Books for Age 12, Sanderson Edition
Just a note. I meant to write this as one post for kids age 12 or so and up. But then it got long. Like 20 books long with great descriptions and things. It was over 3 pages single spaced in google docs. So I broke it into three or maybe four, and will post them all separately. This is the second in that series of posts. The numbers in front of the books are from the original list, in case you care about how I put it together originally.
Okay, I haven’t really been hiding this, but I really LOVE all things from Brandon Sanderson. I like the stories, the worldbuilding, the characters (SO much the characters). And the fact that I live in Utah and that’s where Sanderson lives and works is super awesome. Because I get to volunteer there too! I don’t get paid (except in the occasional book or poster), but the people are all fun to work with and sometimes I get to see my favorite author! In fact, here is the RoW signing from late October, and if you get past the beginning with Brandon talking you can see plenty of me in my Jurassic Park tshirt (starting at about 1:30 into the video). So while I’m not officially a spokesperson or affiliated with Dragonsteel, I know a lot about all of these books and can recommend all the things with a lot of confidence.
6. The Rithmatist is the youngest-targeted book on this list. It’s a steampunk-inspired story in alternate Earth with some great worldbuilding. The magic is based in chalk drawings and geometry, so great for kids who are just being introduced to that in school. And there are lots of secrets to be uncovered, a bit of mystery and detective work are required to get to the bottom of what’s going on at this Magic School. This book is just delightful with some moments that were a little scary (which is why I didn’t put it for a younger audience). Unfortunately, it begs for a sequel that we have been waiting a decade for but have no hope to get soon.
7. Skyward A great SF series following a girl who finds a spaceship in a cavern and fixes it up. Like How to Train Your Dragon for space). Plus throw in flight school (with echoes of Ender’s Game and Top Gun) and aliens trying to exterminate the human race. It’s so much fun!! Oh, and did I mention the Doomslug? Giant yellow and blue that can move really slowly, or really fast somehow if Spensa isn’t watching. It includes some typical Coming of Age themes, and just a tiny bit of romance (Let’s be honest, Sanderson is NOT a master of writing romance). The second book in the series, Starsight, is out and books 3 and 4 are forthcoming in 2021 and 2022. So not finished yet, but the draft of book 3 is turned in, and there are also a few novellas announced for this world with Janci Patterson as a coauthor which sounds like a lot of fun.
8. Steelheart What if you got superpowers? What if using those powers turned you evil? It’s a fairly common theme in tv the last few years and Sanderson does a great job with it. Set in Chicago turned to steel, and David joins up with the Reckoners to bring Steelheart down and return rule to the people. Of course the whole thing isn’t nearly as straightforward as that, but it’s a decent pitch. If you read the prologue and get turned off by the violence, note that this is the most dark and graphic scene in the entire series, promise. Book two travels to an interesting version of NYC, USA and is among the best books Sanderson has written. And book 3 is set in Atlanta… kind of. Anyway, it’s a lot of fun, and a complete story.
9. Mistborn is a great entry into Sanderson’s Cosmere. It is printed and shelved both as YA and adult Fantasy. It’s one of my favorite books, and I’m sure I’ll do a full review on it later. But for now, it’s one that I keep extra copies of laying around to lend out to friends or unsuspecting teenagers. Vin has a good Coming of Age story with Kelsier as her mentor, and the supporting cast is fantastic (though they’re all dudes and that doesn’t really fly as well these days). The biggest detractor for this story at 12yo is the worldbuilding. It’s a dark place. “Ash fell from the sky” is the first sentence of the book. Literally, the end of the world is slowly coming upon them. If body count is an issue for you, then maybe this book isn’t the best either because the count in this book is… quite large. 20+ just in the prologue, the world is a dark and dangerous place. Not quite grimdark, but not the shiny place that Rithmatist is either. This is the first in an amazing trilogy, and there’s a secondary series with three of four planned books already out (with the last one due next year.) As I said in the beginning, this is a fabulous entry into Sanderson’s greater Cosmere which is… basically the MCU for books and it’s amazing.
And that’s it. I mean, from one author who focuses on books for not-YA people, it’s a decent list. And not a bad book in the bunch, I promise. Hope to have the rest of these posts out in the next few days, so I can go on with writing about what I’ve been reading so far this year!
