Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Recommended Resources What do you think of adaptations of classics?

DD is also outgrowing Henry and Mudge and Mr. Putter and all their friends (*sniff* I will miss them!) She recently started a series called "Heidi Heckelbeck." It seems pretty good, although she's definitely not completely innocent. I like it more than Junie B. Jones, anyway. (I've not read any of the Fairy books, so I can't comment.)

I seem to recall the Horrible Harry books being pretty decent, although it's been a couple of years since I looked at one.

They probably are the least-worst option. They're dreadful for adults to have to read, but they're really not bad for kids. They were absolutely the switch that got DD9 reading when she was 5. From an adult's point of view, the biggest problem with them is that they're all the same book. Fairy is missing; Jack Frost has her; girls find clue; girls find fairy. Rinse, repeat.

Magic Tree House books are also not much fun for adults, but some kids turn on to them and love them, so that's another option. DS5 has been getting into comic books lately - Daniel Boom and Knights of the Lunch Table.

They're not evil or anything. They're just dreadfully inane and very..factory-produced. I'd probably consider them more harmless than Junie B. or Ivy and Bean, because there are no obnoxious attitudes, although they do play into the girly-princess-pinky-pretty stuff. I think DD built a lot of reading fluency with them, so there's that.

I agree that MTH is another option at this reading stage. A to Z Mysteries? I have other recs for young fluent readers in terms of age-appropriateness, but it depends on fluency.

Perhaps I'm the only one who frequents used book sales and buys vintage books?

As someone who grew up loving stories of the "olden days", I enjoyed books that were, well....old. I still do.

Would you consider something like the The Bobbsey Twins or Bunny Brown?
Both by By Laura Lee Hope. You may want to check into her other works as well. I've found them online through ebay and in used book sales, "Friend of the Library" sales, and in antique stores.

It would be out of the norm for sure, but would open some discussion about history.

Ametrine, thanks for mentioning Laure Lee Hope - my dd loves the Bobbsey Twins (so did I when I was a child!)... I hadn't thought of looking for other works by her!

polarbear

You're welcome. My mom introduced the Bobbsey twins to me prior to my interest in Nancy Drew.

I just happen to have three Junior Classics for Young Readers (Dalmatian Press): The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Time Machine and Frankenstein sitting right here beside the computer.

My son just got interested in and read the original and full Wizard of Oz and was asking about other classics. These were on the shelf for some reason (I used to homeschool my older son and find all sorts of stuff that I have no recall of purchasing but I must have.)

I think he is going to skim the Junior Classic version of Time Machine and see if he wants to read the full version. I think Frankenstein and Jekyll/Hyde would be a bit much unabridged/retold. He was very vocal about wanting the original versions and not the kid versions.

Another thing that the blasted fairies have going for them is that the artwork (both the fairies and the girls) shows them shaped like little girls, not Loni Anderson (yes, I'm looking at you, Disney Fairies). From the covers, it looks like Kate the Royal Wedding Fairy might have a bit of a figure, but I guess I can forgive that, all things considered. I think balancing them with read-alouds with rich language is a good plan.

DD actually likes graphic novels of books, I think because she just like graphic novels. Right now she's reading manga Much Ado about nothing. I like that most graphic novels we've found keep most of the language. I did order the graphic A Wrinkle in Time from the library because of that, though I hope it doesn't spoil the fun of L'Engle for her in the long run.

The fairy books are inane and repetitive but generally good messages, for which I am grateful what with all the snotty kids in books. I've found plenty of other fairy books (DD would only read fantasy for a long while) but they all have the mean girl stereotype the heroine is up against. Bah.

Here are some of the easy chapter books she's been into: Fairy Chronicles, Fairy Realm, Clementine, Dick King Smith's Sophie series, Betsy-Tacy, Daisy Dawkins, the magic ballet slippers, the jewel princesses, this side of magic, Airy Fairy, Heidi Heckelbeck, mermaid SOS, and then graphic novels like Zita and Courageous Princess.