The Ghost Belonged To Me

Thirteen-year-old Alexander has girl problems, but not the kind you think.  His neighbor, Blossom Culp, asks to walk home with him after school so she can inform him that he has supernatural powers, and horribly, she’s right.  The ghost of a dead girl appears to him and warns him of an impending trolley wreck.  Then, when he saves the trolley riders and tells the truth about the ghost, his mother and sister are mad at him for getting in the newspaper and taking all the glory away from his sister’s big coming-out party.  Sheesh!  How’s a guy to get a little peace?

Author: Richard Peck
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s): boy
Part of a series: yes
Where: Rural Illinois
When: 1913

Note: hard-to-find

This is the first of four Blossom & Alexander books.  The others are:

• Ghosts I Have Been (#2)
• The Dreadful Future of Blossom Culp (#3)
• Blossom Culp and the Sleep of Death (#4)

The Greenglass House

Milo doesn’t like it when unexpected things happen, so sometimes it’s hard to be the adopted child of two people who run a smuggler’s hotel.  But when several guests show up unexpectedly near Christmas, they all seem mysteriously connected, even though they don’t know each other.  A role-playing game with a friend helps Milo set aside his worries and satisfy his curiosity about the guests and their interest in his very old house and its secrets.

Author: Kate Milford
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s): boy
Part of a series: no
Where: A fictional world like Eastern Canada
When: present day

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Charlie is a poor kid living with his parents and both sets of very old grandparents.  For his birthday, all he gets is a chocolate bar from the nearby chocolate factory belonging to the mysterious Mr. Willy Wonka.  When Charlie and his Grandpa Joe are invited to the visit the chocolate factory with four other children (all horrid in their own ways), they find that the factory, while wondrous and magical, can also be extremely dangerous!

Author: Roald Dahl
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s): boy
Part of a series: yes
Where: England
When: present

The Witches

A boy and his Norwegian grandmother take on The Grand High Witch Of All The World and the eighty-plus witches living in England! As with many of Roald Dahl’s books, some of the characters end up with very unhappy endings, which can be funny, crazy and scary.  For example, here is Norwegian Grandmother’s take on a boy whose gluttony gets him turned into a mouse: “…over in Norway where I come from, we are quite used to these sorts of happenings. We have learnt to accept them as part of everyday life.”

Author: Roald Dahl
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s): Boy
Part of a series: no
Where: England
When: present day

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Danny The Champion Of The World

Danny is a smart kid who has a warm relationship with his father.  As a regular kid, he doesn’t have the fabulous good luck or the magical experiences like kids in other books by Roald Dahl, but he doesn’t need them. Danny’s creative ideas are enough for him to take on the wealthy and bloodthirsty neighborhood villain.

Author: Roald Dahl
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s):  Boy
Part of a series: no
Where: England
When: present day

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Charlie And The Great Glass Elevator

Charlie, Mr. Wonka and Grandpa Joe take on space aliens and hopelessly useless government officials!  Some of Roald Dahl’s very best rhymes are in Charlie And The Great Glass Elevator.  Laugh out loud funny!

Author: Roald Dahl
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s):  Boy
Part of a series:  yes
Where: England and outer space
When: present day

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James And The Giant Peach

Magic goes a little crazy both in Charlie And The Chocolate Factory and James And The Giant Peach.  In one, picky squirrels throw people down the trash chutes (because they’re bad nuts!).  In the other, giant fruit becomes a deadly weapon.  And let’s not start on how hard it is to untie all the laces on a centipede’s boots! From this lowly beginning, James learns what a leader he is and creates a happily ever after for himself and some fascinating (not human!) friends.

Author: Roald Dahl
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s):  Boy
Part of a series: no
Where: England and New York
When: present day

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The Children Of Green Knowe

Tolly’s great-grandmother is very old, but she and Tolly understand each other right away when he goes to visit her on a school holiday.  And as Tolly discovers more friendly family members in their castle home (ones who died 400 years before!), he is excited to learn that his Granny knows about them too.  And, interestingly, they have a Granny who, in an old family portrait, looks just like Tolly’s Granny.  Hmmm!

Author: L.M. Boston
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s):  Boy
Part of a series:  yes
Where: England
When: present day

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The Candy Shop War

The candy shop in The Candy Shop War is not a regular candy shop. It has moon rocks that make you jump high into the air and land softly.  But , the owner of the candy shop, Ms. White, is a villain, and the four kids (who she tricks into helping her at first) must figure out how to stop her, despite her magical candy.

Author: Brandon Mull
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s):  Three boys and a girl
Part of a series: no
Where: US
When: present day

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Jingo Django

Mrs. Daggett and Dirtyface Jim Scurlock, the villains in Jingo Django, could be straight out of a Roald Dahl book, they’re so repulsive, stupid and mean, especially to children.  Orphan Jingo is stuck with them until he encounters the mysterious Mr. Peacock-Hemlock-Jones who needs a boy’s help with a treasure hunt.  But Daggett and Scurlock catch wind of the treasure and the chase is on!

Author: Sid Fleischman
Ages: 9 – 12
Main character(s):  Boy
Part of a series: no
Where: US
When: historical

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