My elder child is a voracious reader, often starting, and finishing, more than one chapter book in a day. (Case in point: in the amount of time it took me to write half this blog post, she had started and finished a Magic Treehouse book.) Her reading level exceeds her age, which makes it a challenge to find books that both challenge her reading skill without introducing inappropriate content.
We go to the library frequently and I often find myself overwhelmed with the options available for my kids, and unable to vet them all in real time. Because of this, I have them stick to familiar series, usually ones I remember enjoying as a kid. If I haven’t vetted a book myself, I usually talk to trusted friends for recommendations or I’ll check websites like Common Sense Media or Plugged In to see if the book is listed and what kind of content it contains. If that fails, I’ll google the book to see what kind of content and language it contains.
If you find yourself in the same position, here is a list of chapter books for kids anywhere from age 6 to 9 (mostly series, but some one-offs). Some of these books are ones we have firsthand experience reading, and other come from recommendations from trusted friends. I will also say that this list contains more books that would appeal to girls, because our daughter is the heavier reader right now. However, our son is not far behind her in reading skill, so as he begins reading at a more advanced level, I will update this list with books he likes. Note that The Chronicles of Narnia is not on this list because it’s slightly ahead of the reading level I’m going for with this list.
As always, I encourage you to vet these for yourselves to determine if the genre and content fit what you’re comfortable with your child reading. Most of these are series, with a few one-offs mixed in. Many of these series do not necessarily have to be read in order, which can be helpful if you’re getting most of them from the library, since you’re at the mercy of whatever title is available at the time.
Jack and Annie are a brother/sister duo who discover a magic treehouse in the forest near their home. The treehouse takes them to different time period where they have some kind of adventure before returning home. These books are great starter chapter books- usually about ten short chapters long.
Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose are a trio of friends who solve a mystery in every book. This series contains 26 books, each title starting with the next letter of the alphabet. Ron Roy also authored a few other series similar to this one, including Animal Mysteries and A to Z Mysteries Super Edition.
If you haven’t caught on by now, we lean toward adventure and mystery stories with our kids. The Boxcar Children was by far one of my favorite series to read as a kid, so I gladly introduced it to my daughter when she was old enough to read it. If you’re not familiar, a group of 4 siblings (who once lived in a boxcar but now live with their grandfather) solve mysteries in each book. I should probably note that none of the adventure or mystery series I’ve listed have been scary for our kids.
Another series I read as a kid that my daughter is enjoying now. The series follows Ramona as she grows up and is probably the most relatable for kids in this age group. I’m not sure how functional Ramona and her family are depicted (my daughter mentioned something about how they’re always arguing), but it offers good opportunities to discuss how families function.
You guessed it: another mystery series! Encyclopedia Brown is written to let kids solve the mystery alongside the main character and each book contains multiple stories and cases to solve.
Babysitter’s Club Little Sister
The image here is the old cover that I read when I was younger, but the covers for this series have been since updated. I haven’t introduced my daughter to the actual Babysitter’s Club books because I’m trying to avoid (as much as possible) too much content about boyfriends and romantic relationships. However, I had forgotten about the Little Sister books until we visited a used book store recently and they had one. I think my daughter has already read it 4 times since we brought it home less than a week ago, so I ordered several more for her to read.
A friend recently told me about these abridged versions of classic literature that are written for kids to enjoy. There are so many of them but some might take more vetting than others depending on the content contained in the originals. I recently began reading Robin Hood with my kids because they love the Disney movie and it was very enjoyable for all of us.
Little House in the Big Woods was one of my most favorite books as a kid. To be very honest, my child has the entire box set of this series and has not shown even a little interest in reading it! However, it may appeal to other kids so it’s included in this list.
Other Recommendations
- Charlotte’s Web
- Mr. Popper’s Penguins
- Dear America Series
- Amelia Bedelia Chapter Books
- Fancy Nancy Chapter Books
- Mercy Watson
- Imagination Station
- The Green Ember series
- The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls
- Abigail
- The Dead Sea Squirrels
Photo by Jael Rodriguez on Unsplash
