Picture a young person being handed a “must-read” novel and told it will change their life. For some teens, it does. For others, it quietly confirms what they already suspect: reading just isn’t for them.
I know this because I was one of those teens.
In middle school, I was an average student who simply didn’t like to read. While classmates raved about The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Hobbit, I tried and failed to get through them. I couldn’t connect to the fantasy worlds, the anthropomorphic animals or the endless wandering hero’s journey. I assumed something was wrong with me.
Everything changed when I was assigned S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders. I read it in a single day. That had never happened before. The characters felt real. The stakes felt immediate. I wasn’t trudging through pages — I was pulled forward. For the first time, reading felt personal.
That experience changed me. I devoured more Hinton, then Judy Blume, then wandered into the adult stacks: Stephen King, Anne Rice, Dean Koontz. I read nonfiction on photography, baking, camping, and sign language. The breakthrough didn’t come from a “safe” list. It came from relevance.
Years later, as a published author of two young adult novels, I noticed something. Even now, many recommended reading lists, especially for reluctant readers, are built around what adults admire and publishers push rather than what young people are naturally drawn to. We often default to classics or carefully curated contemporary fiction built around the traditional hero’s arc. But not every reader is wired to engage through that structure. Some are drawn to facts, instructions, images, or real-world stakes rather than symbolic quests.
Today’s reading landscape is wider than ever. Graphic novels and manga dominate teen circulation. Narrative nonfiction, like sports, survival or how-to manuals, grip readers who may not pick up classic fiction. Audiobooks offer another doorway, especially for teens who love stories and are auditory learners but struggle to sit with dense print.
If a teen is deeply absorbed in a motocross maintenance manual, a gaming strategy guide, the history of fashion, or a cookbook they discovered online, that should count too. Reading is reading. Technical manuals, hobby books, and sports biographies are not distractions from literacy; they are expressions of it. When we honour what a young person chooses to read, we validate their curiosity. Curiosity is the real gateway to lifelong learning.
The question isn’t, “What should they read?” It’s, “What will they read willingly?”
Research consistently shows that choice increases engagement. Reading is an intimate contract between author and reader. If that connection doesn’t form, no amount of “but everyone’s reading this” encouragement will create it.
A reluctant reader is not a lost cause. More often, they are simply waiting for material that speaks their language. Let them roam the bookstore or library, show them that there’s more to choose from than just the kids’ fiction section.
Sometimes the book that changes a life isn’t the one on the recommended list. It is the one they choose for themselves.
Are you a published author with a new book? For a chance to be featured in an upcoming Author’s Spotlight, contact Nicole at [email protected]
Nicole Winters is a writer, editor, and lover of stories. She has spent decades shaping everything from novels to film scripts and refining training materials and digital learning content. She is the author of two traditionally published young adult novels, including TT Full Throttle, named one of the Canadian Children’s Book Centre’s Best Books for Kids & Teens, and the bestselling teen romance The Jock and the Fat Chick. She is always on the lookout for a great story to recommend and is currently working on her third novel.
About the Author
