Thursday, January 13, 2011

Best children's and teen book series

Here are my top ten children/teen book series. I define a series as at least 4 books (3 is a trilogy, 2 is a sequel). These were my favorite series growing up.

1. Boxcar Children. This was probably the first series I ever read. I think I was in second grade when I read the first one. The books are about 4 siblings who are orphans. They start out living by themselves in an abandoned boxcar, but later get adopted by their grandfather. Throughout the series, they solve mysteries and go on several adventures.

2. Nancy Drew. What little girl doesn't like to read about Nancy Drew solving mysteries? My friends and I all loved these books, and I read all 56 books in the original series. Again, these are for a younger audience, about 2nd-6th grade.

3. Chip Hilton. This series is probably hard to find these days, but well worth the effort. This is a sports series about Chip Hilton, a high school (and later college) athlete who plays baseball, basketball, and football. Of course he is amazing at all 3 sports. The books are well-written and have good morals. Chip is the most humble, honest, self-sacrificing star athlete you'll ever read about in your life.

4. Chronicles of Narnia. I got this series in 3rd grade from a book fair at school and read all 7 books in record time. I absolutely loved the magical fantastical land of Narnia. When I re-read the books a couple years later, I understood more of the allegories and enjoyed the books anew the second time around.

5. Harry Potter. Of course, this is the series that the most people will have read, and everyone will have heard about. I enjoyed reading about the entire wizarding world. From Quidditch to the Sorting Hat, everything was creative and entertaining. It was a sad day when the 7th book came to a close!

6. Anne of Green Gables. This is a classic. I still love to re-read these books today. I love Anne's transformation from a freckly-faced impulsive child to a sophisticated woman. Anne is one of those characters that I aspire to be like. Her quick wit, spontaniety, kind heart, and stubborness make her one of my favorite characters in literature.

7. Christy Miller. I loved reading these books in middle school and high school. Christy is an average teenager trying to make the right decisions and balance everything in her life. I found these books to be far from the typical high school fare. They are insightful and inspiring, and I actually learned a lot about life when reading them.

8. Jennie McGrady. This is a fun Christian series about a teenage girl who solves mysteries. And gets in a lot of sticky situations. And has a lot of hot boyfriends. What more could you ask for?

9. Aloha Cove. This 8-book series is extremely hard to find, but I loved it. It's about a girl named Cass who moves to a small island in the Caribbean after her mom gets remarried. I loved how authentic the characters were, and how the books dealt with real-life problems like bad break-ups, fitting in, and anorexia.

10. Elsie Dinsmore. This series follows a young girl as she grows up, gets married, and has kids of her own. The first few books are my favorite. In the first book, Elsie's father comes back to her aunt's house after being away for many years. He has become a hardened man and it's difficult for him to establish a bond with his little daughter. Throughout the books, you see how the father-daughter bond develops and changes.

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