# What are some good books for 7-8 year old girls? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 14, 2006, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708 "2006-06-14T17:27:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/1 "2006-06-14T17:27:00Z")
My fiance wants to encourage her niece to read, but isn’t sure what books girls her age read. Any suggestions? ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/2 "2006-06-14T19:39:42Z")
The Little House on the Prairie books; also Frances Hodgson Burnett classics like A Little Princess and The Secret Garden. ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/3 "2006-06-14T20:19:13Z")
What is the girl interested in? That’s the easiest way to get kids to read - introduce them to books with a subject matter that strikes their fancy. Also know that not all kids like to read. I know it’s a crazy idea to the likes of some Dopers, but my nine-year-old niece would rather do an artsy craft or something like color than read. She’s a good reader, but prefers drawing and coloring as her alone-time hobby. Back to the OP - I second the Little House on the Prairie series. American Girl books are very popular as well. Anne of Green Gables is a classic series, but might be better for a little later on. I’m a big horse nut, so I loved Walter Farley and Marguerite Henry books. (Not all of Henry’s books have happy endings - be forewarned.) I was also a big fan of Jim Kjelgaard’s books about dogs. ---
**Author:** ![Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7cd45c/32.png) [@Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glory)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/4 "2006-06-14T20:19:53Z")
Based on my childhood favorites: 🙂 (I linked my particular childhood favorites). - [No Flying in the House](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0064401308/sr=8-1/qid=1150316142/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-3573447-6535020?%5Fencoding=UTF8) - Oz - The Road to Oz and Ozma of Oz were my favorites - [The Sea Fairies](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1406500321/qid=1150316313/sr=2-3/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_3/103-3573447-6535020?s=books&v=glance&n=283155) - E. Nesbit - 5 Children and It, The Enchanted Castle - [Ballet Shoes](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0679847596/qid=1150316174/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-3573447-6535020?s=books&v=glance&n=283155) (and all the other shoe books by Noel Streatfield, although that’s the best) - Heidi - Black Beauty - Betsy-Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace - Anne of Green Gables - Strawberry Girl - Charlotte’s Web - Harriet the Spy - From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg - The 100 Dresses, The Witch Family - Eleanor Estes - [Witch Family](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/015202610X/qid=1150316220/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-3573447-6535020?s=books&v=glance&n=283155) - Beverly Cleary - all of em, start with Ramona and work your way all the way through to Mouse on a Motorcycle! - The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster - Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh by Robert C. O’Brien - Some Judy Blume might be fun at that age - Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, Blubber - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory/Matilda - The Great Brain - Encyclopedia Brown - The Adventures of Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren - The Littles by John Peterson - The Borrowers by Mary Norton (I had a weird obsession with tiny things) - The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew (and a weird obsession with impoverished English children) - 101 Dalmatians by Dodie Smith - The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin - Bambi by Felix Salten - Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/5 "2006-06-14T20:28:06Z")
The Little House on the Praire books were (and still are) my very favorite. A few others I loved: The Betsy-Tacy series Heidi The All of a Kind Family series The Ramona books by Beverly Cleary The Marguerite Henry books about horses: Misty, Stormy, etc. E.B. White books, especially Charlotte’s Web The Boxcar Children series Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle series Anne of Green Gables, and all of L.M. Montgomery books, but as another poster said, these are probably more pre-teen types of books. Remember them for later, because they are really, really good. Try to avoid some of the more modern series…the American Girl stuff is pretty good, but series like the Babysitters Club are REALLY formulaic and kind of boring, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Gail](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Gail](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gail)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/6 "2006-06-14T20:31:30Z")
How good of a reader is she? Are these books to be read aloud to her or is she going to read them herself? _Peter Pan_, for example is about an 8th grade level read. When my daughter was that age, she loved Ursula K. Leguin’s _Catwings_ series. There are about four books…about cats with wings and they are short, and at 2-3 grade level. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Perro\_Fumando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e9c0ed/32.png) [@El\_Perro\_Fumando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Perro_Fumando)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/7 "2006-06-14T20:34:24Z")
