Recommended Book for 4th Grader

[cassandraclaire73 at yahoo.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 2055

--- In HPforGrownups at egroups.com, summers.65 at o... wrote:
> >
> >Like millions of other kids this past summer, my grandkids have 
been
> >reading Harry Potter.  Nick, who is going into 4th grade was a
> >special surprise.  He never showed much interest in reading or
> >academics in general, but he devoured all four books this summer,
> >with some help from his mother and Jim Dale.
> >
> >I'm wondering what would be an appropriate book to get him for his
> >9th birthday. I'm considering either The Hobbit, which I read in 
high
> >school, or Narina, which I have not read.  Can anyone tell me what
> >would be more appropriate?  What other books are kids in his peer
> >group reading now (after HP)?
> >
> >Thanks
> >Jim Flanagan
> >
> First, there's the Diane Duane series that begins with "So You Want 
to Be a
> Wizard."  There are I believe three more in the series 
including "Deep
> Wizardy" and "High Wizardry."
> 
> Also, "Holes" by Louis Sachar is a popular after-Potter book.  I 
also
> recommend John Bellairs who wrote a series of stories about a young 
boy
> names Lewis Barnevelt who went to live with his Uncle Jonathan who, 
along
> with his across-the-street neighbor Mrs. Zimmerman, is a wizard.  


I'd agree with all Lori's recommendations and add one author: Diana 
Wynne Jones. I've given her books to all my little cousins who loved 
Harry Potter and they've been huge successes. She's British, like 
JKR, so while her books might be a bit harder to find than others, 
they have a very British/HP charm and a spectacular sense of humor -- 
they absolutely make you laugh out loud. They're classified as 
intermediate as well. She wrote a fabulous series about a boy who 
discovers he has nine lives and is therefore a powerful wizard 
called "The Lives of Christopher Chant" as well as some other 
favorites ... "Howl's Moving Castle" about a charming dark wizard who 
turns out to be not as bad as everyone thinks, and "Archer's Goon" 
which is impossible to describe but so funny that I must have read it 
a dozen times. I know you can get her books off amazon.co.uk...I've 
got them all.