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GREAT BOOKS FOR GIRLS click
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A sample of books from "Great Books for Girls"
Arranged by age
Chester's Way by Kevin Henkes. Ages
3-7
One of the best, this story opens with Chester and Wilson, two rigid
but likable mice who are best friends. Then the flamboyant Lilly
moves into the neighborhood. She likes to wear Band-Aids all over
herself to look brave; she always carries a loaded squirt gun. The
two friends ignore Lilly until one day she comes to their rescue
and saves them from some bullies, thanks to one of her many disguises.
From then on the three are great friends and Lilly puts a new sparkle
into their safe but dull routines. She is the daring and inventive
one of the threesome, the leader in their adventures, and one of
the liveliest picture-book characters ever, male or female.
Loud Emily by Alexis O'Neill. Illustrated by Nancy Carpenter.
Ages 3-7
"LOUD HELP NEEDED. NOW." reads the sign on a ship, offering
a much-needed haven to young Emily, whose loud voice doesn't suit
her sedate nineteenth-century life. In her family's wealthy world,
the little girl with the enormous voice is a problem. Illustrations
show her beautifully furnished home and restrained, well-dressed
relatives, with Emily looking out of place. But on the ship, she
is invaluable, bellowing the captain's commands and delighting the
whales. Charming folk art paintings portray a colorful seaside town,
the changing conditions at sea, and an energetic girl with a mouth
that is usually wide open. Great fun, with a heroine who believes
that girls should definitely be heard as well as seen.
JoJo's Flying Side Kick by Brian Pinkney. Ages
3-7
The jacket picture of JoJo in her Tae Kwon Do clothes performing
a flying side-kick will attract readers immediately. JoJo must pass
a test to earn her yellow belt by breaking a board with a flying
side-kick. The challenge makes her so nervous, she tells her granddaddy,
"I'm freakin' out." Remembering his boxing days, he advises
her on footwork. A friend gives her advice from his own Tae Kwon
Do experience to yell loud. And her mother, clad in a tennis dress,
advises her to visualize her goal. JoJo puts it all together and
a forceful picture shows her triumph. JoJo and her supportive family
are African-American in this unusual story about a girl mastering
a martial art while she also masters her own fears. A real winner
by an award-winning illustrator.
Raising Dragons by Jerdine Nolen. Illustrated by Elise Primavera.
Ages 3-8
The narrator, a farm girl who already knows a lot about raising
young animals, finds a dragon egg and tends to the dragon that emerges.
She names him Hank, feeds him and reads to him, and goes on grand
flights on his back at night. At first, her mother objects to Hank,
but slowly she relents as the dragon helps out around the farm in
surprising ways. He grows enormous, with an irresistible toothy
grin, but when he starts to get attention from outsiders, the girl
realizes it's time for a change. She finds the answer to his future
in a library book, and the two take a trip to a dragon-land in the
middle of the ocean where Hank immediately feels at home. Fortunately
the narrator goes home with new dragon eggs. "The same way
Pa knew that farming was in his blood, I knew that raising dragons
was in mine," she declares in this magical book about a girl
who knows what she wants.
Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China by Ed Young.
Ages 4-8
Watercolor and pastel illustrations arranged in panels that echo
Chinese art create an atmosphere of drama in this version of the
Red Riding Hood story. A mother leaves her three children home,
warning them not to let anyone in, but the younger children let
in a wolf claiming to be their grandmother. Fortunately the eldest
and cleverest child, a girl named Shang, sees through the disguise.
She outwits the wolf by luring him up a tree to eat gingko nuts
and dropping him in a basket to the ground, where his heart breaks
to pieces. A Caldecott Medal winner for its striking, powerful pictures.
The Outside Dog by Charlotte Pomerantz. Illustrated by Jennifer
Plecas. Ages 5-8
Marisol is a model of persistence. She lives with her abuelito,
her grandfather, in a little house in Puerto Rico. She would love
to have one of the stray dogs in the neighborhood as a pet, but
her grandfather objects. She befriends one of the dogs and names
it Pancho. Slowly and cleverly Marisol convinces her grandfather
that a pet dog is a good idea. Endearing pictures extend the personalities
of the people and the dog. Marisol is an active girl who sometimes
goes fishing with a neighbor. Another neighbor is a friendly woman
who owns a little grocery store. "An I Can Read Book"
with four short chapters and a sprinkling of Spanish words that
are defined in the front, this is an outstanding book for young
readers about a girl and her dog.
