I hesitated to put my daughters age in the title because she reads well above her level. She is 7, almost 8 (2nd grade) and is currently sitting next to me re-reading Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets. We read it together as a family, and she is attempting to read it on her own now. There are some BIG words in the book. She will try to fight through it because she’s stubborn, but I think it’s maybe a touch too hard.
Anyways, she loves to read, and those little kid books aren’t doing it anymore. She’ll read those thin chapter books that are 40 -50 pages in one sitting.
I think we need something in between those and Harry Potter… something like 100-150 pages with an interesting plot and some challenging vocabulary.
A series would be great
Any suggestions?
by honeymustard_dog
10 Comments
The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe by Lewis
Check out Carolyn B. Cooney’s books! I was a super precocious reader and I was addicted to her books in grade school. Same for the Wayside Stories books, the Wrinkle in Time series, and (of course) the Hobbit.
It’s been many years so I my memory may be off but I remember enjoying Catwings, Saddle Club, and books by Marguerite Henry (about horses also). I don’t remember exactly how old I was when I read those but I liked those books (I read all the time and often reread my books when I was younger). Idk just a suggestion
A Heros Guide to Saving the Kingdom by Christopher Healy.
Frances Hardinge is my current favourite Children and YA writer. Maybe start with her MG books.
From my own childhood a writer who I rarely see recommended all that much anymore and I absolutely loved. Dick King-Smith. He wrote the book Babe was based on, The Sheep Pig and lots of his books are like that. Farm animals getting up to mischief and escaping farms. The thing about his books is they are very optimistic so she could read a book he wrote for older children without fear of encountering themes which are too heavy for her.
What about the Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer? They’re very engaging and would be age-appropriate.
3 authors come to mind:
Roald Dahl
Tom Fletcher
David Walliams
I think the Redwall series, by Brian Jacques, would be perfect for her.
I was that kid and so was my kid. These are some of our favorites:
Percy Jackson, Magnus Chase, and the Kane Chronicles by Rick Riordan – Kane Chronicles is the shortest and the only one with a female MC
The Menagerie by Tui T Sutherland is my favorite kids’ book. It’s an easier read, around 150 pages, I’m rereading it for fun, and my teenager saw me reading and went back to reread it too. A lonely kid finds a secret zoo full of magical creatures, and it’s awesome
Anne of Green Gables is so good. She’s 11 in the first book, but the books are short and comparable to Harry Potter in terms of vocabulary. She’ll love them
Gordon Korman started publishing in middle school. His oldest books are the best (and funnier because there’s no cell phones or internet). The MacDonald Hall Books, No Coins Please, I Want to go Home, and Losing Joe’s Place are the best.
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C Wrede is a series that starts with a badass princess who hates being told how to be a princess, so she runs away to live with dragons. Then she fights the avenging knights off herself because her dragon is busy and the knights don’t understand she doesn’t want to be rescued. They are wonderful books that have a great message but you don’t realize it’s a message while you read it
Anne McCaffrey – give her Dragonsong, Dragonsinger, and DragonDrums and if she’s into it, she’s got the whole Pern series. The Ship Who Searched is a good one too.
I remember really liking Dragonrider by Cornelia Funke around that age.