'Happy' books for clever 8 year old girl

[Domino1]

My DD has just turned 8, loves to read & is bright but is being put off by seemingly appropriate books that become too scary e.g. Sisters Grimm book 2 & Madame Pamplemousse & the Sweet Shop. She has done & now bored by Enid B, has read Roald Dahl & adored Land of Stories by Chris Colfer. She said tonight she wants happy & non-scary books but pls no more a Rainbow Fairies(!) Any help pls?

The Armourer's House by Rosemary Sutcliff was a favourite of mine at that age.

Cynthia Harnett books are good too (if still in print!) if she likes historical fiction- they are very good on the history but also the children in them are recognisably 'real' children.

Oh and if she's interested in dolls houses at all, Rumer Godden's doll books are lovely. Little Plum I think is particularly good as the children in it do row & fall out but all gets resolved happily in the end in a very satisfying way.

She sounds exactly like my dd at that age. She only dared read harry potter last year age 12!
At 8 her favourite book was swallows and amazons. She read it over and over and read the whole series.

She also enjoyed secret garden, the railway children and similar classics.

jacqueline wilson and cathy cassidy were also popular.

she was still very much into malory towers at that age although she was growing out of famous five.

Once into a book she's in for the long haul but DD gets put off very quickly & so haven't had much joy with classics, which is a shame. Think I will read those with her to kick start. Have just bought:

The Little Girl with the Tiny Doll, (Edward Ardizzone)
Earwig & the Witch (younger aimed one one from Diane Wynne-Jones
Carbonel (Barbara Sleigh)
Phantom Tollbooth (Norton Juster)
Pls shout up if I'm going into anything scary!

Yes my DD was the same. Some books eg Swallows and Amazons she'd be away after a couple of chapters, but others eg When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit I'd read almost all of it and she'd just read to herself the last quarter or so.

Don't know any of the ones you listed, but I think my DD would have rejected anything with the word Phantom in it because it might have scary ghosts! Laughable as she's now obsessed with The Hunger Games!

Just remembered she absolutely loved Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson.

Jane Blonde & the Sprite Sisters books.

I found Phantom Tollbooth really boring & depressing when I reread it as an adult, my kids find it kind of weird, too.

Ah Domino if I only knew where my copy of The Little Girl & the Tiny Doll had gone! I loved that book

Also love the Old Nurse's Stocking Basket and The Little Bookroom by Eleanor Farjeon. Some of the stories are a bit melancholy but there are some lovely, heartwarming ones in there.

Just remembered that DS1 also enjoyed the Wombles series (6 books) which, although they were written in the 60s and 70s are timeless and just lovely (I enjoyed them too!).

I was sorting out some of my old children's books last night and thought of this thread.

The ones that your DD might like are A Necklace of Raindrops that a pp poster mentioned, The Practical Princess, lots of Dick King Smith and also Mr Majeika by Humphrey Carpenter. I loved those

"The Secret Garden"
"A Little Princess"
Anything by Noel Streatfield

If it's still in print, there's a lovely short book called the Ordinary Princess by MM Kaye which I have read countless times. Plus my favourite childrens book of all is the Box of Delights by John Masefield - one of those books that gives you a warm glow. Best read at Christmas time though.

The Railway Children (happy ending)
Alice in Wonderland

The Helen Moss adventure island books are great - very Enid Blyton/famous five-y but modern, and no sexism or racism... DD absolutely loved them at 8 (still rereads them now at 10)

Minor peril/murder mystery, but she didn't blink.

The Roman mysteries are great, but DD did have nightmares about the dog beheading, so not really to be recommended for everyone!

I'd second the Helen Moss series. DS1 has devoured them!

We've read a lot of Eva Ibbotson recently - The Abominables (mild threat for about a chapter), One dog and his boy, Beasts of Clawstone Castle and in the middle of Ogre of Oglefort - they all seem to go off in a direction that you did not really expect, but I and DS2(8) love them. DD has read a couple, and loved them too.

What about something like Milly Molly Mandy, or My Naughty Little Sister? Family From One End Street is a bit more challenging to read.

My 8 yr old DD has just finished The Little White Horse with me and LOVED it. Its very happy and lots of fabulous descriptions of food and clothes. WHats not to like? Its by Elizabeth Goudge and has just been reissued.

SHe has also loved The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe the peril is milder in the book than the film versions. The Story of The Treasure Seekers is going down well at the moment. Swallows and Amazons have been a firm favourite for a year or more.

Lined up are:
Swish of the Curtain
First Harry Potter
Anne of Green Gables

All of these we read together. On her own she devours Famous Five, St CLares and Mallory TOwers. SHe also likes The Clumsies and Clarice Bean.

Mrs pepperpot?