Problem: Boys Don't Like to Read. Solution: Books That Are Really Gross
'Vlad the Impaler' Strikes a Chord; 'Mom, This Is a Great Book'
By JOHN HECHINGER writing in the Wall Street Journal, August 8, 2008

Kevin Bolger, an elementary school teacher in Ottawa, Canada, wrote "Sir Fartsalot Hunts the Booger'' after having his students read "Captain Underpants."
Although it has the contours of a horror story -- with splotches of red ink on its pages depicting blood -- it's actually a children's book.

"Vlad the Impaler: The Real Count Dracula" is widely available in libraries and is making its way into middle-school social-studies classes.
Children's publisher Scholastic Corp. features the 128-page tale of the 15th-century Romanian sociopath in its new "Wicked History" series, also starring "Leopold II: Butcher of the Congo" and "Mary Tudor: Courageous Queen or Bloody Mary?"

Publishers are hawking more gory and gross books to appeal to an elusive market: boys -- many of whom would rather go to the dentist than crack open "Little House on the Prairie." Booksellers are also catering to teachers and parents desperate to make young males more literate.

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