"I'm looking for a good book for a ten year old boy..."

Fantastic! There's nothing our booksellers like more than combing through our shelves to find a young reader his next favorite read. We'll ask a few questions—does he prefer fantasy or realistic fiction? How does he feel about historical fiction? Are there any specific topics he loves or hobbies he has?—and then we'll go ahead and start building our recommendations. Every now and then, we'll find what we think is the perfect book. It's got everything he loves, nothing he doesn't, and is brand new so he probably hasn't seen it yet. We'll hand it to the customer, so excited to see what they think, only to have it returned back to us. The problem? The main character is a girl. The cover is too pink. This is a "girl book."

More often than not, this response comes to us not from the kids themselves, but from their parents or grandparents. If there's anything we've learned, it's that kids just want a good story, and while some generally prefer to have a character that they can relate to, it's very rare that they'll refuse a book simply because of the main character. As bestselling author, Shannon Hale said in an article from The Washington Post, "I’ve now asked thousands of kids the same question: 'What kind of books do you like?' They answer: fantasy, funny, comics, mystery, nonfiction, etc. No kid has ever said, 'I like books about boys.'"

Which brings us to the question: why do we care? What is it about books with strong young women as main characters that we think will repel boys? Plenty of young girls read Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid without even once questioning if this was something they were supposed to be reading. They were stories to be enjoyed, and that's all that really mattered. 

It's important for us to recognize that for many people, books are not only a way to escape into another world for awhile, but also some of the first insight they get into how other people experience life. Whether reading about an old man on the other side of the world, a young girl with a disability, or a teenager fifty years into the past, books are an incredible way to gain perspective on the world, and by extension, each other. If we want to foster a generation of not only voracious readers, but also compassionate and understanding people, the best place to start is to let them read what they want. Who knows? Maybe a book about a girl with cancer will inspire a young boy to become a doctor. Maybe a book about a boys' basketball team will encourage a young girl to pursue her dreams of being in the WNBA. Maybe the book set in Africa will foster a love of travel and experiencing the world. But we'll never know if we don't let them try.