175 Cool Boys from Children's Literature
July 28, 2006
The Jen Robinson's Book Page list of Cool Boys from Children's Literature is, thanks to the many comments and suggestions, now 175 strong. I'm publishing the current list here, because it's much easier to read that way than when it's broken into separate posts. However, I hesitate to call the list complete, because I suspect that other suggestions may continue to trickle in. Who knows? Maybe the Cool Boys will even catch up with the Cool Girls over time. But for now, I hope that you're able to enjoy the adventures of the many brave, smart, intrepid, and funny boys on this list.
Many, many thanks to everyone who contributed to the list, and especially to those who took the trouble to write about it. Be sure to also check out the list of Cool Teachers being maintained at A Year of Reading. Happy reading!
- Aaron from The Fallen
quartet by Thomas E. Sniegoski
- Alec Ramsay from The Black Stallion
(and sequels) by Walter Farley
- Alex Rider from the series (starting with Stormbreaker
) by Anthony Horowitz
- Alfred Kropp from The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp
by Rick Yancey.
- Almanzo from Farmer Boy
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
- Andrew (Ender) Wiggin from Ender's Game
by Orson Scott Card
- Andy from Andy and the Lion
by James Daugherty
- Andy from the Andy Russell series (e.g. The Many Troubles of Andy Russell
) by David A. Adler
- Art from The Invisible Detective series (Double Life
, Shadow Beast
, etc.) by Justin Richards.
- Artemis from Artemis Fowl
from the series by Eoin Colfer.
- Arthur Duncan from the Maida books (Maida's Little Shop
, etc.) by Inez Haynes Irwin.
- Arthur in The Sword in the Stone
by T.H. White
- Arthur P. from the Keys of the Kingdom series (starting with Mister Monday
) by Garth Nix
- Atreyu from The Neverending Story
by Michael Ende.
- Barnaby from Anatopsis
by Chris Abouzeid
- Bastian Balthazar Bux from The Neverending Story
by Michael Ende.
- Bean from Ender's Game
by Orson Scott Card.
- Ben from Dragon Rider
by Cornelia Funke
- Benny and Henry from The Boxcar Children
by Gertrude Chandler Warner
- Billy from Where the Red Fern Grows
by Wilson Rawls
- Billy from the Billy And Blaze series
by C.W. Anderson
- Bobby Pendragon from the Pendragon series (starting with The Merchant of Death
) by D. J. MacHale.
- Boris, er, Morris (from Freaky Friday
and A Billion for Boris
by Mary Rodgers)
- Boy 412 from Magyk
by Angie Sage
- Bran from The Dark Is Rising Sequence
by Susan Cooper
- Brian from Hatchet
, Brian's Winter
, etc. by Gary Paulsen
- Bud Caldwell from Bud, Not Buddy
by Christopher Paul Curtis.
- Charles Wallace Murray from A Wrinkle in Time
(and sequels) by Madeleine L'Engle.
- Charlie Ashanti from Lionboy
and sequels by Zizou Corder.
- Charlie Bone from the Children of the Red King Series (starting with Midnight for Charlie Bone
) by Jenny Nimmo
- Charlie Bucket from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
by Roald Dahl.
- Cody from the series (e.g. Hey, New Kid!
) by Betsy Duffey
- Curdie from The Princess and the Goblin
and The Princess and Curdie
by George MacDonald
- Danny from Danny, the Champion of the World (Puffin Novels)
by Roald Dahl
- Danny from Big Red
by Jim Kjelgaard
- David from The Boy Who Lost His Face
e by Louis Sachar
- David from Uglies
by Scott Westerfeld
- David/The Boy/The Invisible Boy from The Gawgon and the Boy
by Lloyd Alexander
- Dickon from The Secret Garden
by Frances Hodgson Burnett
- Dink from A to Z Mysteries series (e.g. The Bald Bandit
) by Ron Roy
- Doon Harrow from The City of Ember
and The People of Sparks
by Jeanne Duprau
- Edek B. & Jan from Escape from Warsaw (Original title: The Silver Sword)
by Ian Serraillier
- Edmund Pevensie (only in Prince Caspian
and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
) by C. S. Lewis
- Edward Cullen from Twilight
by Stephenie Meyer.
- Emil from Emil and the Detectives
by Erich Kaestner
- Encyclopedia from Encyclopedia Brown
by Donald J. Sobol.
- Eragon from the Eragon trilogy
from the Inheritance Trilogy by Christopher Paolini.
- Eric and Neal from the Secrets of Droon series
by Tony Abbott
- Eugenides from The Thief
series by Megan Whalen Turner
- Felix Piloto from Free Baseball
by Sue Corbett.
- Finn from Flight of the Doves
by Walter Macken.
- Finn from The Kingdom Keepers
by Ridley Pearson.
- Fletcher Moon from Half-Moon Investigations
by Eoin Colfer.
- Florin from Mimus
by Lilli Thal
- Frank and Joe Hardy from the Hardy Boys series
by Franklin W. Dixon.
