Image: Indiebound.org
Ronia the Robber's Daughter is wonderful, by the author of Pippi Longstocking. I have reviewed it here. I will add only, look at the Puffin cover above. Ronia is strong, independent, active, everything that I would want my daughter to be. She's a great role model for a girl.
The Dragon Whisperer by Lucinda Hare. Again, I have already written about it here. Set in a fantasy world (which Tim's fairy-loving girls may enjoy), it is the story of a brave, resourceful girl with the special gift of being able to communicate with dragons.
Princess Smartypants by Babette Cole is the story of a very modern, motorbike riding princess who doesn't want to get married. She has lots of suitors, who she sets impossible tasks. Finally Prince Swashbuckle fulfils them, but when she kisses him he turns into a frog, so she stays in her castle with her pets. A witty fairy tale.
The Ordinary Princess by MM Kaye is another subversion of a traditional fairy tale. Princess Amy is given the gift of ordinariness at her christening by the Fairy Crustacea. She grows up to be ordinary indeed- brown haired, freckled and preferring to play in the woods than the usual princess pursuits. She discovers that her parents are planning to hire a dragon for her to be rescued from by a prince, so she runs away to live in the woods. Eventually she goes to work as a kitchen maid in a neighbouring king's palace. Eventually she meets an ordinary prince. It's a lovely book for a princess loving little girl.
Joan Aiken's Dido Twite series (The Wolves of Willoughby Chase and sequels). Dido Twite is a little London urchin being dragged up in an alternate version of early 19th century England. I wrote about her here. She's vulnerable, tough and loyal, and the books are inventive, exciting and great fun to read.
For his older daughters, The Thirteen Treasures and sequels shows a more Shakespearean version of fairies; malignant and without morals or pity. I wrote about the first book here. In particular Red, the girl that Tanya meets, is a strong girl. They are great, exciting adventures.
Tamora Pierce's Lioness books are about Alanna, a girl who wants to be a knight rather than a lady. Her twin brother wants to learn to be a magician. Brother and sister swap places. Alanna is a great character, and while I usually don't enjoy books where girls have to be honorary boys in order to have worth, the conceit in this book works effectively. The negotiations that Alanna has to do between her wishes to be more than decorative are a great metaphor for girls growing up and working out who they are.
Finally, I have written about Terry Pratchett's Tiffany Aching several times, but she is such a great character. I'd have adored her when I was 10.
If he wants more ideas of books and films to watch with his daughters that will empower them rather than make them feel like rubbish for being girls, then A Mighty Girl has some fantastic ideas. Thankfully, my dad didn't seem to feel that being the father of three girls was such a tragedy of pinkness as Tim does.
Thankyou for these, I'll be introducing my daughter to them in due course (she's only 6 but her tastes skew older). I'm glad you've put The Ordinary Princess in; I love that book and included it in a blog topic on a similar theme here: http://jennywrenandbellawilfer.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/three-princesses-for-my-daughter.html
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting, Jenny Wren! I recommend the Dido Twite books for reading aloud to children. I would think that Ronia would be good to read aloud too.
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ReplyDeleteAs the mother of the younger two girls Tim Lott talks of in the column, I can safely say that you are right in your introduction. His tongue was, of course, firmly in his cheek. There was some bile on Twitter about the way the column portrayed girls, but in truth my girls, (particularly the 9 year old) are avid readers of much that is way outside of the fairy genre. They both hate pink, and are pretty much fairy averse. It just so happened that, on the day in question, a fairy event was taking place - shame that.
ReplyDeleteJust to reassure you further, here is my own (with help from my older girl) list of all time great reads for girls and boys alike that she has enjoyed over the last few years.
The Deepwoods Trilogy (The Edge Chronicles) by Chris Riddle and Paul Stuart
Ottoline by Chris Riddle and Paul Stuart
Checkmate by Malory Blackman
The Game of the Goose by Ursula Dubosarsky
Watership Down by Richard Adams
The Wind on the Moon by Eric Linklater
Anything by Jacqueline Wilson (she insisted I put this in)
The Little Wooden Horse by Ursula Moray Williams
The Magicians Nephew by C S Lewis
Lionboy by Zizou Corder
and finally, but best of all, Fearless by Tim Lott
As the mother of the younger two girls Tim Lott talks of in the column, I can safely say that you are right in your introduction. His tongue was, of course, firmly in his cheek. There was some bile on Twitter about the way the column portrayed girls, but in truth my girls, (particularly the 9 year old) are avid readers of much that is way outside of the fairy genre. They both hate pink, and are pretty much fairy averse. It just so happened that, on the day in question, a fairy event was taking place - shame that.
ReplyDeleteJust to reassure you further, here is my own (with help from my older girl) list of all time great reads for girls and boys alike that she has enjoyed over the last few years.
The Deepwoods Trilogy (The Edge Chronicles) by Chris Riddle and Paul Stuart
Ottoline by Chris Riddle and Paul Stuart
Checkmate by Malory Blackman
The Game of the Goose by Ursula Dubosarsky
Watership Down by Richard Adams
The Wind on the Moon by Eric Linklater
Anything by Jacqueline Wilson (she insisted I put this in)
The Little Wooden Horse by Ursula Moray Williams
The Magicians Nephew by C S Lewis
Lionboy by Zizou Corder
and finally, but best of all, Fearless by Tim Lott
Ohhh, sorry, my posts are multiple and deleted and multiple....apologies
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting, Ms N! Some great books there. I'd also suggest Helena Pielichaty and Anne Fine if they like Jacqueline Wilson, and when your 9 year old is a little older, Catherine Johnson's Brave New Girl is a brilliant book about a girl growing up in Hackney in the run up to the Olympics.
ReplyDeleteI'll add The Paperbag Princess, the Princeless comic (I will not stop recommending this, ever), and I second the Alanna books and Discworld books. Actually all of Tamora Pierce's books are great, the Circle of Magic ones were the first I read and they enchanted me. I'd have loved them as a child, has I found them then.
ReplyDeleteThanks Saranga! I'll check out the Princeless comic. How could I have missed out The Paperbag Princess? It's wonderful!
DeleteCannot resist adding one more, Flora Segunda and sequels by Ysabeau Wilce. Not only is the narrator, Flora, feisty, fearless and very funny, the fantasy world as well as being a magnificently weird, twisted version of California is very gender-equal, girls are soldiers, pirates and rangers. Better known in the States, Wilce is majorly talented.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of her! Thank you so much Jongleuse, I'll definitely look out for those books.
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