[amcal]

<p>My girls (8&9) still love to be read to.  I have a bunch of books that I've been reading to them over the years but, I think we're ready for something more challenging, interesting and age appropriate. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Any recommendations for read aloud books for older kids?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And while we're at it, what are your 9 year olds reading?  My DD pretty much only reads Nancy Drew these days but, she wants to branch out. </p>

 

[Daffodil]

<p>If they haven't read or heard the Harry Potter books yet, those would be a great choice.  The Narnia books, too. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Here are some others my 8 1/2 year old has enjoyed as read-alouds in the past year:</p>
<p>The Silver Crown - Robert C. O'Brien</p>
<p>The Wind Boy - Ethel Cook Eliot</p>
<p>The Egypt Game - Zilpha Keatley Snyder</p>
<p>Ginger Pye - Eleanor Estes</p>
<p>the Silverwing series - Kenneth Oppel</p>
<p>The Mysterious Benedict Society series - Trenton Lee Stewart</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And some I read when she was younger that would also be great (probably even better) for 8-9 year olds:</p>
<p>the May Bird series - Jodi Lynn Anderson</p>
<p>Ronia the Robber's Daughter - Astrid Lindgren</p>
<p>Coraline - Neil Gaiman</p>
<p>the Inkheart series - Cornelia Funke</p>
<p>The Jungle Book</p>
<p>A Little Princess</p>
<p>The Secret Garden</p>
<p> </p>
<p>My DD doesn't read all that well yet, but she absolutely loved the Bone graphic novels when I read them to her this past year, and I think she's almost at the point where she could read them herself.  Those would be a great for a lot of 9 year olds.  (I didn't suggest them as read-alouds, because I think it's kind of annoying to read comics/graphic novels aloud.)</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>

 

[USAmma]

<p>I would recommend books by Shannon Hale starting with The Goose Girl. There are three books in this collection that go together. </p>
<p> </p>
<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325&tag=motheringhud-20&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FGoose-Girl-Books-Bayern%2Fdp%2F1582349908" rel="norewrite" target="_blank">http://www.amazon.com/Goose-Girl-Books-Bayern/dp/1582349908</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>I am lazy and tired at night, so my girls enjoy books on CD from the library. I have found some neat ones. Favorites have been Colibri by Ann Cameron, Sahara Special by Esma Raji Codell, A Step From Heaven (can't remember author), Stone Fox (can't remember author), and The Year of the Dog by Grace Lin, </p>

 

[Vancouver Mommy]

<p>The Anne of Green Gables series is good, as are the Little House books. When my kids are older I also plan to read them CS Lewis. Afraid I don't have any contemporary recommendations.</p>

 

[Smokering]

<p>Narnia? The Phantom Tollbooth? Noel Streatfeild? Anastasia Krupnik, and other Lois Lowries?</p>

 

[ollyoxenfree]

<p> </p>
<p>Hilary McKay - the Casson family series (<em>Saffy's Angel, Indigo's Star, Permanent Ros</em>e etc.) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Garth Nix - The Keys to the Kingdom series (<em>Mister Monday</em>, etc.) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Phyllis Reynolds Naylor - the Alice prequels (<em>Starting with Alice</em> etc.), and the earlier Alice books (once she hits middle school, she starts incorporating "mature" themes and includes some sex ed., which you may or may not want to deal with) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Jeanne Birdsall - <em>The Penderwicks</em> (there are 2 or 3 books now)</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>Airborn, Skybreaker and Starclimber</em> by Ken Oppel</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>

 

[kofduke]

<p>My 8-YO DS still prefers to be read picture books when we read together.  He reads chapter books on his own.  We have recently read a lot of Caldecott books.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>

 

[Owen'nZoe]

<p>Have you read her any of the Marguerite Henry books? Or Trixie Belden? I also might try Madeline L'Engle.</p>

 

[raksmama]

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="font-family:Calibri;"> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-size:16px;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><span> </span>Some of DS’s <span> </span>favourites <span> </span><span> </span>were:</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-size:16px;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><span> </span>The Fudge series by Judy Blume</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-size:16px;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">The Kids of the Polk Street School series by Patricia really Giff</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-size:16px;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">The Hank Zipzer series by Henry Winkler</span></span></p>
<p> </p>

 

[A&A]

<p><span style="text-decoration:underline;">The Magician's Elephant</span> is a FABULOUS book for reading out loud. </p>

 

[ollyoxenfree]

<p> </p>
<p>Thought of another - <em>The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate </em>by Jaqueline Kelly. It might be a bit of a stretch for the younger girl. </p>

 

[erikandgregsmom]

