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Children's books

Join in for children's book recommendations.

what are you reading to your 9yr old?

58 replies

DeliveredByKiki · 24/10/2017 03:56

DS isn't a voracious reader, unless it's anything to do with minecraft in which case he's all over it, but he enjoys me still reading to him at bedtime. We've done all the Roald Dahl and David Walliams books, we did Philosopher's Stone but halfway through Chamber of Secrets and he says it's too scary for me to read to him just before bed.

What are you reading your children? I want to read him books above his reading level but not sure what to tackle next - he does love Harry Potter so we'll carry that on in the daytime! I've tried Wind in the Willows, Narnia and various other "classics" but they've been a lot harder going than I remember. Any modern classics I should know about - I read a million books a day at his age and throughout school so I don't know why I'm struggling so much!

OP posts:
AdalindSchade · 24/10/2017 03:58

Place marking! I haven't got any amazing suggestions, I tend to grab a few likely looking books from the library and give them a try. I also found some of the classics quite hard going, plus a lot of the books I loved at his age are let's face it girly and he wouldn't appreciate them. (What Katy did etc)
The one avenue I haven't gone down is famous 5 and secret 7. I don't know how well they have aged.

DeliveredByKiki · 24/10/2017 04:01

ah that's true, I haven't attempted them - we did do the Faraway Tree which he enjoyed. I was thinking Charlotte's Web maybe? I was obsessed with Ballet Shoes and When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit at his age. I'm kind of desperate to read him Goodnight Mr Tom but as he's so sensitive (see above re HP!) I might still have to wait a while

OP posts:
Ricekrispie22 · 24/10/2017 06:49

The Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz is basically a young James Bond. If this looks a little too much for your son, try Horrowitz's Diamond Brothers series.
Who Let The Gods Out by Maz Evans is a hilarious book based on a school boy's adventures in Ancient Greece.
The Incredible Adventures of Professor Branestawm
Emil and the Detectives
A Series of Unfortunate Events - this may be a little creepy at bedtime.
Kensuke's Kingdom, An Eagle in the Snow, Best Mates or Outlaw by Michael Morpurgo.
Goldfish Boy - a boy trapped in his bedroom with OCD solves a crime from his bedroom window. Very witty!
Time Travelling with a Hamster

angularmerkel · 24/10/2017 07:05

My 10 year old ds loves Frank Cottrell Boyce. We’re reading ‘framed’ at the moment but he’s enjoyed bothers too.

DeliveredByKiki · 25/10/2017 00:58

Thanks for suggestions, I’ll look them all up!

OP posts:
FangsAlot · 25/10/2017 01:10

The adventures of Hucklebury Finn
The Jungle Book
Famous Five
Secret Seven

SummerLightning · 25/10/2017 01:12

Percy Jackson here.
We also spent ages on the how to train your dragons but they are for a bit younger age group.

SummerLightning · 25/10/2017 01:14

Oh and also yes he like Charlotte's Web, not as much as his sister though. Also the Sheep Pig.
We enjoyed the audio books of Holes (possibly scary) and Neil gaimans Fortunately the milk (silly but hilarious)

Yaley · 25/10/2017 01:19

Try David Baddeil. The Parent Agency and The Person Controller.

DaisyRaine90 · 25/10/2017 01:39

Place marking

thecraddock · 25/10/2017 02:12

There’s a boy in the girls bathroom
Holes

(Both by Louis sachar)

SummerLightning · 25/10/2017 02:36

Have you tried fuzzy mud thecraddock I have the audio book from the library waiting for us to take a long journey.

Wayside school by louis sachar are also pretty good too, but a bit younger and quite daft.

Apileofballyhoo · 25/10/2017 08:25

My son liked The Wind in the Willows. We got nowhere with Watership Down. He loved Karlsson on the Roof. Likes The Five Find-outers series.

HoneyWheeler · 25/10/2017 08:41

The Matt Haig Christmas books - A Boy Called Christmas and the Girl who Saved Christmas had my year 4 class on the edge of their seat last year! Highly recommend

ojell · 27/10/2017 00:26

‘The Phantom Tollbooth’ (Norton Juster) and ‘Haroun and the Sea of Stories’ (Salman Rushdie) both fall into the ‘Modern Classics’ category for me. ‘The Eagle of the Ninth’ (Rosemary Sutcliffe) is a great adventure story set in Roman Britain. At the moment I am reading ‘My Family and Other Animals’ to my boy, which he is finding great fun - but Gerald Durrell’s later books about his collecting trips in Africa and South America are both very interesting and very funny too.

Witchend · 27/10/2017 21:46

Last two books I read with ds (10yo) were Biggles. Actually I only read the first two chapters to him, then he went away and read the rest. I had to pinch the book back to find out what happened. Humph!

LadyMacnet · 27/10/2017 21:52

My Dad’s a Birdman and Angelino Brown by David Almond are my DS’s favourites atm. (He’s 8). Going to get him Skellig for Christmas.

Jeffers3 · 27/10/2017 21:54

Another vote for Matt Haig Christmas books they're written in such an appealing way for children, everything seems to roll off the tounge and the story is great!

KrindleKrax is also good, an oldie but a goodie. Great repitition in it for a chapter book and is fun.

missmapp · 27/10/2017 21:55

The Charlie bone books.

GreatBigPolarBear · 27/10/2017 21:58

Mine's enjoying the new Jaqueline Wilson -'wave me goodbye'. Which makes me wonder if she'd like 'goodnight mister tom'
She also likes dork diaries but I can't stand them so refuse to read them to her!
Big Harry Potter fan
I've heard good things about the 13 (?) storey treehouse books

MazDazzle · 27/10/2017 22:00

We’ve just finished Echo Come Home by Megan Rix. It was lovely! We’re not usually into animal stories, but it was gripping. My two were transfixed. I’ve bought a couple of her other books for stocking fillers.

TriGirl007 · 27/10/2017 22:00

Tom Gates? Not very testing but they all read them boys & girls last year in year5.

CBW · 27/10/2017 22:12

The Hobbit is a lovely book to read out loud.

LakeFlyPie · 27/10/2017 22:21

We've enjoyed some of the Dick King Smith books, particularly The Queen's Nose.
The Littlenose series (which DS (9) took and finished himself).
Alexander McCall Smith's childrens books are lovely to read too.

Appuskidu · 27/10/2017 22:24

The Phantom Tolbooth and Frozen in Time (Ali Sparkes) are perfect for this age!

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