Geeky Books for Kids: 5 Series to Get Your Kid's Reading Started Off Right

Have you been to the children's section of a book store lately, or maybe your kids' school does one of those book fairs? Look around at those things and notice what passes for children's literature nowadays.  It is basically the same crap the kids watch on TV, now in book form. Of course, the books are always heavily laden with pictures because a lot of book publishers think your kids are too dumb to read a book that doesn't have pictures in it. Of course, with my kids they are probably just assuming that because their dad is too dumb to read a book with no pictures. In any case, it really is unacceptable for geeks to allow their kids to read such sub par books. It is important that our kids learn to read, and more importantly, learn to love to read.  That is really the key. Giving them a book that is based on a cartoon show or a video game will only want to make them watch that cartoon show or play that video game. We need to introduce them to some books that help them use their imaginations and will keep their attention.  Have no fear, your friendly, neighborhood Geeky Dad is here.  I have compiled here a list of 5 series that should be appealing to any geek, and to their children. Reading these books, you will probably be just as entertained as your kids. This is by no means an end all list, in fact I openly recognize that these may not even be the best 5 kids' series out there (Although, I do feel strongly that Chronicles of Narnia and Harry Potter are probably numbers 1 and 2, respectively). This is just a list of series that hopefully you will enjoy and your kids will enjoy, and hopefully they will want to read more.

Chronicles of Narnia

This classic series by C.S. Lewis is a must read for any geek and their child. It has everything from magic to talking animals to an evil queen to kids being center stage. The heroes being kids is a must for any series written for kids. Kids identify with them better than they do adults, and are more interested in the story at that point. They come away from a story featuring kids feeling like they can do a lot of amazing things, and really, don't we want our kids to feel that way? If you are unfamiliar with the story, it is about some kids who make it into another world called Narnia. There they meet a Lion named Aslan who is the lord of that world and always seems to show up when they need him. The first story involves two brothers and two sisters who make it into Narnia through a magic wardrobe. I read this book when I was younger, and spent about a year looking in the backs of closets and wardrobes for a way into another world. It never worked, unfortunately. I love these books and the morals and values your kids can learn from these books. And Lucy, who is in quite a few of the books, is the best. I just lover her.  Let's just say that it is no coincidence that I have a daughter named Lucy.

Harry Potter

This is the best modern series for kids. Now, the first 2 books are pretty safe for any age group, I think, but be careful as you go further into the series because it does get quite a bit darker as it goes on, so you need to know your kids and what they can handle. Especially the last 3. One thing I like about this book is that it doesn't treat the target audience like they can't handle big things. Death, for example, seems to be something that is usually absent from kids' books, but Harry faces it head on, and I think that's OK. Another thing I really like about the series is that there are well defined good guys, and well defined bad guys, and then there are some folks in between, so you learn not to judge people too quickly. The story basically follows a young boy named Harry Potter, who is an orphan who lives in a cupboard under the stairs at his Aunt and Uncle's house and is not treated well at all. Then, on his 11th birthday he finds out he is really a wizard, and not just any wizard, but he's super famous in the wizarding world. The series follows him as he grows up, each volume following a year in school. The big baddie in the series is Voldemort, and Harry finds himself facing off against him in each book, in some form or another. I would guess that most people who are reading this post are familiar with Harry Potter in some form or another.

The Janitors Series

I am sure, just like me, you used to always look at the janitors in your school and wonder if they weren't really wizards and witches, protecting the school from little creatures who feed off of children's brainwaves. Wait, you didn't think that when you were in school? Neither did I. I don't think anyone did, except Tyler Whitesides, who is the author that brought us this highly imaginative, original idea. When I heard the idea, my first thought was that it was pretty weird. It was weird, and intriguing at the same time. I wanted to see if it was any good, so I borrowed it from the local library, and was very pleasantly surprised. The story sucked me in pretty quick, and, because it is written for a younger audience, it was pretty fast paced. After reading these books, you will never look at janitors at your kids' schools the same way again. You'll always be wondering if they are secret wizards or witches.

Michael Vey

This is the latest effort by famed author Richard Paul Evans. Yes, the guy who wrote The Christmas Box. I'll be honest, I did not know what to think of the idea of reading anything by Richard Paul Evans, and the advertising for this book has been dreadful. There is a YouTube commercial you can find for this book, and it just makes the whole thing feel cheap and just low quality, so that didn't sell me on it either. That being said, i borrowed the first one from the library, and then I couldn't put it down. The story follows a young boy named Michael Vey who has secret powers-he can shock people with his own electricity. Not just like a small static shock, but really shock people. He has no idea why he has these powers, but he and his mom have had to move around and hide to keep him safe. That's how he ends up in Pocatello, ID. Then he discovers that the cute cheerleader at his school also has electric powers like him. The two become friends and begin researching where they came from and what hey might have in common, and that's when the real trouble starts. One of the best things about this book is that Michael has Tourette Syndrome, which I had only seen acted out in movies as crazy people who yell obscenities a lot. This is not like that. He has some nervous ticks he can't always control, but that's it. It seemed pretty legit, and then I found out that the author has it, so it made sense. It adds a new depth to the character, in my opinion.

