine subject areas, from sports to historical fiction. Each chapter is then subdivided by readers’ ages: younger guys (grades 3 and 4) and older guys (grades 5 to 12). Lastly, within each age grouping, titles are arranged by the authors’ last name. Series titles are boldfaced and italicized to stand apart from individual titles. All entries include brief summaries; the authors clearly distinguish between synopses they have written and Library of Congress descriptions. Each chapter also features at least one “Author Spotlight,” a brief profile of a well-known author and a personal “boy book” recommendations, old and new. Baxter and Kochel include a short list of their favorite “can’t miss” fiction for boys in grades three to five and in middle school. Unlike their “Gotcha” series (Libraries Unlimited), where each entry focuses on the titles published over a narrow span of years, this volume emphasizes recent releases but includes many titles with lasting boy appeal, dating as far back as Jean George’s My Side of the Mountain (Puffin, 1959). The authors demonstrate a keen understanding of their target audience; this well-organized and easy-to-use compilation will be indispensable in engaging boy readers.