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“When you read a book as a child, it becomes a part of your identity in a way that no other reading in your whole life does.” – Kathleen Kelly, You’ve Got Mail
Three years ago one of my posts went viral for the first time. I shared about using good literature to raise strong daughters. I featured heroines that had a lot more backbone and a lot less vampire-obsession than Twilight‘s Bella Swan and it seemed to strike a chord. It’s been viewed hundreds of thousands of times and over 700 folks chimed in to share about their favorite books in the comments.
But here’s where I went wrong: I only included 10 books, so I thought I would expand the list a bit and share 10 MORE books that are essential reading for girls. Boys will enjoy them, too, but we’re focusing on nurturing strong daughters in this post. I included mostly classics (because I think books become classics for good reason) but there’s one or two more modern works that should be classics in the list, too.
There’s plenty of terrible role models our daughters will encounter so why not offer some good ones they can carry with them forever?
1. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis
In the original list I included Lewis’s Till We Have Faces which I think is his best work, but the combox was in uproar that I didn’t include Narnia. And for good reason, there are some fantastic heroines in the series. I have a soft spot for “Queen Lucy the Valiant” and that’s partly why one of my daughters is named Lucy.
2. Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild
I didn’t pick this book up until I was in my twenties, but I absolutely fell in love with the Fossil sisters. It’s a delightful read about a set of highly resourceful, talented, and ambitious orphans who must struggle to take care of each other and pursue their dreams. It also comes highly recommended from Kathleen Kelly.
3. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
One of the first science fiction books to feature a female protagonist, A Wrinkle in Time follows the adventures of Meg Murry who is looking for her father who mysteriously disappeared.
4. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Mary Lennox is a self-centered, spoiled child who transforms into a strong-willed, feisty girl who learns to care about others with the help of a hidden garden and two friends. This Mary, Mary Quite Contrary is such an unforgettable character.
5. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
I TRY not to include two books by the same author on any of my book lists but having just re-read both TSG and ALP, I couldn’t leave out the splendid Sara Crewe. Orphaned as a young girl, Sara is at the mercy of her cruel former headmistress who treats her like a slave. Her imagination and kindness give her the strength to survive.
6. The Railway Children by E. Nesbit
All of E. Nesbit’s children’s books are charming, but this one is my favorite. Roberta, Phyllis, and Peter move from their fancy London house to an old house in the country after their father is framed for a crime and the family loses their income. Roberta (or Bobbie) helps hold their family together and fights to prove her father’s innocence.
7. Emily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery
I adore the Anne-with-an-E, of course, but I was just recently introduced to Emily. Like Anne Shirley, Emily Starr is an orphan and an aspiring writer, but she has her own delightful personality that distinguishes her from the well-known Anne.
8. The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald
Princess Irene is the target of a plot by the dreadful goblins living under her father the king’s domain. She befriends a young miner named Curdie and ends up saving him from peril. Irene and Curdie are both brave and selfless and this fairytale is not to be missed.
9. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
This one is a classic for good reason. Who doesn’t love Scout?
10. The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall
When I read The Penderwicks for the first time, I couldn’t believe that I had found a recently published book that I loved as much my classic favorites. But this series is just spectacular. The Penderwick sisters have a wonderful father, but their mother passed away soon after the youngest sister, Batty, was born.
As Kathleen Kelly would say, “Read it! I know you’ll love it!”
There’s more essential books out there. What would you add to the list?
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Thanks for the ballet shoes recommendation…I hadn’t heard of that book, but after some digging, I was able to buy four books from that Shoe series for $12 shipped thru half.com.
(I checked my library but they have none of the books!)
I’m shocked your library had none of the books! I hope you love it. There’s also a pretty decent movie version starring Emma Watson to watch afterwards
So weird, right? They do have a pretty good selection most of the time, but then they have some odd things missing.
Thank heavens for half.com. =P
(Librarian speaking here)
There is an easy way to fix that – without buying any books yourself! Just about every library has a patron ‘suggestion box’ or ‘request form’ that any card carrying person can fill out to request that specific books be added to the collection (it is ‘your’ library after all!). Librarians spend a lot of time & research into purchasing new books that their patrons will love & use, but sometimes miss things or just don’t have certain authors/genres on their personal radar as much. If a patron has specifically requested a book, it’s a pretty sure sign that it’s something patrons actually want, so it is almost guaranteed to be purchased – less work for the librarian when it comes to ordering time! All you need to include in the request is the basic author, title (ISBN if you have it), price, and a short description of why you think it needs to be in the collection – such as teacher recommendation or a review you’ve read. It usually takes a month or two to get through the purchase cycle plus processing time to get the books ready for circulation, but then the books are there for you and everyone else in your community to enjoy – no money required!
(Sidebar for adult books: This is also how you get more awesome Catholic books into your local libraries! Religion tends to be a huge gap area for collection development in public libraries, so I think librarians especially appreciate suggestions in this area . My day was made when I did this once for a book I was sure NO ONE else would ever want to read, and went to check out the book I requested, only to discover that *gasp* another person had already put it on hold. Stealth evangelization at work
)
The “All-of-a-Kind Family” series about a Jewish family with five daughters growing up in New York around World War One is fabulous. Highly recommended (even by my daughter).
