# Looking for non-depressing book for 6th graders **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 23, 2015, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954 "2015-07-23T14:14:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/21 "2015-07-23T18:12:10Z")
6th grade = 11/12 years old, right? So how about sections of one of the Real Classics, _The Odyssey_? In translation, of course! šŸ˜ƒ Or an age-appropriate extract from the _Thousand and One Nights_? ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/22 "2015-07-23T18:39:15Z")
> [@The\_Butterfly\_s\_Ghost](#): > > The Tiffany Aching books by Terry Pratchett. The first in the series is ā€œ[The Wee Free Men](http://www.amazon.com/The-Wee-Free-Tiffany-Aching/dp/0060012382)ā€. And another Discworld YA, [_The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents._](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Amazing_Maurice_and_his_Educated_Rodents) ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/23 "2015-07-23T18:41:54Z")
I forgot about A Wrinkle in Time! Definitely put that one on the list ---
**Author:** ![JcWoman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jcwoman/32/2889_2.png) [@JcWoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JcWoman)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/24 "2015-07-23T18:56:30Z")
Might be too ā€œyoungā€ for your class, but I would vote for The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle. I adored Watership Down but there were parts of it that I thought were very sad. Also, itā€™s hard to find in print sometimes, but Sheri Tepperā€™s True Game series. Juvenile fiction before she got kind of heavy handed in the feminist messages. Itā€™s extremely good - seems like only a fun romp until you get to the end and realize itā€™s a moral tale. ---
**Author:** ![Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soul_brother_number_two/32/3515_2.png) [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soul_Brother_Number_Two)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/25 "2015-07-23T19:00:02Z")
Enough material here with the runners-up for the rest of your teaching career. [http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal#20s](http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal#20s) ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/26 "2015-07-23T23:03:49Z")
> [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](#): > > Enough material here with the runners-up for the rest of your teaching career. > > [John Newbery Medal | Association for Library Service to Children](http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal#20s) Word of caution: these are selected by adults. Some kids like, some they find deadly boring. Consult your school" librarian/media specialist. P-man, MLS ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/27 "2015-07-23T23:29:36Z")
> [@P-man](#): > > Word of caution: these are selected by adults. Some kids like, some they find deadly boring. For the love of god, please donā€™t make any kids read ā€œI, Juan de Parejaā€! ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/28 "2015-07-24T00:46:29Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > For the love of god, please donā€™t make any kids read ā€œI, Juan de Parejaā€! I have never in my 25 years as a librarian seen anyone check that book out. When I built a school library from scratch 5 years ago I did not include it in the opening day collection. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/29 "2015-07-24T01:27:15Z")
[The Golden Goblet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Golden_Goblet) always went over well with my momā€™s sixth graders. I read it as an adult, and quite enjoyed it. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/30 "2015-07-24T01:41:37Z")
L. M. Boston ā€“ 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_ Daniel Pinkwater ā€“ The Snarkout Boys books _The Snarkout Boys and the Avocado of Death_ _The Snarkout Boys and the Baconsburg Horror_ Eoin Colfer ā€“ The Artemis Fowl series _Artemis Fowl_ _Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident_ _Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code_ _Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception_ _Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony_ _Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox_ _Artemis Fowl: The Atlantic Complex_ _Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian_ Lewis Carroll ā€“ The Alice books _Aliceā€™s Adventures in Wonderland_ _Through the Looking Glass_ ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/31 "2015-07-24T02:15:29Z")
When I was that age, I was pretty much mainlining Diana Wynne Jones. A lot of times, fantasy doesnā€™t get no respect, because itā€™s _fantasy_, but a lot of her books grapple with good solid pre-teen issues - dealing with stepfamilies (Ogre Downstairs), bullying (Dogsbody, Eight days of Luke) growing into responsibility (Power of Three) and the difference between first impressions and actual reality (nearly all of them) Margaret Mahy is a wonderful New Zealand kids/YA writer who wrote both excellent fantasy [fantasy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Changeover) and [mainstream](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Catalogue_of_the_Universe) (but, warning, does include sexual issues sometimes, so not all appropriate for grade 6ā€™s) ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/32 "2015-07-24T04:14:15Z")
