Any book recommendations for a 9 year-old girl?
Asked by
tom_g (
16638
)
April 19th, 2012
My daughter is a book addict. She reads all the time, including at the kitchen table, while brushing her teeth, and walking up and down stairs. After learning how to read at 4 years old, she burned through the entire kids’ section of picture books before moving on to more advanced “chapter” books at 5.
The problem is – she’s extremely bright and is often working on multiple books at the same time. There are books across the house with bookmarks at various points in the story. We can’t keep up with what she’s reading at this point. All I know is that she goes through a few books per week.
We also have had the opportunity to browse through some of these books and have found that some of them have rather “mature” themes. Now, I am far from one of those people who wants to protect her from reality, but I am hoping that there are some books that will meet her where she is intellectually and creatively, but not introduce a whole assortment of other themes just yet.
So, ideally, I think I’m looking for recommendations that meet some of the following:
– challenging enough (she’s in fourth grade, but in a special “advanced” reading group)
– a strong female protaganist
– unique
– fiction
– not focused on sexual or romantic relationships
– not overly-focused on death (enough of the “mom dies” stories)
Thanks!
Observing members:
0
Composing members:
0
42 Answers
Has she read the “Little House” series by Laura Ingalls Wilder? It’s a classic, and I think it’s good for children to get a glimpse into history and see how different, yet the same people are.
Meets all your requests except fiction. The series is biography.
@Coloma – She loved the “Little House” series. In fact, she just recently went back and read them a second time.
Oops, actually auto-biography of her childhood and growing up.
The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner
Faust, in the original German.
Bahnwärter Thiel.
The God Delusion.
The Selfish Gene.
The Greatest Show on Earth.
Unweaving the Rainbow.
The Blind Watchmaker.
What about A Wrinkle in Time? The author, Madeleine L’Engle, wrote other children’s novels that have some of the same characters. I recall enjoying them all.
Then there is the whole Oz series, as well as the Narnia books.
@ragingloli – Fiction. Plus, she’s my daughter. She’s a skeptic. No de-programming required.
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairy Land would be perfect if she likes a good fantasy (not a high fantasy like Lord of the Rings, but a fluffier yet still clever kind.) It is a bildungsroman of sorts with a strong female protagonist (who has an equally strong foil in the villain of the story.) I am actually going to write a paper on it this summer for a conference :)
The Moomin series by Tove Jansson is an absolute favourite of mine and since the series houses seven chapter books, it should keep her busy for a little while. There is not a strong emphasis on gender with this one, although Moominmamma is one of my favourite characters in anything. I consdered writing my thesis on this, but gave up on the idea because I cannot read the original Swedish versions.
If she hasn’t read Coraline yet, then she should. It’s a little dark, but I think that any mature nine-year-old could handle it. The prose is difficult to get through either.
And A Series of Unfortunate Events was an absolute favourite of mine. Violet and Sunny are two wonderful protagonists (as is their brother Klaus.) With a whopping thirteen books and several side-stories, this is a good series for any kid to get into who loves silliness.
Would Carroll’s Alice books be too challenging? I think I struggled a little understanding parts of it when I was thirteen and am not sure how whether I would leave a nine-year-old to it alone, but they are both wonderful books.
I’m reading a book myself that I just stumbled upon (I didn’t go looking for stories about adolescent girls, believe me) and which you should probably have waiting for this girl when she gets just a bit older. Or maybe you’ll think she’s ready for it now.
It’s called Ophelia Speaks Adolescent Girls Speak About Their Search for Self by Sara Shandler, a college student herself when she wrote it, and a high-schooler when she conceived and started the idea.
There’s not much “light” about it (although it is very enlightening to me), and it’s as true as the writers and editors could make it. For that reason it seems very worth the read.
EDIT: I would recommend that you read it, and then decide when it’s a good time to introduce it to her, and let her take it or leave it as she will.
Ann Frank
Amelia Earhart
Other biographies in the juvenile section of the library.
Has she read Watership Down?
How about the series “LemonySnicket’s Seriesl of Unfortunate Events?” My granddaughter loved them when she was that age.
Well, I guess they do have the “mom dies” story line, but the girl in the book is very strong and smart.
When you Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly
My boys loved the Airborn Series by Kenneth Oppel. They don’t have female leads, but are great books. Also, you could go old school and try some Nancy Drew!
Thanks everyone. Great suggestions. I have to check these out.
His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman. One of my favorite fantasy stories and it has an awesome girl protagonist—one of my favorite protagonists, period. (And armored fighting polar bears, and zeppelins, and other cool stuff)
I’ll also second the Wizard of Oz books (esp. if HDM is too mature for her). If you’ve only seen the movie, the books are actually quite delightful in a completely different way.