Ohhh, I always LOVED those books.
Oh how I love our Kathleen Kelly!!!! That HAS to be my favorite movie. Thanks for sharing this! I dont have girls (yet…*crosses fingers*) but I’m always looking for book recommendations!
-Heather
The Penderwicks! Yes!
As a teenager I always loved “The Two Princesses of Bamarre” by Gail Carson Levine who wrote Ella enchanted. The “shy” sister has to fight dragons and ogres and discovers that she’s pretty awesome and brave too.
We adore the Penderwicks! We have the newest one on audio book that we’re listening to in the car this week. It was fun to find something new. We’ve read almost everything on your list, but we’ll have to check the rest out from the library.
We must be kindred spirits! I read and loved your original post, and earlier this year compiled my own post of favorite books for girls (I have three daughters, so I spend a lot of time hunting up good books for girls). Imagine my delight at seeing no fewer than five of my own favorites on this list! Nice work
Ballet Shoes is new to me, and I’d second Kristen’s All-of-a-Kind Family. We just finished that one and loved it.
The Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace is also great (and Kathleen Kelly mentions this one too)! Like the Anne series, you can grow up with these books. They start when Betsy and Tacy are 6 and continue until Betsy gets married. They take place in Deep Valley which is based on the author’s own hometown and is full of wonderful characters and places. And even though they take place at the turn of the century, Betsy and her friends still feel relatable. I’m 24 and I still re-read them every year!
I was going to recommend the same series.
The BEST. Also, “Heidi” by Joanna Spyri (not the abridged version!)
Thanks for the recommendation! We got the first Betsy-Tacy book and enjoyed it.
I echo all the other suggestions and add the Girl of the Limberlost (was that on your original list? Forgive me if it’s a repeat; I can’t remember).
Oh, another one is Daddy Long Legs!!! I re-read it constantly.
my daughter loves everything wizard of oz and I think Dorothy is a great role model. A girl that can smack a lion in the face and call out a charlatan wizard without fear! We love the Charles Santore illustrated version which is great for little ones.
I have read most of these stories and can’t wait to try the ones I haven’t. I would add Little Women, and a cute little book called Dealing With Dragons. It was one of my favorite books to reread.
First of all, I read ‘Till We Have Faces’ (incredible book. I recommend it to people all the time now) and ‘Kristin Lavransdatter’ (just finished it a couple weeks ago. Wow.) because of your last list, so THANK YOU.
As for other books, it’s hard to even add to your lists — you’ve pretty much put all the ones I would have. Two favorites of mine from when I was a girl, that I can’t wait to share with a daughter someday (though I’ve shared one of them with my sons and will introduce the other soon) are ‘Matilda’ by Roald Dahl and ‘Number the Stars’ by Lois Lowry.
Thanks for the great list! Have you read all of the Emily books? I thought that the series was good in general but ended very poorly from a literary perspective. I really liked the outcome, but not how it was done.
I heartily second Maggie’s recommendation of the Betsy-Tacy series! I wrote my Master’s thesis on the series and Maud Hart Lovelace. Betsy Ray is probably my all-time favorite protagonist.
This is my first comment and I just had to say how excited I am for you to be back in Waco as a fellow Baylor grad (and University Scholars alum, which from context clues I think you might have done too?). Enjoy the cowboy coffee for me
I have friends who did internships at the farm too so I know what a special place that is.
Okay so I think we’re soul twins. Most of those are some of my favorite books from childhood. Only one missing is Anne of Green Gables! Um, and I knew immediately that you had seen Who’s Got Mail. We must be soul twins with our taste in movies as well. I haven’t seen that movie in a while, but when I was single and wondering if I’d ever meet Mr. Right, I’d get my regular Meg Ryan fix in along with a good cup of tea or cocoa.
You know what, these are amazing books for BOYS to read, as well! Being comfortable with strong, creative, resourceful (young) females? Yes, please :).
Here comes my favorite book of late: Gentian Hill from Elizabeth Goudge… just fantastic! High quality and lots of depth and great characters…
Read it you’ll love it.
Might be out of print, but second hand is also fine!
I must have read The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi a dozen times as a young girl. I can’t wait to read it to my daughters…and my sons!
I also loved Lloyd Alexander’s books, particularly the Prydain Chronicles. And, as an adult, I discovered Shannon Hale’s books–my particular favorites are The Goose Girl and Princess Academy (the title doesn’t do it justice, don’t let it put you off!).
The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope is one of my all time favorites!
Also, check out Bethlehem Press’s wonderful collection of historical fiction. When we did history in our homeschool, I would usually find a fabulous book from B Press to match the era we were studying.
The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes is another good one.
Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Brink. I liked it so much more than the Little House series. Caddie has more spunk!
I always loved reading The Famous Five series. I loved all of the children especially George (Georgina)