One Girl Revolution ([info]rosalynmoon) wrote in [info]feminist_fandom,
@ 2008-07-14 16:18:00
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books for 2nd grader
I just agreed to start tutoring my friend's 2nd grade sister in reading. I've only taught secondary English but I know I can handle this - I just need a little guidance with materials. She is going to be repeating the year due to her poor reading skills. He says that she loves fantastical stories...especially "princess" stuff.

Can anyone recommend good books for the 2nd grade level that might catch her interest? Anything romantic/fantasy would be good. Also, I feel it's my duty as a role model to introduce her to stories with stronger heroines that aren't always the typical "damsel in distress" which I think sends a horrible message to little girls if that's all they are exposed to (and my friend agrees). I know if it has the fantasy elements she likes she would still like stronger heroines since she refused to leave the room when her brother saw the japanese anime "Revolutionary Girl Utena" which turns the typical fairy tale upside down.

Please post your suggestions ASAP so I can start collecting books!!!

Thanks!

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[info]akiko
2008-07-14 08:49 pm UTC (link)
Man, 2nd grade? That's tough. Maybe some of Ursula LeGuin's children's books? If I looked at my shelf, I could find a few fighting princess books, but not for 2nd graders.

Utena is a pretty rockin' show, though :)

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[info]fandrogyny
2008-07-14 08:50 pm UTC (link)
I'm not sure about books on the grade 2 level, but if she likes Utena she could maybe get volumes of the manga as a reward for doing well with the other stuff? (You and her mom can check out whether there's anything objectionable in there -- my guess is that if the manga is anything like the anime, there won't be anything heavy until later on.)

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[info]fandrogyny
2008-07-14 08:51 pm UTC (link)
Also, The Paper Bag Princess is pretty solid. And any books about ancient mythology, too, which are always replete with stories of goddesses and how they were worshipped.

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[info]nobutterflies
2008-07-14 09:04 pm UTC (link)
I agree with this one--Paper Bag Princess is a good book for this reading/age level. My son read it in grade one, but it is definitely appropriate for slightly older readers too.

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[info]mresundance
2008-07-14 09:14 pm UTC (link)
Oooooh, yes! The Paper Bag Princess is an awesome book!

And I second the mythology books. Especially research myths on Inanna and Ishtar. Some of her myth-cycles/stories are amazing and feature romance.

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[info]mresundance
2008-07-14 09:11 pm UTC (link)
You might want to specify, for those outside the US, what age range 2nd grade is.

I am trying to think of books that would be appropriate for her reading level that are also fantasy with a stronger/more complex heroine.

I think the first two Harry Potter books might be ok, and the series overall features several female characters who contribute significantly to the story and don't sit on the sidelines waiting to be rescued.

Inkheart might be a bit too advanced, and it's huge, but it's definitely worth looking at. The story is primarily about a father and his daughter and their very poignant relationship. They really rescue each other in many ways. Aunt Elinor, a "supporting character" is a very loud, powerful woman in her own right as well - I really enjoyed her. Even though the book is 500 or so pages, I had not trouble keeping kids attention with this one when I read it aloud. They could've sat quiet for the entire day to finish it.

Island of the Blue Dolphins and Julie of the Wolves are also not fantasy, but have "adventure" elements, escapist elements that are part of fantasy, and certainly feature very self-reliant female protagonists.

Bridge to Terabitha has a strong self-reliant female character and fantasy elements, but it deals with death and the main narrative POV, I think, is through the male character's eyes.

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, a thrilling fantasy read with a couple pretty well developed female characters, one who becomes a princess and the other who becomes a queen. And the White Witch, who is a baddie, but I like her. I can see how she's problematic (Medusa-ish much?), but I think that, in this case, an 8-9 year old would enjoy the story. (I liked the talking beavers myself. :D) There's also the massive religious undertones which may or may not be ok.

Edited at 2008-07-14 09:19 pm UTC

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[info]revelininsanity
2008-07-14 11:35 pm UTC (link)
Julie Of The Wolves! Julie Of The Wolves!

