This week I’ll be part of a 5 Days of Summer Series and I’m talking about 5 Days of Summer Reading. Each post comes with recommendations for how to choose good books, tips to encourage a love of books, and ideas for how to enjoy reading as a whole family–as well as a book list, so be sure to check them all out!

MONDAY: 5 Days of Summer Reading {For the Homestead}

TUESDAY: 5 Days of Summer Reading {For the Boys}

WEDNESDAY: 5 Days of Summer Reading {For the Girls}

THURSDAY: 5 Days of Summer Reading {For the Reluctant Reader}

FRIDAY: 5 Days of Summer Reading {For the Family}

Our Ladybug is 8 going on 9 (going on 19) this summer. Apparently girls grow up fast at this age, even though we’d much prefer for her to grow up slow. {smile}

I have to admit, I am not at all impressed with most “girl” books in the 3rd to 8th grade range these days. Most of it seems to be gossipy, catty, drama-filled, and have a completely unhealthy view of boys. Any boys–from their fathers to brothers to boyfriends. (A great post from Haley over at Carrots for Michaelmas puts some words to these thoughts.)

Here’s what we’re looking for in books to read with the Ladybug…

Great Girl Characters!

Our boys seems to connect more to the story line–a little less to the actual characters. The Ladybug really zeros in on the characters. She connects strongly with girl characters and immediately notes how the girls in the story act. So we hunt for great girl characters because she will notice. (Which is another reason why lame girl characters really frustrate me–our girls are really absorbing these role models when we let them read these books!)

• We want girls who work–not just sit around talking on the phone, hanging with their friends, and going to school.
• We want girls who contribute–to the home, to the family, to the community–not just to their little group of girlfriends.
• We want girls who love–with biblical love, self-sacrificing love, love that exhibits self-control and self-discipline for God, family, friends, the community, and the greater good. We don’t want to read a bunch of obsessive love, jealous love, love that encourages reckless behaviors and a lack of self-control, or love that defies and disrespects the family as a whole. (Obviously conflict is natural, but we want girls that value their family unit, even in disagreements.)
• We want girls who struggle–with real life temptations, bad decisions, wrong friendships, and hard choices.
• We want girls who triumph–by perseverance, by asking and receiving forgiveness, by making the hard choices and walking the narrow path.

Books We Love

{By the way, I don’t normally recommend adaptions, but if you’re looking for an independent reader or an intro for some of the heavier classics, I would highly recommend the Sterling Classic Starts series. We have 4 of them and they are good adaptions, sturdy books, and a decent price.}

• Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery. Ok, all of them. I have the whole boxed set from when I was in high school.  Every girl should know Anne.
• Pollyanna, Eleanor Porter. The classic book to help our girls cultivate a grateful heart!
• Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, Kate Douglass Wiggins. Make sure you get the original–the adaptions don’t do this story justice.
• The Calling of Emily Evans, Janette Oke. Actually, anything by Janette Oke! I love all of these and the Ladybug is already hooked as well. The Women of the West series are all strong, courageous, but grounded young women.
• Daughters of Faith, Wendy Lawton. Excellent series, girls with courage and faith–exhibited while they were young!–and a great dose of history! We’ve already enjoyed Pocahontas and Olive Oatman and we got the whole box set on Kindle for a steal.
• Sarah, Plain and Tall, Patricia McLachlin. We’ve enjoyed this whole series and these are easy to find at your local library as well.
• Fairchild Family, Rebecca Caudill. Simple and fun, family-oriented, and a bit of old-fashion homeschooling.
• First Farm in the Valley, Anne Pellowski. This series hits our hearts in so many ways–farming, young girls, and they’re Polish too! So glad I stumbled across these!
• Viking Quest, Lois Wilfred Johnson. This was on the boys’ list too. It has a brother and sister co-lead and the Ladybug really connected with the sister, Bree. (Again, the whole set for Kindle is a steal!)
• The Wind Blows Free (Texas Panhandle Series), Loula Erdman. This one is new to us and I’m reading it first. By the 3rd chapter I couldn’t wait to share it with the Ladybug. I think the boys will like it too. I was pleasantly surprised by how hefty this book was when we received it too–it’s almost 300 pages!
• Kathleen MacKenzie series, Tracey Craven. So inspiring! Family and coming of age with a strong faith focus.
• Childhood of Famous Americans, Augusta Stevenson. Again, this series was also on the boys’ list, but they have so many biographies of great women in the series, I just couldn’t leave it off.  We have already enjoyed Clara Barton, Laura Ingalls Wilder, and Betsy Ross.
• Tuesdays at the Castle, Jessica Day George. Turns out my daughter has a taste for fantasy…um, just like her momma. I don’t have a problem with the kids reading fantasy (with certain restrictions right now) as long as it’s guided and monitored. These are fun “magic” books with a good female heroine and the whole series is loved in our house. I think I might be a growing Jessica George fan–Dragon Slippers is on our list for soon.

Read WITH Her!

The Ladybug is what I call a “reluctant reader” right now (I’ll talk a bit more about that tomorrow!) so we spend a lot more time reading books together to encourage her to enjoy reading. We let her read what I would call “well-chosen filler books” a chapter or two at a time to work on her independent reading without her getting discouraged. A couple newer series that we are enjoying are Here’s Lily, Just Grace, Daisy Dawson, and The Bed and Biscuit.

Do you have any great books you would recommend for young girls? What are favorites in your house? Be sure to stop by tomorrow for tips and ideas on encouraging reluctant readers to love books too!