Gift Book Ideas for Eight-Year-Old?

[Thalia the Muse]

I think I ask this question every year! I like to give my daughter a few books for Christmas, and it's so helpful to pick your collective brains!

She's in third grade, and she LOVES to read. Fiction, she especially likes fantasy and humor. She's a very proficient reader and can handle a pretty high reading level, but she doesn't like anything too sad or scary.

Recently she has enjoyed:

Ellen Tebbits, and all the Henry Huggins and Ramona Quimby books
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (as a read-aloud)
The Saturdays (ditto)
A Great Classics Illustrated abridged/rewritten version of Huck Finn. I can't stand abridged books, but she loved it
We're just getting into The Egypt Game
The Worst Witch series
Diary a Wimpy Kid series
The Hobbit

She has tried and not really liked the Harry Potter books.

All recommendations welcome!

[Drummer's Wife]

I was going to recommend Diary of a Wimpy Kid as they are what my 8 yo DD is into now... but yours has already read them.

Does she have Matilda? or The Fudge books by Judy Blume?

[Thalia the Muse]

She loved Matilda -- and a ton of other Roald Dahl. The Fudge books are a good idea!

[Jenifer76]

Has she read this series: Akiko

My DS loves them and the author is super nice (we met him recently). He does manga but these are chapter books.

[ASusan]

The Poppy series, by Avi.

[mammastar2]

I'd suggest:

- The Borrowers and its sequels by Mary Norton

- Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers

- Nanny McPhee by Christina someone or other

- The Saturdays - I forget the author, it might be Eleanor Estes

[listipton]

Has she tried anything written by Blue Balliet?
Chasing Vermeer
The Wright 3
The Calder Game
http://www.scholastic.com/blueballie...ingvermeer.htm

[Thalia the Muse]

Oh, are the Blue Balliet not aimed a little old for an eight-year-old? I had just assumed they were, but I'll take a look at them, thanks!

[A&A]

The Magician's Elephant

[Lindsay1234]

Rumblewicks Diary

Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew

[ollyoxenfree]

Hilary McKay's Casson Family series, starting with Saffy's Angel. They are funny books about an unconventional artsy family in England. The parents aren't exactly AP-style (too hands-off and uninvolved), but they are loving and warm, and the children are realistic and humourous.

Nim's Island by Wendy Orr

Frindle by Andrew Clements

Hoot or Flush or Scat by Carl Hiasson

Some of these are pre-teen reading level (about age 10) but if she's a proficient reader, she probably won't have trouble with them.

[Thalia the Muse]

I ended up with The Neddiad (because she really enjoyed the sequel, The Iggyssey), The Magician's Elephant, and Wee Free Men.

Now she's reading and enjoying the first Septimus Heap book, so I wish I'd gotten the next one of those, too.

[matthia]

I have worked at bookstores for the last four years or so and I LOVE children's lit. My fav recommendation of late is "Sister's Grimm" series. The protagonists are an 11 year old and a 7 year old (i'm pretty sure) so they should be really relatable for your DD. Also if she's read many fairy tales, she will probably enjoy the mash-up. I think they are at a level that should be close to an average 8yo's reading level, maybe a bit higher, but they also make GREAT read-aloud books.

(the books take place in modern America in a small town where all the fairy tale characters came after Europe got too poplulated (or something like that) and the girls come to live with their grandmother and solve all sorts of mysterious goings on. Very positive female characters. The grandmother lives with the Big Bad Wolf, the cops in town are the Three Little Pigs, the mayor is Prince Charming, the school teacher is Sleeping Beauty, etc, etc...)

[rumi]

Pippi Longstocking
Doctor Dolittle
both come in nice illustrated editions.
and what about Alice in Wonderland?

and for newer books:
Lucy Rose books by Katy Kelly
Alice books by Tim Kennemore

[Thalia the Muse]

Thank you!

We've read Alice and Pippi. She tried a couple of Sisters Grimm because one of her friends was into them, but she didn't like them that much (also doesn't always like that friend, which might have soured her on the books ...)

I've never heard of Lucy Rose! I'll take a look at those.

[journeymom]

Wee Free Men: did she read the Bromeliad Trilogy? Truckers, Diggers and Wings. Wonderful!

[Think of Winter]

George Selden books (Harry Cat's Pet Puppy, The Cricket in Times Square, etc.)
The Secret Garden
Trumpet of the Swan
The Black Stallion series
For older kids, maybe Grant and Reed
From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
The Phantom Tollbooth
Island of the Blue Dolphin (or anything by Scott O'Dell)
A Wrinkle in Time
Bridge to Terabithia
Chronicles of Narnia
The Jungle Book
The Yearling (sad, but good)
Old Yeller (same)

Some of these might be for older children, but they're no more mature/advanced than Harry Potter.