Books for a 9 year old girl with female lead characters that aren’t about fairies or cute animals..

[PurpleCloak]

I need some help with my 9 year old DD - her favourite books are the “The Boy Who Grew Dragons” series, would love anything similar to this but more female character focussed? Or just anything generally focussed on female characters that like being active, sporty and aren’t about fairies or cats etc. However, nothing with too much peril or talk of death (we are going for through a sensitive period with those subjects 🤣). Thank you!

Definitely murder most unladylike series.

The strangeworlds society series. My 10 year old loves these and the lead is a girl who is very strong and independent.

Ruby Redfort by Lauren Child

Pippi Longstocking!

Little House on the Prairie series.
Malory Towers series.

I was just about to suggest Ruby Redfort and see I have been beaten to it :)

I loved Ronia, the Robber's Daughter by Astrid Lindgren when I was younger. Well, I say younger, I bought a copy recently and I still love it. After I bought it, I found my original copy so gave the new one to a woman in work for her girls, they also loved it and it has now done the rounds of all the 7-12yr old daughters in the office.

Apparently there was a TV series too but I've heard it didn't compare favourably.

@ZenNudist we tried Train to Impossible Places (me reading to her) as it looked right up her street from the synopsis. But we both struggled with it, just seemed to take ages to go anywhere and was hard to follow. Maybe didn’t give it enough of a chance though.

Some great suggestions, I’m off to look in to them all and get ordering - thank you!

The Starfell books by Dominique Valente. Witches and dragons but not at all cutesy

Pippi Longstocking! We love the book with illustrations by Lauren Child. My 9 year old finds them v funny and loves how strong Pippi is

@EdithGrantham

The Song of the Lioness series by Tamora Pierce was one I enjoyed, was maybe a little bit older than your DD but looking back at the plot it seems like it would be ok.

Was going to say this too. All her books are excellent.

Ramona series by Beverley Clearly. V funny!

Try books by Ross MacKenzie.
The Nowhere Emporium
Evernight
Shadow Smith

Or Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell

Amazing, thank you. Haven’t heard of loads of these - really helpful.

Dick king smith Sophie books. She’s small. Very determined and wants to be a lady farmer.

Not an orphan. No trauma just good clean fun oh and farmings woodlive n stuff 🤗

Classics (to me!):
Worst witch
Ramona
Naughtiest girl

But also things like famous five that although weren't classic 'female lead' were not 'female bit part'. Yes old fashioned, but I think that's quite important at this age. I wish my dd was more a reader. She loves being read to and will reluctantly get into a book if I bribe her

Mrs smiths spy school for girls.
Also my daughter loves graphic novels like Raina Telgemeiers.

The Ramona Quimby books.

The Malory Towers and St. Clares series are both brilliant. Also try when Hitler stole Pink Rabbit, she may be slightly too young still but it's a lovely book, mine read at around 11. I would also second Monica Edwards, I grew up on those storiesand still remember wanting to be the female characters in them!

My 7yo likes

Amelia fang
Books by ABI elphinstone
Witch wars
Wizards of once
How to train a dragon
And has just started to love beast quest

She loves a girl adventure story, but I haven't read any of these so I couldn't tell you. But she generally isn't up for scary stuff so some of this might be good

And Murder most unladylike was a brilliant set of books, much read.

The Dragonfly Pool and Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson (not a series, just two excellent stand-alone books by a great author)

Trixie Belden series (a sort of updated Nancy Drew)
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
Little Women
The Secret Garden
Narnia (Polly, Lucy, Aravis and Jill are all strong girl characters)
Judy Moody series
Amelia Bedelia series (perhaps a bit young)

The OP said they were avoiding any books with death or peril though, so murder stories or Narnia might not work.