Forgotten Classics

[beatricequimby]

Any recommendations for an 8 year old girl? I am a bit of a children's book hoarder so we have all the obvious ones - Katy books, E Nesbits, Frances Hodgson Burnetts, Little Women, Noel Streatfeilds etc.

Recently discovered Nancy and Plum by Betty MacDonald which I had never heard of. It's lovely and perfect for an 8 year old.

So has anyone got any forgotten classic recommendations? The

Thanks SDT! I think I read all of those.

But I went back and re-read Little Women recently, and my goodness it's dreadful! Totally destroyed all my lovely memories of it. Definitely a mistake,

No mention of Nurse Matilda yet?
Fell Farm books by Marjorie Lloyd
Lone Pine series - Malcolm Saville (maybe for slightly older children?)

This thread's reminded me of several books to be added to my dd's stash for when she can actually read...

I can't believe nobody's mentioned Chalet School yet! The rare ones are expensive, but you can get second hand copies of the popular ones going cheap.

I think all my other favourites have already been suggested - Joan Aiken, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Diana Wynne Jones, E Nesbit, Noel Streatfield...

And I loved A Traveller in Time! DD has it on her pile of books to read, but hasn't got to it yet (it could be there a while, it's quite a big pile!).

Has anyone mentioned the Anne of Green Gables books yet? There's a big series of them, taking Anne through arriving on Prince Edward Island, growing up, going to college, becoming a teacher, marrying, having children, and then there is at least one about one of her children, I think.

I see someone has mentioned The Swish of the Curtain - that was a TV series when I was a teenager.

I should have thought of The Chalet School series - I have the full set on my shelves, and reread them at least once a year (though I prefer the later books, when Jo is grown up and married, and especially after the school moves back to the Oberland. As a child, being bullied at school, I yearned to go to the Chalet School.

I also read the Malcolm Saville Lone Pine series as a teenager - but they might be a bit dated for today's children.

When she's a bit older, I heartily recommend the Dragons of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey - but they do have some rather adult passages in for a pre-teen!

I read Swallows and Amazons as a child, along with lots of other books. I always think it is overrated.

Paul Gallico's 'Jennie'.

An Irish classic (although only published in 1990!) is Under the Hawthorn Tree by Marita Conlon-McKenna. It's set in the time of the Irish Famine and is a wonderful story.

Another one is Run With the Wind by Tom McCaughren - it's the first in a series of books about foxes. They are really wonderful. I loved them when I was about your DD's age.

Just thought I'd throw in a couple of more unusual ideas!

We're still at the Alfie stage in our house and I'm loving it. I read DD "Alfie gets in First" and she tells me the side story in the pictures, just like I did with my mum. I loved them when I was little but only now do I really really appreciate them.

So many of these... Rumer Godden, Beverly Nichols, the Carbonel books.

Also:
Marianne Dreams
A Little Silver Trumpet
In a Blue Velvet Dress

And the Lorna Hill "Sadlers Wells" series. I re-read them endlessly...

Lots of these I loved as a child, and am trying to encourage my daughters to follow suit.

However, I'm finding it more difficult to find good, 'wholesome' reading for my son, as a lot of this list (understandably) seems to be a bit girl-centric - green gables, l.m.montgomery, streatfield - the main characters are generally girls.

Can anyone recommend some good books with strong male characters? Apart from Willard Price (and Harry Potter which he's already read to death), I'm struggling!

I still re-read my Noel Streatfeild and Lorna Hill 'Wells' books. I think I've now got the complete set of the latter (15 in total)

How about the Alex Rider books, CSLewis? Or the junior James Bond books written by the guy from the Fast Show - Charlie someone (can't remember his surname)

CSLewis - the "Chronicles of Ancient Darkness" are fantastic; I'd definitely recommend them to your son! They're written by Michelle Paver. DS1 loved them, and DS2 is just starting them now.

Thank you both, I'll look those up.

The wind in the willows