Hello,

I am after recommendations for a series of books suitable for a 6 year old girl, who adores the pink and princess side of life. Either to be red to or for her to read herself whether now or ‘in a little while’.

I have come to the conclusion that , she has grown out of the english books we have: shark in the Dark, Elmer etc. This might not seem as bizarre as it sounds: we have books she likes but she is French, and therefore her French mum gets to read the bedtime stories and I don’t get a look in! My 8 year old son loves Dirty Bertie, as does she, but I’m after something solely for her and me to delve into.

Thanks as ever.

Anything by Oliver Jeffers (our favourite is Lost and Found), plus Charlie and Lola go down well on our house.

I’ve a 6 year old girl and we’re currently reading our way through the Roald Dahl 15 Book Box Set, for around £20 it’s great value.

She’s enjoyed every book so far, and I have too.

Fantastic Mr Fox, BFG, James and The Giant Peach, Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, Danny Champion of the World to name a few.

2nd Roald Dahl, great fun and as they’re longer books it gets them into the idea of a longer time for the reward and patience for a longer book. I’m currently reading the witches with my soon to be 6yr old, great fun an I love doing the voices. All the baddies come out sounding like they’re from London for some reason.
I know you said pink and princesses but the horrid henry books are great fun too.

If she likes animals, try some of the Holly Webb books. Unless she’s already asking you for a pet…

As above, Holly Webb books go down well, my daughter has just turned 7 and loves them, along with:

David Walliams books (Gangsta Granny especially)

Clare Balding’s first kids book, The Racehourse That Wouldn’t gallop (which has sold well so no doubt will become a series)

Roald Dahl. While i struggle with it, our two love them. My 6yr old son also adores David Walliams’ books.

Enjoy it while you can! I really miss reading to my daughter, especially doing the silly voices…

My 6 year old’s favorite is the Far Away Tree closely followed by Harry Potter and anything Roald Dahl. The trouble with Harry Potter is that she now wants me to ready the next one (only read the first so far) but they start getting a bit scary and are more suitable for older children.

Mr Gum series. My daughters love them and not girly whatsoever!

I say that because she was obsessed with princess books so we tried something different and it’s opened a world of ‘boy books’ now.

Charlie and Lola is a good shout, as are Lauren Child’s Clarice Bean books. Sarah Lean does some nice younger fiction too. Walliams and Mr Gum are really 9+, but younger kids can get on with them.

For 6 year olds I really think Dr Seuss’s are the most fun (though that’s the upper range for them really). Silly text but a decent amount of it, plus lots of pictures.

As mentioned above Oliver Jeffers is brilliant, but is really aimed at 3-5. Though his Imaginary Fred book is perfect for a 6 year old.

Naughtiest Girl series

both my girls loved them

The Ottoline books by Chris Riddell are fantastic, as are the books by the authors of Pugs of the Frozen North – which itself is ace!

For god sake don’t let her find about about the “Rainbow Magic” series.

My daughter at a similar age enjoyed the Faraway tree series, Roald Dahl and David Walliams

chakaping – Member
For god sake don’t let her find about about the “Rainbow Magic” series.

Thankfully we’re out of that phase now, for a couple more years at least then the youngest daughter will be wanting them read, I must give them to charity before she becomes aware of them.

I’d suggest getting yourself down to the local library. We are currently getting through about 15 books a week with our 6 year old, plus the ones he gets from school as well, and there is no way I’d want to be forking out for all of that lot… plus the house would soon be very full of books.

By using the library we’ve read so many brilliant books, most that I have forgotten the names of, but our current favourites are anything by Oliver Jeffers.

Oh, and Dog did it! Pfffffffffft….

Currently going through the David Walliams books with my 6yo daughter. But be aware some of them are pretty dark (pets being ground into burgers, dad dying of miner’s lung, demons, witches, Tories)

Anything off this list would be good:
http://www.amightygirl.com/books?age_range_filter=4

For god sake don’t let her find about about the “Rainbow Magic” series.

Christ yes, I’ve had to read so many of those in the past. For your sanity avoid them. In brief summary:-

<insert name of fairy> has lost three magical trinkets. The two girls have to find all the trinkets before Jack Frost does. They do. The end.

And repeat with every name in the girls name book.

The beauty of reading to children of this age is that you can read the same thing to girls and boys and their gender makes not the slightest difference, or rather, it really shouldn’t.
My top recommendation that you might not see offered elsewhere would be the Moomin Valley series. The books are an utter delight in any form but at that age the story books that chronicle life in the Moomin valley.
There are also picture books written in verse form rather than prose that are just sheer unadulterated lyrical delights to read; in particular ‘Who Will Comfort Toffle’ will leave even the most hardy and stern of individuals feeling melted and tearful. The lyricism in that book in particular is simply wonderful and the occasional use of blank verse in otherwise very clever rhyme is genius (the point of making things like Harry Potter look truly like the really rather averagely written books that they are).

Wow. Thanks all. Roald Dahl doesn’t grab her by herself so to speak. We do several Roald Dahl’s with them together etc. We are looking for something more for her. Faraway tree is a good one that I know of from my childhood, and I will look at all the others.

Local library is a very good shout, and our 2 are very avid library visitors, but the issue here is for me finding something in English for her and me: She’s more French than English as she was born in France, where we live: They are book obsessed but she now has very few english books that she hasn’t grown out of. I’m English, her mum is French, hence the need for me to find something in English to allow a bit more Papa and daughter bonding.