A lot of people seem to like the Hunger Games but I only made it halfway through the second book before I gave up on it. (I thought the main character was fairly insipid, as well, despite being portrayed as this post-feminist warrior woman by the media).
One of my fiancée’s favorite books is The Historian. Though I should say I didn’t get far before becoming too bored.
Oh! How could I forget: Sophie’s World. I read this in high school and loved it. It also functions as an introduction to philosophy.
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.
The books by E.B. White.
Harry Potter
Judy Blume books
Misty of Chincoteague (and other books in the series)
My friend Jane wrote a book called “Miranda and the Movies” and a sequel called “Miranda Goes to Hollywood”. The can be hard to find but are awesome books with a bright, strong, precocious young female lead character.
Another idea – search Amazon for “young adult.”
Ludwig Wittgenstein, lol.
The “Emily Windsnap” stories by Liz Kessler I know Liz, and read some of the opening chapters of her first book when it was still in the very early stages of writing.
I second the suggestion of A Wrinkly in Time. Also Catseye by Andre Norton.
Okay, nine year old girl books, strong female protagonist.
Island of the Blue Dolphins, by Scott O’Dell. A 15 year old Inuit girl is accidentally left behind when her entire tribe moves to another island. She has to fend for herself for years. I believe it’s based on a true story.
Homecoming… by Cynthia Voight. I want to say 11 year old girl and three young siblings ride with Mom to the mall. She tells them to wait a minute while she runs inside. She never comes back. Dicey uses her inner ingenuity to pose as a boy and take her brothers several states away to their grandmother’s house. First book of The Tillerman Cycle The following books can be read in pretty much any order.
Oops. I meant Wrinkle not wrinkly.
I would not suggest much contemporary young adult fiction for what you are looking for as a lot of it will be focused on relationships and probably sex.
I would heartily suggest The Dark is Rising sequence by Susan Cooper; a fantasy series with a strong girl (and boys) that is one of my all-time favorites bar none. Also, The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S.. Lewis. If she does like “magic” books, she might well enjoy the books of Edward Eager whom I loved as a child.
If she’s into fantasy, she might be interested in the young adult series which ties in to the popular Anne McCaffrey “Dragonriders of Pern” saga.
The books are entitled Dragonsinger, Dragonsong, and Dragon Drums. While they don’t necessarily focus on a female protagonist, they are written by one of the few strong women who have made a big impact in the typically boys’ world of Fantasy/Sci-Fi authors. (A couple other favourites being Marion Zimmer Bradley, Andre Norton, and Ursula K. LeGuin, but I’d give her a couple of years before her first reading of The Mists of Avalon. I was 14 my first time.)
Oh! I was also around nine or ten when I discovered Edgar Allan Poe. No sex in those stories, that’s for sure.
My Daughter loves Lauren Oliver
Before I Fall is one of her favorites and is very thought provoking….... “What if you had only one day to live?”
Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi
Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson-Burnett
The Hobbit by J R R Tolkien
Mistress Masham’s Repose by TH White
The Narnia Books by C S Lewis
Matilda by Roald Dahl
Redwall by Brian Jacques
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
@Dutchess_III I think you mean The Secret Garden; My Secret Garden is a whole ‘nother kettle of fish!
The Mixed up Files of Ms. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg
The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
Edith Nesbit books.
When I was in fourth grade I was also in the advanced reading section. (: I would recommend Rules by Cynthia Lord. It is about a twelve year old girl who has an autistic brother. It was relatively easy to read, and had an interesting story. (:
I also HIGHLY recommend the Tale Of Desperueaux (I think thats how you spell it!) By Kate Dicamillo. Actually almost anything by her. The Magician’s Elephant is also very good. It is appropriate to younger audiences, but it has a male protagonist.
The last one is called May Bird and The Ever After by Jodi Lynn Anderson. This one has a strong female protagonist and compelling storyline.
The Anne of Green Gables series.
Little Women.
Fried Green Tomatoes by Fannie Flagg as well as Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man.
Mandy by Julie Edwards (aka Julie Andrews of Mary Poppins Fame).
The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright.
Ooops @janbb! Thanks for the correction!
My first thought, which Coloma STOLE of course, was the Little House on the Prairie series. So excellent. And The Dragon Riders of Pern series—it’s science fiction, which I don’t normally like, but those books are AWESOME!
I second @Kardamom too (except not sure about Fried Green Tomatoes…cause they barbeque that guy and serve him for lunch! Even though he deserved it…)
I do hope you come back and tell us what you chose and how well she like it/them.
Thanks again everyone! I have to look into these suggestions.
@janbb Isn’t she delightful? The Magic City is one of her best, IMO.
Oh! I book marked that one for my granddaughter @tan253!
Answer this question 
Composing members:
0
