Weekend Reads.

I'm still not entirely sure how many of you will be interested, but I've had enough requests lately that I decided to put together a little Scout Recommends, kid's list for weekend reading. The list started out longer than the circumference of the earth, so I removed a few genres completely, including some beloved fantasy titles.  It's for the best. You would be here until next Tuesday. Instead, these are simply the books I have read or re-read over the last few weeks, and they all seem to meet the same criteria: for or about girls ages 7-11, featuring precocious heroines with emotional depth and their seemingly impossible adventures.  My apologies to the small (or nonexistent) crowd of male readers out there. I will include books for boys next time. I just can't help having a big soft-spot for books and girls of this age. Without boys or romance in the picture, they're free to be exactly who they are, to pursue whatever they want, and there's something magical (not to mention powerful) about that. It makes for a pretty cathartic reading experience as an adult. You can click the links for descriptions of each book, but I will try to keep it short and sweet. So for you, your daughters, or maybe both...

Scout Recommends!, Kids Reading List Number One:  

- The Penderwicks, by Jeanne Birdsall. Top of the list, because if you haven't yet read it, you should immediately do so. (check out the sequel too) It's rare when a modern book about modern girls  reads like a complete classic. Fans of Little Women rejoice.

- Shakespeare's Secret, by Elise Broach. A recent award winner and favorite of mine. Part mystery, part history, part coming of age, and the Shakespeare geek in me kind adores the erudite father for naming his girls Hero and Beatrice, as much as they loathe it.

- Ballet Shoes, (and every other 'Shoes' book) by Noel Streatfield. Once again. Get thee to the library and check these out immediately. Even if you have no interest in dance or theatre or anything to do with performing. There is something here for everyone. Trust me.

- A Little Princess, andThe Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett. Yes, I know you've read them, and maybe they were even your favorites as a child. But when was the last time you re-read them? I promise, they are still amazing.

- Up and Down the Scratchy Mountain, by Laurel Snyder. Okay, so I cheated a little here. This one does take place in a rather magical kingdom complete with castles and countryside. But the storyline is just plausible enough, and charming enough, that it deserves to be included.

- The Willoughby's, by Lois Lowry. Ever wonder why children in old fashioned books are usually orphans? So did the Willoughby children. This one is somewhat macabre (have to love Lowry for that), but still pretty irresistible.

- Ida B, by Katherine Hannigan. Despite the heavy (if not tragic) plot-lines that pervade this book, hope abounds, and Ida B's relationship to the natural world is stunning. Oh how I wish this book had been around when I was a kid...

- Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters, by Lesley M Blume. All of the above books rolled into one. An only child living in New York finds comfort in her friendship with a glamorous, elderly woman, who recounts the incredible story of the wild and once famous Somerset Sisters.

- The Star of Kazan, by Eva Ibbotson. An orphaned servant girl discovers her aristocratic heritage in pre-World War I Vienna. This is Ibbotson at her best, so full of life and longing and history that you may just read it in one sitting. 

- Listening for Lions, by Gloria Whelan. If, like me, you read The Secret Garden over and over again as a child, I highly recommend this little gem. The exposition is somewhat complicated, so just click the link for a synopsis. Makes me want to hop a plane to Africa. Or England. Or both.

There are so many more that I'd love to include, but since I'm trying to stick to what I've read in the last three or four weeks, it will have to end here. You are wondering if I spend ALL of my free-time geeking out over orphans? No, not all. Just most. Yep. That's a way of putting it.

Oh and I almost forgot,  Happy Friday, friends.

All love,

*Andrea

Comments

[Suz @ Alive in Wonderland]

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. As a mother of a seven-year-old girl, thank you. I really want her to grow up to be a precocious heroine!

[Kelly]

Yummy, a booklist! I haven't heard of most of these. Don't you love it when there are whole new worlds to explore? I think I'll ignore my ever-growing to-read pile and check my library for these this weekend.

Now you've flooded my mind with some of my favorites - Kate DiCamillo, Elizabeth George Speare, Robin McKinley . . . I see I'll have to do some reading!

[shari]

so excited to read some of your favorites. i need more cathartic reading experiences in my life. ;) xoxo

[Lisa s]

what a great list... thank you so much for sharing it!

[emily]

i'm so saving this list. and crossing my fingers that you will do a boy one.

[Max Elliot Anderson]

Hi,

I grew up as a reluctant reader. Now I write action-adventures & mysteries, especially for boys 8 and up, that kids hate to put down. My web site is at http://www.maxbooks.9k.com and my Books for Boys blog is at http://booksandboys.blogspot.com I also have a short story in a new book called LAY UPS and LONG SHOTS, published by Darby Creek Publishing. I'm also featured in an article in the 2009 edition of Children's Wrtier Guide.

My other books are all ranked by Accelerated Reader

Max Elliot Anderson

[Laurel Snyder]

Oh, thanks so much! I'm honored to be on a list with the likes of such books. I read Ballet Shoes once a year myself!!!

xoL
http://laurelsnyder.com

[gracia]

The Secret Garden was such a favourite of mine as a child, and I am sorry to say that I have not reread it since school days. I shall set to the task of rediscovering it at once.

Thanks for the superb list.
g

[Rachel]

I can't wait to read all of these! I'm so happy that there are still those who haven't lost their younger side.

[Eunice]

what a wonderful list. i shall take it with me to the library (on a bookstashbusting diet).

i would also add l.m. montgomery's anne of green gables.

[Marcella]

Hmmm... I like your blog because it is pretty and has such clean lines. Also the information is very informative. Also because I haven't been able to stalk you in person lately and I am glad that the internet (the ultimate stalking tool) allows me to do so in the comfort and privacy of my own home.

[andrea (scout.)]

thanks so much everyone for your enthusiasm! and yes, i promise, a list for boys is in the works.

(and laurel, thanks for stopping by and for the delightful read!)

[Chelsea]

THANK YOU!! I am very excited to check out these reads. I love children's literature and it is quite refreshing to read after extracting one's nose from a chemistry textbook. Thank you again!

[meg]

Ah, the shoes books were my favorites as a kid. Those, and Betsy-Tacy books. I still find myself drifting to Ballet Shoes every winter when I want a cozy read.

[sharilyn]

Thank-you for this amazing list! i have been collecting books for my daughter since before she was born, but my little dark secret is that they're kind of really for me! There's just something about cuddling up with a flashlight and reading "My Side of the Mountain" by Jean George for the hundredth time which is amazingly cozy to me. and then falling asleep pretending that I am asleep in my own hollow tree...