Maybe it’s a year or two off, but I loved “Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing” by Judy Blume SOO much when I was a younger girl. (Especially since my younger sister reminded me of Fudge) ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/8 "2006-06-14T20:34:50Z")
The Nancy Drew mystery series. I _loved_ those at that age. ---
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/9 "2006-06-14T20:43:53Z")
The [Judy Moody](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0763612316/sr=8-1/qid=1150317468/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-0210358-0647956?%5Fencoding=UTF8) books were a big hit with both my daughter and my neice. Manhattan Is Missing James & The Giant Peach, The Big Friendly Giant, Matilda…anything by Roald Dahl. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/10 "2006-06-14T22:04:55Z")
Moved from IMHO to CS. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/11 "2006-06-14T22:12:27Z")
If she’s got a thing for horses, I can’t recommend the [Penny Pollard](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/174093685X/sr=8-13/qid=1150323021/ref=sr_1_13/103-3255860-0363814?%5Fencoding=UTF8) series enough. They’re quite easy to read (but not dumbed down), the protagonist is clever, a bit cruel but also quite sweet and realistic, and the books are full of scrapbook-type photos (‘real’ notes made by Penny, horse trading cards she collects, etc.). ---
**Author:** ![Ghanima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/12 "2006-06-14T22:50:18Z")
**The Black Stallion** and all subsequent sequels. I loved them literally to death: dropped in the bathtub, faded in the sun, food stains on the pages, spines cracked in two, torn covers, dog-eared pages. **Ramona Quimby, Age 8** and sequels would also be good. Also, I have to mention that at age 9 I read **Gone With the Wind** for the first time and loved it, so really your daughter could be ready for just about anything, depending on her maturity level. ---
**Author:** ![Ghanima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/13 "2006-06-14T22:55:19Z")
Uh, make that your fiance’s neice. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2006, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/14 "2006-06-14T23:11:25Z")
Hat Full of Sky, The Wee Free Men, Wintersmith, The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents - **Terry Pratchett** ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2006, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/15 "2006-06-15T00:20:28Z")
Another great horsie book at the high end of her age group is Marguerite Henry’s classic **Misty of Chincoteague**. ---
**Author:** ![Arien](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arien)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2006, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/16 "2006-06-15T04:54:14Z")
I second the recommendation for From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. It’s about a girl and her brother who run away from home to live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I read Little Women by Louisa May Alcott when I was nine and loved it. I should reread that, actually. For fantasy, I recommend the Chronicles of Narnia, and anything by Diana Wynne Jones, especially Howl’s Moving Castle and her Chrestomanci series. I didn’t read those until I was 18, but I would have loved them as a kid if I had ever heard of her. Oh, Harry Potter is pretty good, tooo. Also, the Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2006, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/17 "2006-06-15T05:01:21Z")
You might look over [The Enchanted Forest Chronicles](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0152050523/sr=8-1/qid=1150347480/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-2384006-0679313?%5Fencoding=UTF8) by Patricia C. Wrede to see if they would do. They are good books, but I am not sure if they are at the needed level. If not yet, soon they will be. > [@](#): > > Book Description > > Collected together for the first time are Patricia C. Wrede’s hilarious adventure stories about Cimorene, the princess who refuses to be proper. ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2006, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/18 "2006-06-15T07:06:55Z")
I can’t believe no one has mentioned \*\*A Wrinkel in Time \*\* by Madeline L’Engle. Also, I second the **Chronicles of Na** rnia and **Harry Potter**. ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2006, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/19 "2006-06-15T07:08:01Z")
Er, A **wrinkle** in time that is. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2006, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708/20 "2006-06-15T12:47:49Z")
My two are 8 and 6, one of each. Harry Potter 1-3 are great read aloud books. After 3, the plot becomes a bit complicated for kids and it gets darker. I am not sure about read alone. Magic Tree House books are fantastic and there are about 28 or so of them now, enough to keep any kid interested and a parent broker than a $2 ho. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-books-for-7-8-year-old-girls/360708.md?page=2)