American Girl, My America ...

[CatMomof3]

Next year with my 3rd grader (7 years old - reads at a 4-5 grade level) will be doing American History. I was thinking of having her read the American Girl Series, but I just noticed that there are other American series such as My America, Dear America, and American Diaries. I can get all these book from the library (as well as the American Girl craft books). Are there any series that you would recommend OR stay away from.

 

Oh, my father is putting together a list of people he wants my dd to researched based on the American Girl dates, so my dd will some "real" facts.

 

Thanks for any advice.

[Matryoshka]

The American Girl books are wonderful, and I think very well done. There are also non-fiction books and short stories to go with each girl. My dds all loved them and learned a lot.

 

I haven't had them read the other series - I have a bit of an allergy to the "faux diary" format. It especially irks me when they have some girl writing these things that in real life would've been poor, illiterate, and/or worked so hard they wouldn't have had time or energy to write out their feelings, if they could have even gotten access to pen and paper. I'm all for books that involve characters like that, but then write a book about said character in the third or even first person - but not a "diary".

 

Just a personal dislike. Other people love them. :tongue_smilie:

[mereminerals]

My daughter absolutely loves the American Girl series. She has read nearly all of them. We tried to go through them based on the time period in order. There are many resources out there too that give ideas on each series.

 

My daughter really didn't enjoy the My America or Dear America books.

[Sara in WA]

You should also look out for the series of books called "Welcome to Kit's World" (and Molly's World, and Samantha's World..." These books show through photographs and text what it was like during these time periods. I don't think AG sells them any longer; however, I have been able to find them used at half.com and other places. These are gems!

 

Our girls are all HUGE fans of the American Girl history chapter books. I admit at first I planned to not encourage these books. Usually any book based on a product isn't any good. I talked to our wonderful children's librarian and she gave them all a big thumbs up. She even told me that the author of the Kaya (Native American) books received an award of some type by the actual tribe.

[Guest]

My daughter also adored the American Girl series. I second the poster who suggested the "Welcome to _____'s World" non-fiction accompaniments -- they are superb. If your daughter enjoys cooking or art, there are also paperbacks, also mostly out of print but easy to find used on the internet, of crafts and recipes which we enjoyed a lot. The newest addition is a series of mysteries set in each historical era and starring the doll/girl character as detective. My daughter liked those best of all.

[Karen in CO]

If your girls like these, then they should try The Royal Diaries. My dd9, that reads a very high level and hates all things princess, loves these. We started with one about Mary, Queen of Scots because I didn't like the way that the book we had from the library treated her. After that, my dd has been working her way through them as fast as she can. They all have a historical context and maps in the back in addition to photos where available. I think they are by the same people that make the Dear America series. The reading level is higher than the American Girl.

[In the Rain]

My dd enjoyed all of the AG books. She especially likes the "Welcome to ... World" books mentioned above. We own those books, and she rereads them often. She also likes the biographical series "Childhood of Famous Americans". After reading one, we'll get a couple of library books on the same person.