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Book suggestions for advanced 9 year old?


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Depends what you mean by "mature content." I've made notes where I think necessary

 

The Little Grey Men and Down the Bright Stream (each have an intense chapter involving death, though not of a beloved character)

Also by BB: Brendon Chase

Swallows & Amazons series

The Wolves Chronicles by Joan Aiken (Wolves of Willoughby Chase is the first); also Aiken's books of short stories

Lloyd Alexander, including The Prydain Chronicles

M.T. Anderson's Pals in Peril series (Whales on Stilts is the first)

The Poisons of Caux series by Applebaum

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes

The Hotel Under the Sand by Kage Baker

Blue Balliet

T.A. Barron's three Merlin series (These have recently been republished as one series... here's the first, The Lost Years; and a list of the original titles at wikipedia)

Oz (don't miss Marvellous Land of Oz/Land of Oz or Ozma of Oz

Anybodies series by N.E. Bode (more clever than you'd think)

Green Knowe series by L.M. Boston (The Children of Green Know is the first)

Elise Broach - Masterpiece and Shakespeare's Secret

Sisters Grimm series by Buckley (the last volume is due out in another month or so)

The Gideon Trilogy by Buckley-Archer

The Underland Chronicles by Suzanne Collins (Gregor the Overlander is the first)

anything by Padraic Colum

The Dark is Rising Sequence by Cooper

Lionboy series by Corder

Kevin Crossley-Holland's Arthur series (The Seeing Stone is the first)

Edward Eager

Michael Ende (not just The Neverending Story)

Elizabeth Enright, including the Melendy Quartet

Nancy Farmer's Sea of Trolls series (some violence, conservative Christians may have some trouble with this)

Jules Feiffer's middle grade books (as opposed to picture books): A Barrel of Laughs, A Vale of Tears; The Man in the Ceiling; A Room with a Zoo

The Great Brain series by Fitzgerald

Sid Fleischman

Cornelia Funke

Alan Garner

Jean Craighead George

Rene Goscinny's Nicholas series (and Asterix, of course :001_smile:)

Kenneth Grahame's short stories (in addition to The Wind in the Willows)

Stephen & Lucy Hawking's George's Secret Key to the Universe and sequels (the third will be out in the US this year, or can be ordered from Book Depository if you can't wait)

Hermux Tantmoq series by Hoeye

Polly Horvath

much of Eva Ibbotson (the descriptions will give a pretty good idea of the ones written for a bit older kids)

Redwall

Moomins

Chronicles of Crestomanci by Wynne Jones

Konigsberg: From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

A Book Dragon by Kushner

A Wrinkle in Time and sequels

LaFevers' Theodosia series

Caroline Lawrence's Roman Mysteries series (some tense moments)

Robert Lawson

Astrid Lindgren -- Ronia, Rasmus and the Vagabond

much of Margaret Mahy

The Daydreamer by McEwan

Walter Moers -- 13-1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear, Rumo

Mowll's Guild of Specialists series

Garth Nix - Seventh Tower and Keys to the Kingdom series, plus kids' sci/fi. Then look at the Abhorsen trilogy.

Robert O'Brien - NIMH books and The Silver Crown

Oppel's Silverwing series (his later books are more YA)

Edward Ormondroyd: Time at the Top, All in Good Time, David and the Phoenix

Michelle Paver's Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series (these are very good, but you may wish to wait a year or so)

Daniel Pinkwater - Neddiad, Yggyssey, anything else in the middle reader section

Everything by Howard Pyle

Brandon Sanderson - Alcatraz series

Lemony Snicket

Robert Louis Stevenson

Stewert/Riddell's Edge Chronicles

Mysterious Benedict Society series

James Thurber's children's books: The Wonderful O, The Thirteen Clocks

Jules Verne

Sylvia Waugh's Ormingat trilogy -- starts with Space Race

Cat Weatherill's Barkbelly and Snowbone

 

ETA: Summerland by Michael Chabon (one character has a violent, alcoholic father, but this is handled sensitively)

 

Bone by Jeff Smith (graphic novels)

Tintin

 

 

New York Review of Books Children's Book Collection

fairy tales, collections of folktales, myths, George MacDonald

the Lang coloured Fairy Books

 

Horrible anything and everything -- Horrible Histories, Geography, Science, Murderous Maths, Dead Famous

Imponderables books by David Feldman

Russell Stannard's Uncle Albert books

Edited by nmoira
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Any specific Mahy suggestions?

 

3rd-ish grade and up

The Great Piratical Rumbistification should be required reading for everyone :)

The Horrible Haunted School

Tingleberries, tuckertubs and telephones: A tale of love and ice-cream

A Tall Story and Other Tales (connected short stories)

The Girl with the Green Ear: Stories About Magic in Nature (short stories)

 

4th-ish and up

The Greatest Show off Earth (I highly recommend this)

The Pirates' Mixed-up Voyage (and this)

The Blood and Thunder Adventure on Hurricane Peak

The Door in the Air (short stories)

 

11/12+

Maddigan's Fantasia -- might be a bit intense for 9, but fine for most 12+; DD the Elder is fine with it at 10

The Other Side of Silence (issues are delicately handled, but not for sensitive younger kids)

 

13+

Dangerous Spaces (slow, dreamy, atmospheric)

Kaitanga Twich (10yo DD read this, but doesn't want to go back to it for awhile)

 

It's also worth seeing which of her picture books are at your library.

Edited by nmoira
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3rd-ish grade and up

The Great Piratical Rumbistification should be required reading for everyone :)

The Horrible Haunted School

Tingleberries, tuckertubs and telephones: A tale of love and ice-cream

A Tall Story and Other Tales (connected short stories)

The Girl with the Green Ear: Stories About Magic in Nature (short stories)

 

4th-ish and up

The Greatest Show off Earth (I highly recommend this)

The Pirates' Mixed-up Voyage (and this)

The Blood and Thunder Adventure on Hurricane Peak

The Door in the Air (short stories)

 

11/12+

Maddigan's Fantasia -- might be a bit intense for 9, but fine for most 12+; DD the Elder is fine with it at 10

The Other Side of Silence (issues are delicately handled, but not for sensitive younger kids)

 

13+

Dangerous Spaces (slow, dreamy, atmospheric)

Kaitanga Twich (10yo DD read this, but doesn't want to go back to it for awhile)

 

It's also worth seeing which of her picture books are at your library.

 

Exactly what I needed! Thanks for sorting by age! Already have The Great Piratical Rumbistification in my Amazon cart. Off to check out the rest.

 

Thanks. ;)

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