Need book recommendations for 4th grader

[Maxlee]

I need some book recommendations for DD who is in 4th grade and reading at level Z+ (whatever that means) - need books that are age appropriate and having a hard time finding ones that DD is interested in. Thanks!

[daisysmom]

My 3rd grader just finished a series called "mother daughter book club" that she loved. She reads above grade level, not sure if she still has a letter level, but these were fun and I didn't read them, but I didn't think they were inappropriate.

[anonomom]

Not sure of the reading level, but my 4th grader loved Princess Academy, most of ED Baker's books, and anything by Raina Telgameier. She's currently reading The Girl With The Silver Eyes. And in school, they just read One Crazy Summer.

And of course Harry Potter. :-)

[lines]

My girls love the Wendy Mass books and I think they are all age appropriate. Also the Shannon Hale books. Princess Academy is probably the easiest read of her books but we loved Goose Girl and the followup books to that. My 3rd grader who loves to read loved all of Road Dahl's books.

[rlu]

FWIW, I use www.arbookfind.com as a jumping point for books for DS. We get his AR (ATOS book) level though and I don't know where Z+ fits into that.

Using the advanced search you can use the reading level, "interest level" of lower grade (to keep appropriate for OP, for DS we use middle grades) and narrow by interests in the additional criteria selections. You'll want lower grade for "interest level" to keep them appropriate but that isn't perfect so I do preview books I'm unfamiliar with before giving them to DS. We found a lot of dog books that way.

Asking a librarian is a good idea, but often they can't come up with a list beyond 2 or 3 off the cuff, IME. I have had librarians offer to work on a list for us while we browse. School librarian should be able to tell you what books are in the Z+ reading level for 4th grade and what might be popular in that range.

[ray7694]

I am a certified librarian in an elementary school and at that level I would be most concerned with fostering interest more than worrying about what level the book may be. My son was at a similar place in 4th and I got recommendations from a junior high librarian. If you let a librarian know what she has enjoyed in the past that helps. You can also search things for books similar to Harry Potter etc as an example.

[ang79]

My 9 yr. old DD1 is an avid reader and reads at high level. She currently is into The Sisters Club (same author as the Judy Moody series which she also loved) and Cupcake Diaries. She also likes Abby Hayes and Just Grace series. I saw a 5th grade student reading the Land of Stories series when I was subbing in a school and thought that might appeal to her too, but haven't checked them out from the library yet. It looked similar to the Whatever After series that she read last year (she's waiting for the next book in that series to come out). Grimmtastic Girls is another one she read this past fall I think (she tends to read through these series quickly and then has to wait for the next one in the series to come out).

[georgiegirl]

My DD the same age just finished The Giver. She's looking for a new series also.

[anonomom]

DD loved Land of Stories last year.

My own kid won't read them, but Tamora Pierce has several good series. Just be aware that the Song of The Lioness quartet has characters having sex.

Also, Anne of Green Gables is great for this age.

[Simon]

I agree with focusing on supporting her interests and worrying less about the official levels unless its a concern over choosing books that might be too hard and turn her off to reading.

My DD the same age just finished The Giver. She's looking for a new series also.

Did she read all 3 books? I read the Giver, too, but my Ds read all 3 books and said he liked them.

I agree with Land of Stories and maybe some of these: The Penderwicks, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (+Sequel), The One and Only Ivan, Flora and Ulysses, Wonder, Tuesdays at the Castle.