- Fritz, Franz, Jack, and Ernest, the brothers from The Swiss Family Robinson
by Johann Wyss
- Frodo Baggins from The Lord of the Rings
trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien
- Gilbert Blythe from Anne of Green Gables
by L. M. Montgomery
- Gregor from the Gregor The Overlander (Underland Chronicles)
books by Suzanne Collins.
- Hans Brinker from Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates
by Mary Mapes Dodge
- Harold from Harold and the Purple Crayon
by Crockett Johnson.
- Haroun from Haroun and the Sea of Stories
by Salman Rushdie
- Harry Potter from the series
by J. K. Rowling.
- Harvey from Captains Courageous
by Rudyard Kipling
- Henry from Henry Huggins
from the series by Beverly Cleary.
- Henry from The Red Badge of Courage
by Stephen Crane
- Henry from Henry and Mudge series (starting with Henry And Mudge First Book
) by Cynthia Rylant
- Homer Price from Homer Price
, Centerburg Tales: More Adventures of Homer Price
by Robert McCloskey
- Hubie from The Teacher from the Black Lagoon
and sequels by Mike Thaler and Jared Lee (illustrator)
- Huck Finn from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
by Mark Twain.
- Indigo Casson from Saffy's Angel
(and sequels) by Hilary McKay's.
- Jack from the Magic Tree House books
by Mary Pope Osborne
- Jack from the Prowlers
quartet by Christopher Golden
- Jack Henry from the Jack stories (e.g. Jack's Black Book
) by Jack Gantos.
- Jacob Two-Two, from Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang
and others by Mordecai Richler
- James Bond from Silverfin
by Charles Higson.
- James from James and the Giant Peach
by Roald Dahl
- Jamie from From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
by E. L. Konigsburg.
- Jason from Rules
by Cynthia Lord
- Jeffrey from the The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy
by Jeanne Birdsall
- Jeffrey Lionel "Maniac" Magee from Maniac Magee
by Jerry Spinelli.
- Jella from The Wheel on the School
by Meindert DeJong
- Jemmy and Prince Brat (Horace) from The Whipping Boy
by Sid Fleischman
- Jess Aarons from Bridge to Terabithia
by Katherine Paterson.
- Jim Hawkins from Treasure Island
by Robert Louis Stevenson.
- Joe from Lassie Come-Home
by Eric Knight
- Joey Pigza from Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key
and others by Jack Gantos
- John and Roger from Swallows and Amazons
and the sequels
- John Gaunt from The Akhenaten Adventure
(Children of the Lamp series) by P. B. Kerr.
- Johnny from Johnny Tremain
by Esther Forbes.
- Jon from The Forgotten Door
by Alexander Key
- Jonah Wish from Thieves Like Us
by Stephen Cole.
- Jonas from The Giver
by Lois Lowry.
- Jonathan inThe Bears on Hemlock Mountain
by Alice Dalgliesh
- Juan de Pareja from I, Juan de Pareja
by Elizabeth Burton De Tevio
- Julian Jarman from Gone-Away Lake
by Elizabeth Enright
- Ken from My Friend Flicka
and Green Grass of Wyoming
by Mary O'Hara
- Kit from the Young Wizards series (starting with So You Want to Be a Wizard
) by Diane Duane.
- Klaus Baudelaire from the Series of Unfortunate Events
books by Lemony Snicket
- Larry from The Gospel According to Larry
by Janet Tashjian
- Laurie from Little Women
by Louisa May Alcott
- Lewis Barnavelt from The House with a Clock in Its Walls
(and sequels) by John Bellairs
- Lief from the Deltora Quest series (starting with The Forests of Silence
) by Emily Rodda
- Luke from the Shadow Children series
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
- Mario from The Cricket in Times Square
by George Selden
- Mark Severson from Between a Rock and a Hard Place
by Alden R. Carter
- Matt and Attean from The Sign of the Beaver
by Elizabeth George Speare
- Matt Cruse from Airborn
and Skybreaker
by Kenneth Oppel.
- Matthew Martin from the series (starting with Everyone Else's Parents said Yes
) by Paula Danziger
- Max from Where the Wild Things Are
by Maurice Sendak.
- Merlin from the Young Merlin Trilogy (starting with Passager
) by Jane Yolen
- Merry Brandybuck The Lord of the Rings
trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien
- Milo from The Phantom Tollbooth
by Norton Juster. (Not so much at the beginninng of the book, but he improves.)
- Mowgli from The Jungle Book
by Rudyard Kipling
- Nate from the Nate the Great
series by Marjorie Sharmat
- Nathaniel Bowditch from Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
by Jean Lee Latham
- Nathaniel from The Bartimaeus Trilogy (starting with The Amulet of Samarkand
) by Jonathan Stroud.
- Neville Longbottom from the Harry Potter books
by J. K. Rowling
- Nicholas from Master Skylark
by Jonn Bennett
- Nick from Frindle
by Andrew Clements.
- Nick from The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Nicky from The Raft
by Jim LaMarche
- Noah Gershom from The View from Saturday
by E. L. Konigsberg
- Oliver from Oliver's Must-Do List
by Susan Taylor Brown
- Oliver from Oliver Twist
by Charles Dickens
- Oliver from Pond Scum
by Alan Silberberg
- Oliver Melendy from The Saturdays
and sequels by Elizabeth Enright.