<p>The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate Di Camillo. Don't be put off by it being about a toy rabbit - it is a fascinating, beautiful and moving story. REad it to my boys when they were 9 and 6 - we all loved it!</p>

 

[Tonia Starr]

<p>I get bored reading picture books. So, we have plenty of thse on shelves for them t read themselves and sometimes we will read one as a family from the public library. But I have been reading chapter books for years, no matter the age. Everyone from my two yr old to my 10 yr old sits and listens. We began with the good ol classics like Charlottes web, Cricket In Times Square, Hiedi, secret Garden, Wind In The Willows, etc... Then read through the Nanrnia series and the Hobbit series. We are currnetly reading the BFG by Roald Dahl (the guy he wrote Charlie and the Chocolate factory...highly rec. all his books1) <3 they enjoy the Harry Potter books too. Its a lovely practice, reading as a family. PPl are often shocked I can get all 5 to sit still, sometimes for an hour or more. But its become second nature to them. OH! The Little Prince. My FAVORITE! Im just sad I didnt find this treasure of a book til I was 24.</p>

 

[Tonia Starr]

<p>My other fav I saw above just now. The Phantom tollbooth. Twas my fav as a child. Im on a hunt for that one for our next family read! Thanks for the reminder Smokering!</p>

 

[zebra15]

<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325&tag=motheringhud-20&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FSecret-Zoo-Bryan-Chick%2Fdp%2FB004F9OV6G%2Fref%3Dntt_at_ep_dpt_1" rel="norewrite" target="_blank">http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Zoo-Bryan-Chick/dp/B004F9OV6G/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_1</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Secret Zoo- Bryan Chick  I think there is a 2nd one as well.</p>

 

[4midablemama]

<p>We're still mostly into picture books at my house-my kids are three and five-but we've read the first 7 or 8 books in the "Magic Treehouse" series to my daughter and she really enjoys them. I'm thinking about trying something like "The Neverending Story" or one of the Roald Dahl books next. </p>

 

[kangamitroo]

<p>Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A Cricket in Times Square by George Selden</p>
<p> </p>
<p>the Bunnicula books by James Howe (these are hilarious, if a wee bit spooky at times)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli—one of my favorite books ever</p>
<p> </p>
<p>books by Sharon Creech</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Little House on the Prairie series (i like reading these aloud so i have a chance to explain parts that could be hard to process independently, such as the implications of moving west onto Native American land, references to church etc.)</p>

 

[LynnS6]

<p>Our kids are 7 and 10 and we still read every night. I suspect we'll be doing this for a while. It's a great way to cuddle and be together before bedtime. My sister and BIL read to their kids through high school.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The World According to Humphrey + 5 follow-up books -- really cute books about a classroom hamster and how he learns about humans (and how humans learn from him).</p>
<p>Ivy and Bean series.</p>
<p>Anything by Beverly Cleary -- Ramona the Pest is a good one to start with (I like all the Ramona books); The Mouse and the Motorcycle + 2 follow up books are great too</p>
<p>Clementine + a couple of follow up books</p>
<p>Besty and Tacy, Betsy, Tacy & Tib + 1 or 2 of the follow up books</p>
<p>11 Birthdays</p>
<p>Charlotte's Web</p>
<p>Mr. Popper's Penguins (NOTHING like the movie -- a much better story).</p>
<p>My daughter likes the American Girl series (they're decent history, despite the doll tie in)</p>
<p>Dear America Diaries -- also historical, but a bit higher level</p>
<p>Charlie and the Chocolate Factory</p>
<p>Masterpiece by Elise Broach</p>
<p>Small Steps: the year I got polio (non fiction; my son read it for his Battle of the Books and really liked it)</p>
<p>The City of Ember?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Are they ready for Harry Potter? We started that with ds when he was just barely 10, and dd (7) glommed onto them and read them all too.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Books my kids liked but I was so-so about reading:</p>
<p>Katie Kazoo series</p>
<p>Boxcar Children are OK too -- that's all ds read in 3rd grade so I got really tired of them (they're quite predictable, but decent little mysteries)</p>
<p>Animal Ark</p>
<p>A to Z mysteries</p>
<p>Magic Treehouse series (easy reads, good first step into chapter books, they'll learn some history, but very predictable)</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>

 

[Daffodil]

<p>I just read <em>Swallows and Amazons</em> to my kids (8 1/2 and 5 1/2) and it was a big hit.</p>

 

[gypsymama2008]

<p>I would second a lot of these books.  When I was 9 my mom read me <em>Little Women</em> and I loved it.  I also loved The Indian in the Cupboard series at that age.</p>