Madeleine L’Engle – The Time Quintet: A Wrinkle in Time A Wind in the Door Many Waters A Swiftly Tilting Planet An Acceptable Time
Edith Nesbit – The Psammead series: Five Children and It The Phoenix and the Carpet The Story of the Amulet
L. M. Boston – The Green Knowe series: The Children of Green Knowe The Treasure of Green Knowe The River at Green Knowe A Stranger at Green Knowe An Enemy at Green Knowe The Stones of Green Knowe
And just to get it over with, since she shouldn’t miss these just because she’s learned to read so fast:
Beatrix Potter – The 23 Tales: The Tale of Peter Rabbit The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin The Tailor of Gloucester The Tale of Benjamin Bunny The Tale of Two Bad Mice The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-Pan The Tale of Mr. Jeremy Fisher The Story of a Fierce Bad Rabbit The Story of Miss Moppet The Tale of Tom Kitten The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck The Tale of Samuel Whiskers or, The Roly-Poly Pudding The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies The Tale of Ginger and Pickles The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse The Tale of Timmy Tiptoes The Tale of Mr. Tod The Tale of Pigling Bland Appley-Dapply’s Nursery Rhymes The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse Cecily Parsley’s Nursery Rhymes The Tale of Little Pig Robinson
Since she was born I’ve been reading my infant daughter some classic British children’s literature (not that she understands it, just reading it to her for the sake of reading something) and have been pretty impressed at the level of sophistication 20th century Brits expected from their children. Some of them are pretty expansive and what I would think would be difficult reads for kids, but maybe that’s the point. Even the Peter Pan books are probably a bit difficult for the youngest readers. The Wind in the Willows is a fantastic read, mostly idyllic with some fear and some conflict readily overcome by the main characters (although it’s pretty hard to dial it back if Green Eggs and Ham is too confrontational). Even with an advanced child reader I’d probably read it along with them to help them with some of the vocabulary. As a more simple read, anything from A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh series. Adventurous, but no danger too scary for a small child’s mind to overcome, yet still challenging enough.
Thanks you so much for all the great recommendations! (and the specific warnings too - very helpful!)
And yes, she is well within normal six-year-old range emotionally, it’s just that most of the books at her reading level are written for older/tougher kids. And she’s not upset for a week over “Green Eggs and Ham” but she also doesn’t enjoy it, and that’s what we’re trying to achieve here, challenge + enjoyment.
It also doesn’t help that the logistics of chapter books sometimes mean that bedtime comes before the resolution of the conflict.
Try the “Arthur Trilogy” of Kevin Crossley-Holland, beginning with The Seeing Stone. Great medieval detail (with helpful word list at the back to explain the meaning of terms like “bowyer” and “buckler” and “boggart”—not in the Harry Potter sense, but in its original meaning of “hairy goblin”), and very short chapters, just a page or two.
The tone is fairly quiet and meditative, although important and sometimes unsettling things do happen to the narrator. Fascinating books, and score very high on the “enjoyable for adults as well as kids” scale.
I don’t know… kindergarten wasn’t all sunshine, roses and sensitivity.
When I was in Kindergarten way back in 1978, I punched another kid in the face for suggesting that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny were really our parents, and weren’t real. It seemed like there were a few other fistfights, although that kind of thing didn’t really ramp up until 2nd or 3rd grade.
I also apparently pointed out loudly to the teacher (and everyone within earshot) that another student had wet themselves.
When I was in 1st grade I was in a detention room for something or other with a bunch of other kids, and no adult supervision. One kid kept turning the light off and I got mad and stabbed him in the stomach with the tip of a sharpened pencil.
You might have some trouble finding them, though lots on eBay, but the Young Indiana Jones series might work. There’s not a whole lot of fighting, mostly young Indy meeting historical people. There’s a lot of mystery, adventure and the like but written of younger children. I don’t remember any deaths in any of the books. I gave a bunch to an 8/9 year old girl, though I don’t know how well she liked them, though I’ll ask when I see her mother.
They teach a lot of history too, there’s usually a chapter in the back of the book that tells about the time period and any cultures that Indy lives in. I enjoyed the books as an adult when I first got them all. I have a set I plan on letting my daughters read when they get to be a good age for it.
You will want to avoid the young Indy books that take place as a teenager as there is death and killing in many of them. He fights in WWI and along with Pancho Villa, but those are easy enough to know to avoid.
Here’s a list of the books. I see lots of 5-6+ for $10-15 bucks.
The Story Girl/Golden Road set is falling down hilarious. One concern, though, is that L. M. Montgomery’s works are largely at a staggeringly high reading level. This may be exacerbated by the use of now-archaic vocabulary, but her writing is dense, poetic, full of allusions to other works, and has stunning poetic nature passages a la Tolkien. I think you might need to be a bit older to fully appreciate that.
In terms of direct content “concerns”, these two books (The Story Girl and The Golden Road) discuss young love with an particular emphasis on kissing <3. Judy Blume’s Forever this isn’t, but I don’t think kindergarteners can really understand what passionate romantic kissing is all about and it’s likely to confuse her. Also, there is a sub-plot involving a date-setting doomsday preacher. If she remembers Harold Camping’s embarassment and the Mayan Calendar flop, it’s going to be familiar. Also, it is mentioned/alluded to near the end that
Cecily died shortly after the events in the last chapter.
Anne, of course, discusses death quite a bit and also alludes to child abuse, but not graphically.
I haven’t read these so I don’t know if they’re any good or not (nor am I sure what age they’re aimed at), but what about the “American Girl” series? They have different young girl protagonists set in all sorts of different time periods. If you go with these, though, just be sure to keep her away from the huge merchandising machine (dolls, furniture, clothes, etc.–and all expensive!) that goes with the books.
I have been obsessed with the Little House series since I was five years old. The family does have a very hard life, but each story has a happy ending. There is a very sad animal death and plenty of matter-of-fact hunting and slaughtering of animals, but I can’t think of any person who dies in the series. The harshness of their life really went over my head at a young age. I saw their life more as an exciting adventure. I was surprised when I reread them in my twenties and realized just how hard the family had it. The first book, Little House in the Big Woods, is not a troubling read and would be a good way to test the waters. The books grow in complexity and reading level as Laura grows up.
I will second the recommendations for the Ramona books by Beverly Cleary and the All of a Kind Family books.
Your daughter might also like:
Heidi by Johanna Spyri
Henry Huggins, Socks, Emily’s Runaway Imagintion, and Ribsy by Beverly Cleary
The Fudge books by Judy Blume
The Moffat family books by Eleanor Estes
Ginger Pye and Pinky Pye by Elenor Estes
The Shoes books by Noel Streatfeild
The Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace
The Goneaway Lake and Melendy books by Elizabeth Enright
The Bobbsey Twin and Nancy Drew series