Skulduggery Pleasant

Have you ever been in a public library and you see a book that looks intriguing and interesting, so you just pick it up and bring it home. I mean, why not? It doesn't cost you anything. That's what happened with this book recently. I saw it sitting there and couldn't pass it up, and I was glad I did. The basic story revolves around a girl named Stephanie whose favorite uncle just died. He was a rich, successful author with a big house and lots of other nice things. All of this he leaves to Stephanie in his will, and none of it to her other uncle and his wife who are greedy and nasty people. While Stephanie is at the reading of her Uncle's will she meets a man who was a friend of her Uncle's. This man is Skulduggery Pleasant. Later she discovers that there is more than meets the eye with Skulduggery, or maybe it is less. She discovers he is a living skeleton, who is also a wizard and a detective. She teams up with him to discover what really happened to her Uncle, and the whole thing is just a fun ride. Skulduggery is full of wit and charm, and has an incredible sense of humor. The story reminded me of the first time I read Harry Potter. I was just swept away into this world of magic and imagination. Plus, Stephanie is the kind of girl character I want my girls to read. The books in the series can be hard to find at your local bookstore, but I found them at my library, which is nice because it costs less than buying the books any way.

There you have it. If you have been looking for some fun series to begin reading with your kids, there are 5 of them. Check them out, they have my official seal of approval. I don't know if that means anything to anyone, but there you have it. What are some of your favorite books you have read with your kids? Let me know in the comments.  I would love to hear about them.

A Golden Night for Geeky Flicks-The Kids Version

For those of you who may have missed, yesterday was the Golden Globes, which goes by some hoity-toity real name, but we will call it the Golden Globes (It's the Hollywood Foreign Press, just in case you thought I didn't know). I don't care much for these kinds of things, award shows, I mean.  Typically, my type of movie doesn't win.  Sure there are exceptions, but by and large, the winners are typically movies or shows that I have never seen and have little desire to see.  Maybe that makes me uncultured. I'm ok with that, so you should be too.

Last night was a little different, especially in the Best Animated Feature category, or as it should be called, the Disney/Pixar Award. The award has been a part of the Golden Globes since 2007, and since then a non-Disney/Pixar film has won the award a grand total of once-when Cars 2 lost out to The Adventures of Tintin.  All the other winners have been Disney/Pixar or Disney. And they have all been not really "geeky" type films.  You can see the list of winners here. But last night was different.

The nominees for Best Animated Feature last night were: How to Train Your Dragon 2, The Lego Movie, Big Hero 6, The Book of Life, and The Box Trolls. The last two are more traditional, non-geeky films, like the previous winners of this  award, but the other three, I would say are pretty geeky, and all pretty good.  Reading over the category, I realized last year was a great year for geeky kids' flicks. You could make an argument for any of these three to be the winner, but I think they got it right when they gave the award to How to Train Your Dragon 2 (only the second non-Disney film to win this award).

I really enjoyed the first How to Train Your Dragon, and the second film was one those rare sequels that's just as good, if not better. The story is awesome just because it involves dragons and vikings. On top of that, though, it has a lot of heart. Hiccup is not your normal viking, but he doesn't let that stop him- he works through it and finds his own place. Plus the film gets a little heavy, when his father dies, but it doesn't over do it. If you haven't seen this film yet, first of all, sorry for the spoiler, and second, go and rent it and watch it. It is beautifully animated and has a great story and deserves to win this award.

On top of that, though, the other two geeky films were pretty fantastic as well. There has never been anything quite like The Lego Movie and it will be hard for anyone to ever replicate that ever. Even the equal will have a hard time capturing the same lightning in a bottle. The movie has it all, likable characters, great humor and Batman. You really can't go wrong, except when I saw the preview I thought it was going to be a disaster. It surprised everyone, I think. Big Hero 6 is what we get when we merge Marvel with Disney and leave Disney in charge-a super hero movie with maybe a little too much heart. It is not a bad movie, by any means, but it just feels weird to me.

The real point here, however, is that we had 3 great geeky kids' movies last year. It is a great time to be a geek, and more than that, it is a great time to be a geeky parent. It is becoming easier for us to find geeky things to expose our children to, in order to raise the next generation of geeks. Really, it is pretty exciting.

