have ordered tales of a fourth grade nothing I think she will love it [fingers crossed]

For a different approach, I can recommend the THRASS SING-A-LONG book and double CD. See www.thrass.co.uk/sing-a-long.htm Doesn't seem much but all the songs have a different musical style e.g. Rock & Roll, jive, hoedown, twist.... jazz!

Oh, the books about Tilly Beany by Annie Dalton. Great fun.

check out Beverly Cleary (american author - fab stuff for kids)

[http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ramona-Collection-Father-Beezus-Collections/dp/0061246476/ref=sr12?ie =UTF8&s=books&qid=1225133196&sr=8-2]]

DS likes HH but started off on Jeremy Strong's 'Hundred Mile An Hour Dog' and now loves his stuff. I don't really mind what he's reading (within reason) but I loathe HH and at least JS has a variety of characters.

I mean there is an example of a little girl embarrassed to read a book because she's in the "wrong" band for it. Which is lousy for her.

Just re the age banding thing I know it's a bit off topic but if anyone would like to support No to Age Banding you can do it here.

Sophie stories (Dick King Smith), Enid Blyton's Secret Seven and The Mystery of....(Burnt Cottage etc), Bel Mooney's Kitty series, Jack Stalwart

i used to LOVE judy blume books when i was younger...
not sure if they are a teeny bit old for your dd in their content. i can't remember how old i was when i read them....

(off topic, i do remember reading her book "forever" when i was a teen......we all had it because they <<looks around and whispers very quietly>> had sex! )

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (there are new versions out but the pictures aren't as nice as the originals)

Jeremy Strong books.

Vivian French is a brilliant author.

dd1 says she enjoys Mr Gum as it has won an award

Now you know this is happening enid, can you maybe sticker over the age thing on the front, or is it too obvious
What a shame
Another Mr Gum fan here
- and might she like the Anthony Horowitz series The Falcon's Malteser etc? These are funnier and lighter than his more heavyweight fare

Enid - I know - and to be honest I'm not sure how much he's reading because we're not allowed to talk to him about it - he gets very funny about it so it's kind of like a secret But it was the thought of him actually picking up a book to read - without the tears, tantrums, sulks etc that we usually have - that was amazing!

Will definitely have a look at Barrington Stoke.

barrington stoke are aimed at 8-12 year olds in terms of content but with a reading age of 8 - brilliant!

dttoydo - dd1 is a good 2 years older than your son so I really wouldn't worry - personally I think reading HH to yourself at 6 is bloody good!!

I ordered a copule of books from Amazon and the annoying thing is that now they have AGE RECOMMENDATIONS onthe front

so two good books say 7+ on the front which puts hger off and she doesnt want to take them to school

I would shy away from Jacqueline Wilson - in my experience her books have turned off as many kids as they've turned on.
I would start her on the first Jimmy Coates book by Joe Craig. It's gripping enough to suck her in and has some feisty female characters she might like.
Jeremy Strong also writes some lovely, light, funny books that are a good progression from Horrid Henry.

I think secret seven are easier than famous five, but they still seem quite a leap for ds1 at the minute.

Have read the thread properly and am quite intrigued by the Barrington Stoke books. But is the content quite adult-ish? Will have to go and have a look at a few.

Eniddo I reckon in 20yrs time Horrid Henry and Mr Gum will be Proper Literature. Back in the day the Famous Five (and all Enid Blyton) were distinctly not-proper-books . . . now they come with 'classic' covers from the library and seem to be considered quite classy.
Dttoydto are Secret Seven easier or harder than Famous Five? DD likes F5 and Five Findouters, wondered if S7 would be a good bet for xmas peace & quiet

Fab thread Enid - I've joined you on various threads about reading and almost started a thread saying 'I love Horrid Henry and I don't care' because last week for the first time, ds1 (7 in a few weeks) asked to read a Horrid henry book in bed for himself!!

So I've got him a couple more and every now and then, not every night, he'll have a go at reading to himself.

I'm so proud of him I don't care that it's effing Horrid Henry...!

I showed him a Secret Seven book last week but he took one look at it in the bookshop and declared to look too hard, but I'll have a look at the recommendations in this thread.

There's a hilarious book called 'The Land of Green Ginger' by Noel Langley, which is a sequel to the story of Aladdin.

I remember reading this at about 9, and it was read to me before that, I'm sure - and it still makes me laugh today!

The villains are called Rub Dub Ben Thud and Tin Tack Ping Fu; there's a flying back garden, a magician who's a button-nosed tortoise, and a donkey who sits on a pin. Oh, and a genie, of course - but not a very good one!

no actually mossflower series is too big a jump. more harry potter than horrid henry.

my naughty little sister
roald dahl
mossflower series

er, er, er, er, um - other stuff.

If she likes Horrid Henry, what about Just William (I know, is a classic, but I think you can get 'modern' looking copies). He could teach HH a thing or two .
Also would second the Cressida Cowell 'How to tame a dragon' books, they seem to go down well over a big range of ages (DD age 6 likes them, as does my friend's son age 11 - can't imagine they have many overlapping tastes!) and they are great to read out loud.

I've got a 4 year old son. A neighbour handed in some Horrid Henry books. Made mistake of reading a bit of one to him at bedtime and he loved it! Bit old for him though - putting too many ideas in his wee head!

What about the Humphry Hamster books?The World according To Humphey is the first in the series

DS LOVES them - though the text is more dense and smaller than in the H Henry books.

I'm afraid I rather adore HH. I know I shouldn't, but I do.