America's Champion Swimmer: Gertrude Ederle by David A.
Adler. Illustrated by Terry Widener. Ages
6-10
Gertrude Ederle was a phenomenal athlete. She won three medals at
the 1924 Olympics when she was seventeen, and by the time she was
nineteen, she had set twenty-nine U.S. and world records. She then
resolved to swim the English Channel, a twenty-one mile distance
previously conquered by only five swimmers, all men. In her first
attempt, she swam for nine hours and was seven miles from shore
when her trainer insisted she get out. The next year, with a new
trainer, she not only crossed the channel, but set a time record
despite stormy conditions. "All the women of the world will
celebrate," she said afterwards, and two million people celebrated
her feat in a New York City parade. Striking sculptural illustrations
convey Ederle's sturdiness, strength and optimism. An excellent
combination of text, pictures, and an inspiring subject.
Adventure in Space: The Flight to fix the Hubble by Elaine
Scott. Illustrated by Photographs by Margaret Miller. Ages
8-11
After the 1.6 billion dollar Hubble space telescope was launched
in 1990, scientists realized it didn't work properly. A group of
seven astronauts traveled 4.4 million miles and eleven days to fix
it in space. This photo-essay describes that mission, with a slight
emphasis on the role of Kathy Thornton, the most experienced woman
astronaut in the world. Physicist Thornton was one of the four astronauts
who donned space suits and went outside to fix the telescope. The
mother of three daughters, Thornton never aspired to be an astronaut
because there were no women astronauts when she was young. She advises
girls to study the hard sciences, and to take calculated risks,
such as she risks the dangers of space flight to gain the benefits
of being an astronaut. Photographs show Thornton and the other astronauts
planning, practicing, and accomplishing their goal in space. An
attractive book about an important space mission.
The Landry News by Andrew Clements. Ages
8-12
Fifth grader Cara Landry, who has a history of being outspoken,
channels her energy into a student newspaper at her new school,
partly as a way to make friends. Her scheme works, but her teacher
Mr. Larson finds himself in trouble for the newspaper. An unusually
laid-back teacher—if not downright lazy—Mr. Larson gets
invigorated thanks to The Landry News, but school administrators
have been waiting for their chance to get rid of him. Only when
Cara and her classmates organize to defend Mr. Larson does it look
like he might keep his job. Large print and occasional pictures
make this accessible to younger readers while the subject will also
interest slightly older ones. A highly readable, moving and thought-provoking
book with a strong girl at the center.
Yolonda's Genius by Carol Fenner. Ages
10-13
Yolonda is a big, strong African-American fifth grader who has just
moved from Chicago to a smaller city in Michigan with her mother
and her younger brother Andrew. She knows her own power and in one
gripping scene uses it to punish some drug-pushing bullies who have
ruined Andrew's harmonica. Yolonda believes her brother, who is
slow learning to read, is a musical genius. She uses her own genius
at thinking, planning and asserting herself to convince others of
Andrew's abilities. Andrew returns the love and admiration by playing
music that conveys how large and powerful Yolonda is, "great
like a queen." This is just one of the times that Yolonda's
size is viewed as an asset. She takes after her Aunt Tiny, a huge
woman who owns several immensely successful hairdressing salons.
Yolonda's mother, a paralegal, wants her to do well in school, which
she does, and to become a doctor or lawyer. But Yolonda, who takes
after her dead father, a police officer, aspires to become Chicago's
chief of police someday, which seems possible for a girl of her
abilities. This Newbery Honor Book is a gem: a beautifully written
story of a queen-sized girl who is cherished by her family and justly
confident of herself.
Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan. Ages
10-13
Esperanza, whose name means "hope" in Spanish, starts
life as the daughter of a wealthy farmer in Mexico. But in 1930
when she is fourteen, her father is killed, and she and her mother
are forced off the farm. In a role reversal, they now depend on
a family that had worked as their servants, including sixteen-year-old
Miguel. Miguel and Esperanza had been friends all through childhood
until recently, when Esperanza pointed out their class difference.
Esperanza, her mother, and Miguel's family leave Mexico and travel
to the United States where Miguel's relatives are migrant workers.
Esperanza's once elegant mother starts to work in the fields until
she becomes too ill to continue. Meanwhile Esperanza tries to help
out by taking on simple chores that prove a challenge. Her new experiences
make Esperanza grow up fast as she deals with poverty, injustices,
prejudice against Mexicans, hard physical work, and her mother's
grave illness. A coming-of-age story replete with history and hope.
Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C Wrede. Ages
10-13
Cimorene finds being a princess boring. Every time she tries to
study something interesting such as swordplay and politics, her
father stops her. When her parents decide she must marry a dull
prince, Cimorene runs away and lands a job as princess to a female
dragon named Kazul. Although constantly having to discourage princes
who try to rescue her, Cimorene is happy with her duties of cooking
and putting the dragon's treasures and books in order. Her routine
is interrupted when wizards try to poison Kazul, and Cimorene must
lead a fight to outwit these enemies. Her allies are a businesslike
witch named Morwen, a stone prince, and another dragon's princess.
Cimorene is strong-willed, brave and smart as are Kazul and Morwen:
definitely an unusual trio of females. Full of humor, this fantasy
series of four books has quickly become a popular one.
Girls Who Rocked the World: Heroines from Sacagawea to Sheryl
Swoopes by Amelie Weldon. Ages 10-14
This enjoyable paperback focuses on women who did something important
as a child or teenager, and often continued that work as an adult.
It tells 33 stories, starting with Cleopatra and ending with tennis
player Martina Hingis. In between are biographical sketches of scientists,
poets, political leaders, artists, musicians, and even a drag racer.
The girls come from all around the world and have contributed to
their fields in different ways. A photograph or portrait accompanies
each sketch to personalize the subject. Small sidebars add interesting
details about the heroines, while other short boxed paragraphs offer
words from today's girls about how they plan to "rock the world."
The writing style is upbeat, and the variety of women and what they
have accomplished is truly inspiring. Followed by Girls Who Rocked
the World 2.
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi. Ages
10-14
"Not every thirteen-year-old girl is accused of murder, brought
to trial, and found guilty," opens this thrilling tale. When
ladylike Charlotte Doyle boards the Seahawk in 1832 to sail from
England to Rhode Island, she expects to be chaperoned by two families.
Instead, she finds herself the only female aboard a ship on which
a mutiny is planned. At first disdainful of the scruffy crew, Charlotte
comes to realize that they hate the cruel captain for good reason.
She herself joins the crew and, though she has never done any manual
labor, learns to climb the riggings and shoulder her share of the
work. As her spirit and strength flourish, the hatred the captain
feels for her grows until it culminates in trying her for a murder
she didn't commit. The book's ending is enough to make readers cheer
for this heroine who has too much courage and spirit for the conventional
life she has left behind. A Newbery Honor Book.
Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery by Russell Freedman.
Ages 11-14
This compelling biography covers Eleanor Roosevelt's life from childhood
through old age. Written in an inviting manner and beautifully illustrated
with photographs, it emphasizes her many accomplishments including
her advocacy for women's rights. Roosevelt made her mark as an outstanding
woman in many ways: her writing and speaking, her influence on the
nation through her husband, her service to the United Nations, and
her abiding concern for social justice and world peace. As the biography
shows, she came into her own in middle age, blossoming from a shy
woman into a self-confident one. "You must do the thing you
think you cannot do," she once said, and she lived her life
according to those words. In 1943 she traveled twenty-three thousand
miles in cramped military vehicles to visit American servicemen
in the Pacific. Later in life she traveled around the world many
times in her quest to learn more and advance world peace. Eleanor
Roosevelt ranks among the great women of all time, and this exemplary
biography makes it a pleasure to read about her. In addition to
the photographs which illustrate the text, fifteen pages more of
photographs are added at the end, followed by information on visiting
sites related to her life; a bibliographic essay; and an extensive
index. Highly recommended. A Newbery Honor Book.
Sabriel by Garth Nix. Ages 12-14
In this complex fantasy, a teenage girl named Sabriel inherits a
powerful magic position from her father, known as Abhorsen. Although
born in the magic Old Kingdom, Sabriel has lived at a girls' boarding
school in a nearby more modern country where magic is weak. Sabriel's
own magic and that of the Abhorsen is necromancy, the ability to
go into the kingdom of the dead. Sabriel is determined to rescue
her father from the dead, but journeying into the Old Kingdom, she
realizes that her quest is a larger one. A powerful force from the
Dead is destroying the Old Kingdom, and Sabriel joins forces with
a mysterious man from the past and a magical cat to try to defeat
it. Although difficult to follow at times, the fantasy pulls the
reader in and builds to a gripping climax. Followed by Lirael
and Abhorsen.
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© 2003, Kathleen Odean, all rights reserved.
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