To Turn Boys Into Readers, Gross Them Out

Young boys, who trail far behind their female peers as readers, are reversing that trend with help from publishers who seek to exploit their love for everything gross. The Wall Street Journal examines the wave of children's’ titles rife with farts, boogers, blood, and flesh-eating bacteria—and talks with some grown-ups who don't see a problem.

Scholastic’s ‘Wicked History’ series of bloodthirsty leaders is selling well, as is its "24/7: Science Behind the Scenes” series, featuring books with vivid illustrations of rotting limbs. Some wildly popular books aimed at boys skip the quasi-educational content altogether, but the challenge, says the publisher of Sir Fartsalot Hunts the Booger,  is to "pull a boy away from a videogame." (More book stories.)