Hey folks, looking for book recs for an 11 year old who's reading at a much higher level than her peers, but isn't too grown-up – she's not interested in themes surrounding sex, horror, etc, but some violence or "thriller" stuff is fine as long as it's not super gratuitous. She's run through all the usual suspects (Harry Potter, Hunger Games) and she especially loves anything Rick Riordan.
by hexnope63
12 Comments
Jane Lindskold Firekeeper series,
Sherwood Smith,
Tamora Pierce,
You will get lots of great recommendations. But another approach would be to take her to the library and encourage her to explore. Get her a library card. She may like what we recommend for her – but the joy of browsing and finding her own books may help encourage her to keep reading.
How about one of these?
* [Murder Most Unladylike](https://www.goodreads.com/series/118108-murder-most-unladylike) by Robin Stevens
* [The Thieves of Ostia](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1100282.The_Thieves_of_Ostia) by Caroline Lawrence
* [Harriet the Spy](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/232576.Harriet_the_Spy) by Louise Fitzhugh
* [From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3980.From_the_Mixed_Up_Files_of_Mrs_Basil_E_Frankweiler) by E.L. Konigsburg
* [The Armourer’s House](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1195105.The_Armourer_s_House) by Rosemary Sutcliff
* [The Witch of Blackbird Pond](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/703292.The_Witch_of_Blackbird_Pond) by Elizabeth George Speare
* The [Tiffany Aching series](https://www.goodreads.com/series/96852-discworld—tiffany-aching) by Terry Pratchett
*Un Lun Dun* by China Mieville
*Sabriel* by Garth Nix
Try the Hobbit by Tolkien. If it lands then Lord of the Rings.
Try the Miss Marple books by Agatha Christie.
The Sherlock Holmes books by Conan Doyle
There is the animal classics: Black Beauty, White Fang, Call of the Wild.
There are the 2 big horse series: Black Stallion and Misty of chincoteague
There is the Anne of Green Gables books.
Depending on the level of violence you are ok with there is a lot of older fantasy. Dodging sex and a lot of cursing is easy, it’s a lot harder to dodge the blood.
I *highly* recommend [Nevermoor](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/6a6d5ca1-b2f5-47be-828c-018144d3bbc7) by Jessica Townsend! It’s my favorite series even as an adult, and the only one that makes me feel the way the Harry Potter books used to.
Chasing Vermeer?
Two of my favorite books series when I was around that age were The Land of Stories by Cris Colfer, and Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger. 🙃
By Wendy Mass – Pi in the Sky, A Mango-Shaped Space, Every Soul a Star
Rick Riordan – the Kane Chronicles, if she hasn’t read them already
I read Frankenstein (I wouldn’t classify this as horror at all) and To Kill a Mockingbird at that age and really enjoyed them!
Redwall
seems like the perfect time in one’s life to get into the classics… Chekhov’s short stories?