What do you think? Did the right animated film win last night? Let us know in the comments below what your thoughts were.

My Kids and Star Wars

One of the main reasons I got married and decided to start having kids was so I could have my own little geek army.  I was going to raise them right and teach them everything I know about everything geeky.  My kids were going to be the coolest kids ever, by being the geekiest kids ever.  I was going to do my younger self proud.  When I was a kid, it wasn't cool to be a geek, so I felt pretty alone in my geekery.  When I grew up, I promised my self that I would never be alone again.  My kids would all appreciate everything I was made fun of for as a kid.

One of the big things that I swore my kids would know was Star Wars.  That was such a big part of my life growing up.  I think we went through a few sets of video cassettes watching those movies.  I loved them.  They shaped a lot about me as kid and a teen and now as an adult. I felt like this was one of the most important randoms I could share with my kids.  As the prequels came out, and I enjoyed them so little, I swore that not only would my kids love Star Wars, but they would do it right, and only enjoy the originals.  Oh to be young and so naive. I had my kids, and I have tried to bring them all up as little geeks.  I tried extra hard to bring them up Star Wars.  I even have photographic evidence:

That's Johnny, Eliza, and Jak, Halloween 2011.  They are the cutest little Star Wars people I have ever seen.  They were excited about these little costumes at the time, but that was really the extent of their Star Wars knowledge and love.  For whatever reason, despite my best efforts, none of the kids seemed that interested in the movies.  At all.  It made me sad, but I never want my kids to feel like I am forcing anything on them.  So, I had to find ways to secretly force Star Wars on them until they loved it.  I would offer to buy them Star Wars toys, and only Star Wars toys.  If they didn't want them, that was fine, but they couldn't have other toys instead.  I tried to trick them into watching the Clone Wars cartoons, but each time the episodes would start, the kids left the room.  Part of me started to feel like I was failing as a father. I mean a minor fail, not like Anakin choking the mother of his children and then becoming a mass murderer kind of a fail as a father.

Then last weekend happened.  We had a Star Wars party at our house.  We invited some friends, and a few even came.  And my kids got really excited for it.  They could not wait to watch Star Wars with my friends.  They all tried to stay up late, but after a week that also included New Year's, it just wasn't happening.  Johnny only made it through A New Hope, before falling asleep.  To my surprise, and delight, he woke up the next day and wanted to start right where he had left off the night before, so I started Empire for him, and he was glued to it, and then devoured Return of the Jedi. He couldn't get enough. He loved it, and I was a proud papa.

Then return of the Jedi was over, and he wanted more.  He knew the prequels existed.  He knew a series doesn't start with 4.  He wanted to watch 1-3.  I caved, and I let him watch the movies.  He wanted me to sit and watch them with him, and I caved again.  I would have killed to have my dad sit down and watch Star Wars with me, so there was no way I was going to deprive my son of that moment.  So I sat and watched the prequels with him.  As I did, I came to some realizations.

First, I realized that my kids would never know Star Wars minus the prequels.  Part of me thinks that's sad, but another part of me doesn't think it's that bad.  For Johnny, the prequels are going to be a part of his growing up like the original trilogy was for me.  Yes, all three movies are totally CGI and Green Screen, which to old time Star Wars fans is blasphemy, but Johnny won't feel that way.  He's used to it.  What movie isn't CGI or green screen now?  That's how our kids will experience movies.  We can like it or not, but it doesn't change the reality.  Him watching those movies that were more what he is used to, helped him bridge a gap to the original trilogy and enjoy those movies more than he would have.

Second, I think I have been overly critical of some things in the prequels.  I make that statement, and then I must clarify.  By no means am I saying that the prequels are as good as the original trilogy, but they're not as bad as we make them out to be either.  Yes, the actors who play Anakin are awful, but they are also kids.  Natalie Portman doesn't give her best performance ever, but it was also her big break.  Watch A New Hope again and try to tell me that Mark Hammil and Carrie Fischer gave Oscar worthy performances.  They didn't.  They were young too.  They got better as the trilogy went on, as does Portman in the prequels.  Guess what, though, your kids don't care.  Kids don't sit down for a movie and say, "That actor moved me."  No, they sit down and want to see action and explosions and bright colors, all of which the prequels deliver.

Third, if I were Johnny's age, I would love all the Star Wars movies too.  Each and every one of them.  To an 8 year old, they are all fantastic and fun movies.  The important thing for me was to experience that magic with my son as he really enjoyed the whole saga for the first time.  He literally just sat for 12 hours over the weekend and stared at these movies, and wanted to watch them again. No, you can pass judgement on my parenting skills and wonder how any parent could let a child sit and watch movies for 12 hours, but it was one of the proudest moments of my life.  My son was a geek, and now we can talk Star Wars, and I am realizing my dream of raising my own geek army.