I noticed that there are now Winnie the Witch chapter books - would this be too young for her? Also, the Ahlberg series about the Gaskitts is absolutely lovely: clear yet madly entertaining.

Hi,

Elk mentioned the Pony Mad Princess from Usborne. There are a few ranges from Usborne that might be of interest to your 9 year old daughter. They do ^Fame School^, ^Oliver Moon^ (along the lines of Harry Potter), ^Summer Camp Secrets^, ^Totally Lucy^. Oliver Moon range and Summer Camp Secrets have web pages for even more fun with the reading! See my thread on Usborne Books at Home

Bad Man then. Hope your dd enjoys. If final family consensus at end is No Good I'll refund your cash!

the first one

dh thinks Not Proper Literature

but ignore him, he has no idea really

Which Mr Gum did you get & why does your dh disapprove, other than not by RLS, obv?

she started mr gum last night

read very nicely

dh disapproves but will only be happy when she is reading Treasure Island from cover to cover

My 9 year old ds waved goodbye to Horrid Henry only when he was introduced to Captain Underpants.

I notice Captain Underpants books are classified in his age range at book shops. DS2 is also a bit of a late reader, so it looks like he's catching up.

What about Eugenia Lavender by Geri Halliwell........? I have just bought these for my friends daughter,,,,,,,

Oh, Mr Gum is great.

Other books that work for DS1 include:
- Captain Underpants (rude!)
- Astrosaurs + Cows In Action (same author)
- the Roman Mysteries (v adventury, good strong female characters)
- the Cresside Crowell series, vikings + dragons

thank you all

vintagegardenia (ooh you sound nice!) I have just ordered mr gum they sound great.

A friend gave my ds some Mr Gum books and even though they are technically below his reading age (he's 10) he loves them and so do I. They are terrifically funny and very well written, slightly subversive, but without the sledgehammer approach of the Horrid H books. Highly recommend em.

He also reads Jacqueline Wilson (to my surprise), also have you ever tried Grimble? Excellent.

Getting for Christmas, that is.

Lol Tigerfeet. DD's getting a box set of 'The naughtiest girl in the school' (Enid Blyton) that I bought from Amazon, but can't now find on there . I'm looking forward to re-reading those.

Whoops, I appear to have accidentally ordered the DKS and Roald Dahl box sets for myself dd

How careless of me.

Only do the Rainbow Magic ones as long as she's the one doing the reading - they're really dire. Very samey. But good for getting them reading to themselves. DD loves them. Which is fine by me as long as I don't have to read them.

BookPeople also have those Rainbow Magic books in sets.

We do NOT do Horrid Henry, nor will we. I am already worried that DS will get called horrid at school!

When my daughter was slightly younger than 9, she liked the 'Power Puff Girls' stories and also liked the Rainbow Magic books (although, again a lot to choose from). Also The Worst Witch (and only 2 other books to follow, I think).

Ugh Horrid Henry - dd is 4 and found a copy belonging to my sister, now she's HH obsessed and we read a story every night.

They are truly hideous aren't they? I go all Mrs Judgypants at the parenting and clear favouritism of Perfect Peter. Awful.

I loved Enid BLyton at 9 and my sister who is a lot younger and diff generation liked Dick King-Smith and Jaqueline Wilson.

Fame School series or if you want her to read "classics", Classic retold for 8+

The BookPeople have a set of 15 Roald Dahl books for £15.99 (I am buying those) or how about a set of 6 Charm Hall books?

My dd isn't this age but a ideas may be:

Usbornes Pony Mad Princess Series (or would they be too young looking).

They also do a Horsey Series - Sandy L
The Book People Have a box set of Dick King-Smith Books (10 for £10) which I have just bought for my dd . She's too young for them but who cares it was a bargain.

Enid Blyton - Secret Seven Series.

Have you tried asking at your local library. My local librarians are excellent at finding books and ordering them in from all over the county.

Another firm favourite you could try is

Milly Molly Mandy

oh how could I have forgotton barrington stoke

dd1 said that SWAP was the best book she had ever read

My dd2 is 9 and loves the

Arabel's Raven books.

Luckily I had kept mine from childhood and started reading them to the dds at bedtimes. However, DD2 has now claimed them for herself

You might find that Barrington Stoke do something that interests her. They do books aimed at children with reading difficulties or who aren't motivated to read -- the books have slightly larger than normal text size, use of illustrations to break up the text, and many of them (not sure if they all do) combine a higher interest age with a lower reading age.

ooh fabb torty I may book tickets and see you there

mr majeika?(but beware it is a series of books too)
my 8 year old dd (yr 4)has took these into school and not(yet)had any snidy comments from so called class mates

What do you think of Jacqueline Wilson (think she may be a love/hate author, but she is popular among the girls)?

Also Michael Morpurgo is supposed to be really good, and he's doing a series of talks in Bristol between now and Christmas - am hoping to take ds1 and dd to this - might that be something your dd would be interested in? He is the author dd's teacher (who is a very good friend of ours) ALWAYS recommends for all ages.

Ds1 loves Horrid Henry too and we periodically confiscate them as his behaviour plummets!

Other things he likes are the Narnia books (although not 'modern' I think the films help to make them feel more modern). He also likes factual books like the Horrible Histories.

i know

there are none

<<sobs>>

She has to read to me every night and atm is ploughing through Horrid Henry, I didnt realise there were so many books and the school library seem to have them all. Now, far be it from me to discourage her reading (it has taken enough blood and tears to get this far) I would love to find something else that would appeal to her without looking too young (this is a consideration as her friends all read much more 'advanced' books) and prefereably something new rather than a classic ( she feels embarrassed taking my knackered old books in apparently)