- Omri and Little Bear from The Indian in the Cupboard
by Lynne Reid Banks
- Pagan Kidrouk from Pagan series (starting with Pagan's Crusade
) by Catherine Jinks
- Parker from The Bermudez Triangle
by Maureen Johnson
- Pepito (aka the Bad Hat) from the Madeline
books by Ludwig Bemelmans
- Percy Jackson from The Lightning Thief
and The Sea of Monsters
by Rick Riordan.
- Peter from Peter Pan
by J. M. Barrie (also cool as portrayed by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson in Peter and the Starcatchers
).
- Peter Pevensie from The Chronicles of Narnia
by C. S. Lewis
- Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny from The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter
- Pinocchio Pinocchio
by Carlo Collodi.
- Pip from Great Expectations
by Charles Dickens
- Pippin Took The Lord of the Rings
trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien
- Ponyboy from The Outsiders
by S. E. Hinton
- Puck from A Midsummer Night's Dream
as portrayed in the Sisters Grimm series (starting with The Sisters Grimm: The Fairy-Tale Detectives - Book #1
) by Michael Buckley
- Ralph from The Mouse and the Motorcycle
and sequels by Beverly Cleary.
- Ralph from the autobiographical Little Britches series (starting with Little Britches: Father and I Were Ranchers
) by Ralph Moody
- Robbie from Leaving Protection
by Will Hobbs
- Robbie Hewitt from Preacher's Boy
by Katherine Patterson
- Robin from The Door in the Wall
by Marguerite de Angeli
- Robin Hood from The Adventures of Robin Hood
by Roger Lancelyn Green or The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
by Howard Pyle
- Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter books
by J. K. Rowling.
- Rowan from the Rowan of Rin
series by Emily Rodda
- Rudy from The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak
- Rush Melendy from The Saturdays
and sequels by Elizabeth Enright
- Sam Beaver from The Trumpet of the Swan
by E.B. White
- Sam Gamgee The Lord of the Rings
trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien
- Scipio from The Thief Lord
by Cornelia Funke.
- Simon & Jared Grace from The Spiderwick Chronicles
by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi
- Smith from Smith
by Leon Garfield
- Snipp, Snapp and Snurr, the three Swedish brothers from the books (e.g. Snipp, Snapp, Snurr and the Buttered Bread
) by Maj Lindman
- Stanley Yelnats from Holes
by Louis Sachar.
- Stuart from Stuart Little
by E. B. White.
- Taran from The Prydain Chronicles (starting with The Book of Three
) by Lloyd Alexander
- Tien Pao from The House of Sixty Fathers
by Meindert DeJong
- Tom Brown from Tom Brown's Schooldays
by Thomas Hughes
- Tom Canty and Edward Tudor, from The Prince and the Pauper
by Mark Twain
- Tom D. Fitzgerald (The Great Brain
) from the series by John D. Fitzgerald.
- Tom Sawyer from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
by Mark Twain.
- Tony Malone from Escape to Witch Mountain
by Alexander Key.
- Travis from Old Yeller
by Fred Gipson
- Turner Buckminster from Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy
by Gary D. Schmidt.
- Vince from Son of the Mob
by Gordon Korman
- Will Parker from The Tripods series
by John Christopher.
- Will Parry from the His Dark Materials Trilogy
by Philip Pullman.
- Will Stanton from The Dark Is Rising Sequence
by Susan Cooper.
- William from The Castle in the Attic
and The Battle for the Castle
by Elizabeth Winthrop
- Zack from The Zack Files (starting with My Great-grandpa's in the Litter Box
) by Dan Greenburg and Jack E. Davis
- Zane from Pretties
and Specials
by Scott Westerfeld
- Zed Malakov from The Star of Kazan
by Eva Ibbotson
Contributors and Commenters So Far:
- Becky from Farm School
- Bibliophile
- Brian F. from Dispatches from an MFA-Seeking Writer
- Camille from Book Moot
- Carrie K. from Mommy Brain
- Chris
- Dana
- Genevieve
- Jennifer from Snapshot
- Kate
- Kelly from Big A little a
- Kim from Gemini Moon
- Leila from bookshelves of doom
- Little Willow from Bildungsroman
- Liz B. from A Chair, A Fireplace and a Tea Cozy
- Mary Lee from A Year of Reading
- Michele from Scholar's Blog
- MotherReader
- Pooja Makhijani
- Sheila B.
- So-Net Blog
- Sprite from Sprite Writes
- TadMack from A Reader Rants
- Wisteria from Twice Bloomed Wisteria
People Who Have Linked to the Cool Boys Lists So Far:
- Liz B. from A Chair, A Fireplace and A Tea Cozy
- Becky from Farm School
- Michele Fry from Scholar's Blog
- So-Net Blog
- Kathryn Judson from Suitable for Mixed Company
- The Waterboro, Maine Public Library Blog
- Mary Lee and Franki from A Year of Reading
Note: This list is copyright (c) 2006 by Jennifer Robinson. All rights reserved.