Next bookclub suggestions for 10yr olds

[KobaniDaughters]

I’ve been running a book club for the last year for my DD and 3 of her friends and need to choose our next book. All 4 are aged 9-10 but have a slightly older reading age, our books so far have been very different to each other and they’ve really liked the variety but something that is outside their experience/comfort zone and with female protagonists would be great. Our other books have been

Wonder - RJ Palacio
The Girl Who Drank the Moon - Kelly Barnhill
The Breadwinner - Deborah Ellis

Any thoughts?

Letters from the lighthouse
Frost Hollow
In Darkling Wood by Emma Carroll

The Wolf Wilder
Rooftoppers
The Explorer by Katherine Rundell

Rumble Star
The Dream Snatcher by Abi Elphinstone.

Of these, ds's favourite is Journey to the River Sea and The Wolf Wilder which both have girls as the protagonist.

Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson

Google The Good Master by Kate Seredy.

It was written in the 30s and is set in Hungary. The protagonists are a boy called Jansci and his cousin Kate.

The book contains some stereotypical expectations of women and girls, and it would be interesting to discuss them in relation to today, and also the characterisation of Kate herself (she has no interest in conforming to stereotypes).

Of course, their day to day life in rural Hungary is very different to ours - fascinating for 21st century children to explore!

9-11yos here are huge fans of Sophie Anderson, Vashi Hardy, L.D. Lapinski (strange worlds series); MG Leonard (adventures in trains); polar bear explorers club; the morrigan crow series.

Heidi
Lightning Mary

Thanks so much for these, will get researching!

By the way, I think it's a terrific idea to have a little book club for them - well done!

Aw thanks @BlueChampagne my own DD is the most frustrating one but it’s generally been really great, it’s wonderful talking to them about all the themes and ideas - I don’t read ahead snd I keep it fairly loose rather than having set questions as I want it to feel like a grown up book club rather than an academic activity but I really enjoy it!

A kind of Spark- Ellie McNicoll
Beauty Sleep (can’t remember the author and my copy us at school!)

I am Malala - the teen version. My DD, aged 10, read it a few months ago.

Skullduggery Pleasant
"One formidable teenage girl, one well-dressed skeleton detective and a cast of magical characters both good and evil come together in Derek Landy’s Skulduggery Pleasant series. Will evil win the day? Will Stephanie and Skulduggery stop bickering long enough to stop it?"

DS read the whole lot.

The Secret Garden - lots to discuss
Taking flight -from war orphan to star ballerina (unless sensitive/fragile)

Number the stars - Lois Lowry. Protagonist is a danish girl who helps her Jewish friend escape when the Nazis invade.

Alone on a wide wide sea - Michael Morpurgo. Second half features a girl undertaking a solo sailing voyage to Australia.

Can You See Me? by Libby Scott with Rebecca Westcott. Diary entries by autistic 11 year old Libby starting secondary school. Very empathetic read.

What about some older stories? My son loved Cue for Treason by Geoffrey Trease, and there's a lot to talk about there.