> [@Shawn1767](#): > > Thanks for the suggestions so far. I mean something significant, but not necessarily involving intense tragedy. We are doing ā€œThe Giverā€ for our first unit, but, holy cow, every other book weā€™ve been brainstorming involves some horrible incident. I was just wondering that if there are any ā€œlegitimateā€ literature books for young adults that were lighthearted. Maybe to ā€˜cleanse the palateā€™ for these kids once in a while after a steady diet of the Holocaust or friends dying or being oppressedā€¦ I think a lot of folks are missing the ā€œsomething significantā€ part. Artemis Fowl is a lot of fun, but thatā€™s some serious fluff. Itā€™d be hard to have a good discussion about character re: that book, for example. Fantasy, though, has richer veins to mine. What about **A Wizard of Earthsea**? Or the winners of [The Andre Norton Award](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andre_Norton_Award) given out to excellent YA SF/F? (From that list, I totally recommend \*\*The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland In A Ship of Her Own Making). ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/33 "2015-07-24T05:26:08Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Really? Island of the Blue Dolphins was, hands down, one of my favorite books as a kid. Iā€™m not inspirational was what it was going for, but a wonderful look at a life so completely different from my own. Sheā€™s stuck all alone on an island after her little brother is torn apart by wild dogs. And it just keeps getting worse except for this weird and ultimately depressing relationship she forms with one of those dogs. Not a life Iā€™d envy I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/34 "2015-07-24T09:44:53Z")
Since somebody mentioned Diana Wynne Jones, let me recommend these of her books: Diane Wynne Jones ā€“ The Chronicles of Chrestomanci _Charmed Life_ _The Magicians of Caprona_ _Witch Week_ _The Lives of Christopher Chant_ _Mixed Magics_ _Conradā€™s Fate_ _The Pinhoe Egg_ Diana Wynne Jones ā€“ The Castle series _Howlā€™s Moving Castle_ _Castle in the Air_ _House of Many Ways_ and since somebody mentioned _The Wizard of Earthsea_, let me mention the whole series: Ursula K. Le Guin ā€“ The Earthsea books _A Wizard of Earthsea_ _The Tombs of Atuan_ _The Farthest Shore_ _Tehanu_ _Tales from Earthsea_ _The Other Wind_ and then of course The Giver is part of a series: Lois Lowry ā€“ The Giver Quartet _The Giver_ _Gathering Blue_ _Messenger_ _Son_ In the Andre Norton Award link given by the Left Hand of Dorkness, it mentions Ysabeau S. Wilce, so Iā€™ll mention her Flora series: Ysabeau S. Wilce ā€“ The Flora Fyrdraaca/Califa books _Flora Segunda_ _Floraā€™s Dare_ _Floraā€™s Fury_ _Prophecies, Libels and Dreams_ Those are really for someone older than sixth grade though, and the last of those books is definitely for adults. ---
**Author:** ![oft\_wears\_hats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7993a0/32.png) [@oft\_wears\_hats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oft_wears_hats)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/35 "2015-07-24T12:25:33Z")
Someone correct me if Iā€™m wrong (I only listened to the audiobook version), but _The Graveyard Book_ by Neil Gaiman might be appropriate for a sixth grader. Some people die and most of the cast are ghosts, but I donā€™t recall it being particularly depressing or adult in nature. ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/36 "2015-07-24T12:38:35Z")
> [@oft\_wears\_hats](#): > > Someone correct me if Iā€™m wrong (I only listened to the audiobook version), but _The Graveyard Book_ by Neil Gaiman might be appropriate for a sixth grader. Some people die and most of the cast are ghosts, but I donā€™t recall it being particularly depressing or adult in nature. Graveyard Book is excellent, and certainly appropriate for 6th grade. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/37 "2015-07-24T12:46:17Z")
Great Brain ---
**Author:** ![Ksnook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ce7236/32.png) [@Ksnook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ksnook)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/38 "2015-07-24T12:55:44Z")
What about the L.M.Montgomery ā€œAnne of Green Gablesā€ series? ---
**Author:** ![lalaith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@lalaith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lalaith)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/39 "2015-07-24T15:46:40Z")
American classicā€¦ The Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. The first one would be too young for 6th graders, but some of the later books are perfect. You get literature and American history in one. It is the life that LIW actually lived. And the kids should understand our pioneer origins and what life was like on the frontier in the second half of the 19th century. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954/40 "2015-07-24T16:19:55Z")
We read the first two Anne of Green Gables books in 6th grade. Sad things happen in them, but the books, overall, are not sad. The only other thing I remember reading _for school_ was ā€œBlack Beauty.ā€ IIRC, itā€™s about horrible things happening to a horse. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-non-depressing-book-for-6th-graders/725954.md?page=3)