It spawned a few sequels, too, so if she likes it, there's more!

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[info]idemandjustice
2008-07-14 09:12 pm UTC (link)
I'm not sure if Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones would be a little old for her or not. But it has a great main character.

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[info]akiko
2008-07-14 10:26 pm UTC (link)
Ooh, yeah. Also, there's a cartoon version (loosely based ...)

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[info]idemandjustice
2008-07-14 10:37 pm UTC (link)
I know, I love that movie.

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[info]rosalynmoon
2008-07-15 03:01 am UTC (link)
Own the book and movie...but the language in the book would be too challenging for her. Love Sophie though!!!!

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[info]streussal
2008-07-14 09:25 pm UTC (link)
Robert Munsch ("Paper Bag Princess") is pretty good in general. The girls and mothers in his stories behave pretty much the same as the boys and fathers. The girls just wear dresses sometimes. (His website has recordings of many of the books, if you want to check them out beforehand. (It doesn't include the art, which I love.) I have a fondness for "Purple, Green, and Yellow".

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[info]tammylee
2008-07-14 10:27 pm UTC (link)
Oh! I should have read the comments before I posted!
I second The Paperbag Princess.

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[info]nighteevee
2008-07-14 11:11 pm UTC (link)
If comic books are considered "reading material" nowadays, The Courageous Princess by Rod Espinosa would fit both the topic and the age group.

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[info]akiko
2008-07-15 12:37 am UTC (link)
Oh, Polly and the Pirates or Courtney Crumrin by Ted Naifeh. But *DEFINITELY* vet them with her mom before giving them over. They're great stories about middle-school-aged girls who kick ass and take names, but they may be a little, um, mature or scary for her. So maybe put that in your back pocket for when she's a little older. Hum.

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[info]rosalynmoon
2008-07-15 03:04 am UTC (link)
Yeah, I'll try those when she's older if anything.

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[info]queenitsy
2008-07-15 12:03 am UTC (link)
Hmm. Nobody's Princess by Esther Friesner is feminist reinvention of Helen of Troy for about that age range; she might trip over the Greek names, but otherwise, it's pretty easy. I also read Dragon's Egg by Sarah L. Thomson recently; it's about an innkeeper's daughter and some dragons, with a boy sidekick who turns out to be a prince. (The only princess is a dragon, I believe.)

OH! OH! If you can find a copy, Bruce Coville's The Dragonslayers! Coville was the author who made me love reading, and it's a book about a spunky princess who fights a dragon to save the kingdom and to save herself from an arrange marriage, and it's EXACTLY that reading level!

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[info]daegaer
2008-07-15 08:03 am UTC (link)
Diana Wynne Jones! While there aren't many princesses, her books are fantasies, and feature good female characters - Charmed Life has a wonderful girl-villain, Dogsbody has a girl with awful relatives (and a dog which is actually a star :-), Power of Three has girls who can see the future, or shapechange, or refuse to curl up and die when boys tell them they're fat.

Elizabeth Goudge's The Little White Horse appealed to me greatly when I was that age (I'm assuming she's eight or nine, BTW) and is a beautiful, gently fantasy. You might want to steel yourself for dealing with tears by the end though . . .


ETA to close tags, D'Oh!

Edited at 2008-07-15 08:03 am UTC

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[info]kecen
2008-07-15 09:29 pm UTC (link)
There's plenty of stories with strong heroines, at least the ones I read (they must be really common in books, although they always have a male sidekick). Hm, "The Hermit Thrush Sings" by Susan Butler is something I remember reading. "Kiki's Delivery Service" (yep, that's a book) might be in the interest category because of the length of the book.

Hayao Miyazaki's films have many heroines, although they aren't books.

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[info]twitchytwitch
2008-08-29 07:11 pm UTC (link)
Worthy of note, there's also a Ghibli anime film of Kiki's Delivery Service.

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