Now we just need to get our tent and sleeping bags ready for December 2015, so we can camp out for  Force Awakens...

Bringing in the New Year with Kids

Happy 2015, everyone.  I hope you all had a nice evening yesterday and enjoyed your New Year's activities.  Believe it or not, we didn't party too hard at our house.  With 5 kids, the party tends to revolve around them instead of  you, and when the party revolves around 5 kids ranging in age from 8 to 2, it tends to be pretty tame.  The good news for Erica and I is that we weren't big party animals before we got married and took on the responsibility to replenish the human race by ourselves, so it hasn't been a huge adjustment to stay in and "party" with the kids.

This year, Erica wanted to add something new, and it was kind of cool.  We went through a list of questions with each of the 3 oldest kids and typed up their answers, so we can save them for posterity.  The questions were things like "What was your favorite memory from 2014" or "What was your favorite food." It was fun for the kids, because it was all about them, and it will be fun for us and hopefully them, as they get older to look back on what their answers were.  If we keep it up from year to year, then we will be able to see how they're growing and changing with time.  We also asked them what they were looking forward to in 2015.  We got some good answers as Johnny is looking forward to his baptism and Jak is looking forward to starting school.  We also had them set some goals, things they wanted to work on in 2015.  It was a lot of fun.

After we did that, then the party began.  I had gone earlier in the day to buy a bunch of snacks and treats for our New Year's Eve party, so I got all of that stuff out, and we brought it downstairs. The kids made up some beds on the couch and on their bean bag chairs on the floor. Then we settled in to watch movies until 2015 hit. The first movie we watched was The Incredibles, which is my favorite Pixar flick.  Hands down.  The kids weren't excited at first because it's not they are as familiar with, but once we started it, they were really enjoying it.  After that film finished we purchased How to Train Your Dragon 2 from iTunes and watched that.  Johnny was way excited.  He loves those movies.  That was pretty much our evening.

All the kids planned on staying up until midnight.  The 3 older kids get that that's what you are supposed to do on New Year's, so they all wanted to do it.  Lucy is always just glad to stay up as late as we will let her.  Before the night began, my wife and I engaged in our favorite New Year's game.  We took bets on who was going to last until when.  My money was on only Eliza making it all the way to the end.  Of course, at the time Lucy was already asleep, and I thought she was down for the count.

 Once our bets were placed, then the fun begins. Watching the kids go down and out one by one.  Maren didn't count.  We brought her upstairs and put her in bed.  She didn't have a choice.  Jak was the first to fall out.  He fell asleep in the middle of the entry way to our family room in the basement, which was probably the most inconvenient spot, but we didn't want to risk moving him, so we left him there, and spent the rest of the night stepping over him. This was about halfway through the first movie.

About this same time, Lucy woke up from her nap.  At that point, I knew she was going to make to the end.  She was now fully rested and ready to go.  At the end of The Incredibles, Johnny, Eliza and Lucy were still going.  So we started the next film, which Johnny picked. Then he proceeded to fall asleep about halfway through.  He loves the Dragon movies, but he was also tired.  My boys do not do late nights very well.  When they are tired, they go to sleep, and it rarely happens that they stay up or awake later than 9 or 9:30.  Jak and Johnny were out, it was now just Erica and I  and the 2 girls.

We only had about an hour left, so we didn't want to start another movie that would tempt Eliza to want to stay up later than midnight.  Instead, we picked an episode of the BBC's Top Gear.  Yes, we love that show.  It can be pretty hilarious, and the episode we watched was pretty good.  It finished right about midnight, so once it was through, we just waited a few minutes and then said  Happy New Year to each other, and Lucy and Eliza, who had both made it.  At that point, I brought Lucy upstairs to put her in bed, and she wasn't happy about that.  She didn't want to go to bed, she wanted to stay up.  She cried for about 30 seconds, then her head hit the pillow and she was out.  Eliza wanted to watch something more on Netflix, so we started something for her and we went to bed.  I don't think she made it very far into whatever she was watching before she was asleep.

That was our exciting New Year's Eve.  I loved it.  We were all safely at home, we had fun, and the kids I think will remember that kind of stuff as they grow up, and hopefully look back on it.  As I was going upstairs to bed, I thought about my trip to Walmart earlier in the evening.  The guy ringing up my groceries asked if I had anything fun planned, and I told him I was just spending it with the wife and kids.  Then he asked if I was going to get wasted.  Uh...No.  Then he proceeded to tell me that he was going to get wasted, it was one of only like 5 nights of the year that he gets wasted.  Sounds great, I hope he enjoyed it.  I would rather spend the evening with the people that matter the most to me sipping my pink lemonade.  To me, that's living life.