My seven year old is reading at a 4th to 5th grade reading level. Trying to get books for her that are fun but emotionally appropriate.
She liked:
-unicorn academy
-box car children
-the secret zoo (though parts were a bit scary for her, overall she still liked it)
-Junior B Jones
-Ivy and Bean
-Dog Man
-Captain underpants
-Lemonade Wars
She found Impossible Creatures a bit too scary. Read some of the first chapter of The Hatchet and, again, it was too scary.
We read some of the Chronicles of Narnia and some of the Hobbit, but she found both a bit boring/slow and so we didn’t read much.
Edited to add—I think she’d really like a “choose your own adventure” kind of book if there wasn’t one with too many scary endings.
by mrhp3
8 Comments
Hmmm. Have you tried Fablehaven by Brandon Mull?
Or maybe Alcatraz and the evil Librarians by Sanderson?
The How to Train your Dragon series?
A lot of Lloyd Alexander and Zilpha Keatley Snyder are aimed at younger kids but with a good reading level like you want. I read them at her age as an advanced reader.
I really liked the Emily Windsnap series when I was about her age. It’s about a young girl who’s half-mermaid, and I don’t remember anything too scary (although it was 15+ years ago so who knows lol)
Seems like the Magic Treehouse books by Mary Pope Osborne might be a good fit for her if you guys haven’t tried them already! There’s also apparently a spinoff (Merlin Missions) that are a bit more advanced if she likes the Magic Treehouse books but finds them too easy.
Lemony Snicket books
Ralph the Mouse
Ramona Quimby
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
How to Eat Fried Worms
LIttle House in the Big Woods or Farmer Boy
The My Father’s Dragon trilogy by Ruth Stiles Gannett (My Father’s Dragon, Elmer and the Dragon, The Dragons of Blueland)
The four Catwings books by Ursula LeGuin (Catwings, Catwings Return, Wonderful Alexander, Jane on her Own)
The Ralph Mouse books by Beverly Cleary (The Mouse and the Motorcycle, Runaway Ralph, Ralph S. Mouse)
Maybe the old American Girl books when they came in series of 6 for each character
Have you tried the Wings of Fire series? The books are great and they have them in graphic novels, as well, but you miss the narration. The audio books are fantastic.
The Little Prince is great and short.
My then 7-year old (now 9-years old) was similar to yours at that age: testing at a 5th grade reading level and didn’t like things to be too scary in books or tv.
Nevermoor series perhaps