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Anonymous
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| Posted: Oct 25 2011 at 2:17pm | IP Logged
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Our dd who attends a Catholic school was literally handed by her teacher a book for her book review that sent shivers down our spine (coincidentally, the name of the book was "Shivers").
Parent-teacher interview is coming up, and I'd like to have booklist of good books to recommend.
I know I can go on Ambleside. But I would like to hear what YOUR CHILD of 13 years old thoroughly enjoyed at this age.
Any recommendations would be of great help!
Thank you!
Update 11-23 below!
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Erin
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Are you wanting a list for just girls? Or a list for the whole class (assuming it is co-ed) with books that would interest boys as well as girls?
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Anonymous
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| Posted: Oct 25 2011 at 5:16pm | IP Logged
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hmmm..ideally just for girls but since the teacher has a basket of all her "favourites" (such as Shiver, the Vampire books, etc) right there in the classroom for anyone to pick up and read, let's say for both females/males.
As well, there can be a list specifically for the girls, then another for the boys.
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guitarnan
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Tossing out titles (not necessarily what anyone else would consider "living books") that my children loved at 13:
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate (yes, evolution is discussed)
Tiger's Curse
Books I loved when I was 13:
The Betsy-Tacy high school books
The Lord of the Rings trilogy
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
Mara, Daughter of the Nile
all the Laura Ingalls Wilder and Anne of Green Gables books
Bonanza Girl and The Nickel -Plated Beauty by Patricia Beatty (and her other, now out of print books)
The Egypt Game
Judith of France and Journey for a Princess by Margaret Leighton (both out of print and very hard to find)
(I would put all of my favorites into the "living books" category...maybe I was destined to homeschool after all!  )
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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SeaStar
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When I was 13 I was heavily into all of James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small series. Admittedly not for everyone... but hilarious if you can take the science.
Also Ann of Green Gables and Narnia- all we had at home was Nancy Drew, and I remember being so excited to find these books  .
Oh- I also found The Scarlet Pimpernel at the library and thought that was the best book I'd ever read- romance and adventure 
But I am an old timer and not very up on what 13 yo's these days like. Still, I do like to think of what CS Lewis said about a book worth reading at 15 is equally worth reading at 50 (something like that, anyway).
Shame on that teacher for giving your dd the shivers! Although... the teacher may not know herself what a truly good book is. I like your plan to have a list in hand 
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SallyT
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I just lent a friend a bunch of our books for her 13yo daughter, for much the same reason -- everything she was bringing home from school was junk.
I can't remember everything I lent her, but when the daughter brought them back, she had written me a sweet note remarking that she especially liked Gary Blackwood's The Shakespeare Stealer and Shakespeare's Scribe.
My older kids at that age both liked Sun Slower, Sun Faster by Meriol Trevor and They Loved to Laugh (I forget the author, but it's a Bethlehem Book); also Jane Eyre, Great Expectations, and The Scarlet Pimpernel. Oh, and my daughter also enjoyed Regina Doman's fairy-tale novels -- The Shadow of the Bear and sequels.
There is *so much junk* for this age group out there, and I honestly think that many teachers and school librarians have no clue -- they think the way to a child's heart and imagination is to be edgy and "relevant." Bleah.
Good luck helping that teacher to fill her basket with some good books, or barring that, helping your daughter to choose beyond the basket.
Sally
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Mackfam
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I recommend many titles that are already listed, and I know I have more to recommend...but I wanted to quickly recommend Bethlehem Books (the page linked is specifically selected as appropriate for 12+)
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guitarnan
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Bethlehem Books has so many wonderful books for this age group!!!
I do think it would be helpful to know what types of books your dd enjoys (historical, contemporary, fantasy, nonfiction) because there are many wonderful books out there for young people, and there are many moms of teens here who can offer suggestions.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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Erin
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I would really, really second the Bethlehem books rec for this age group. They have a delightful selection for girls this age.
Also
Pride and Prejuice- Jane Austen
all of LM Montgomery, not just her Anne of Green Gables books.
The Katy books, Susan Coolidge. Although these may not able to your dd's classmates.
Abbey Girls.
Lorna Dopne- RD Blackmore
Jane Eyre- Charlotte Bronte
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JodieLyn
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My 14 yr old is quite an eclectic reader.. classics like Jane Eyre, fantasy like the retold fairy tales (Beauty by Robin McKinley or The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale), even some carefuly selected what I'd considers borders on horror (The Hangman's Curse by Frank Peretti) and all kinds of historical fiction/non-fiction.
My 13 yr old loves the classic adventure stories.. The Scarlet Pimpernel, The Prince and the Pauper, Jack London.. as well as Narnia and Percy Jackson and the Olympians series..
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Anonymous
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| Posted: Oct 29 2011 at 7:27am | IP Logged
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Thank you to all of you who made the time to help me in putting together a list of "good living literature" for my dd's class. I am going to see how many I can get ahead of time, to bring with me to the meeting, and hopefully replace the ones in her basket.
I will let you know how it goes with the teacher
In thanksgiving, I am offering up a Rosary for each one of you. (As well as for those who add to this thread after my post).
Thanks so much dear friends
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dinasiano
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Both my 13 year old daughter and I loved this book:
"Awakening" A Crossroad in Time Book. You can find the exact title and author on amazon or Regina Doman's website. There are other really good
books on that website as well.
Dina
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Anonymous
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All went well ~ thanks be to God! Our heartfelt thanks to those of you who prayed. It really meant alot to both my dh and I as we entered the classroom. We did not know what to expect.
My dd's teacher exclaimed she had no idea there was a problem with "Shiver". Right away she told us she'd take it out of her book basket. Phew Apparently it was given to her from a student from another year. And she trusted it was okay. The teacher was so sincere as she was telling us.
She graciously accepted the booklist I handed her (many of the suggestions that you dear Moms gave me were on that list). She was mightily pleased with the 5 books we donated towards her basket of books - the ones I was able to get ahold of secondhand were "Awakening" by Claudia Cangilla McAdam, "Arms of Love" by Carmen Marcoux, "Black Beauty" by Anna Sewell, "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare and "Branded" by Eric Walters.
Another highlight of the meeting was her solution to our concern over the SCHOLASTIC book/magazine class catalogs that are handed out once a month, encouraging students and their families to order/purchase from. "Shiver" is promoted in them, along with many others of the same nature .
Ironically there is a tinyred line underneath certain book descriptions warning parents about the contents of the book. The teacher reassured us she will let her students know if any one of these books are chosen, that they are no longer in stock. How about that?!?
The power of prayer is REMARKABLE. We have witnessed this firsthand. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!
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Booksnbabes
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 God is good! So glad things went well.
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Wife to wonderful DH, mom to SIX beautiful gifts from God!
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cathhomeschool
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Wow. That's awesome! I'm so thankful that it turned out well. 
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Janette (4 boys - 22, 21, 15, 14)
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4Real Forums : Living Literature
Topic: Grade 8 Living Lit Books? UPDATE
