Little Wamen (Lousa May Alcott), the Little House books by Loura Engles Wilder, and Anne of Green Gables.
I have read all of these books multiple times. I generally read the Alcott book (and the other two books in her March family trilogy), and also all the Little House books once a year, and I am now 57-years-old.
Although the Little House books are good for young children, I think that
Little Women (and the other two books in the March family trilogy by Alcott), and also the Anne of Green Gables books are much too advanced for a 6-7 year old boy or girl. Although on the surface, these books are just moral stories about girls, there is much more under the surface, and most children do not have the life experiences to be able to understand or appreciate these books.
E.g., much of
Little Women is about the March sistersā various experiences with romanceāhardly something that a 6-7 year old needs to be concerned about. A better choice for that age would be the next book in the series,
Little Men.
Also, the books are written in a historical context (Civil War and the aftermath), which might be difficult for a child without knowledge of this period of U.S. history to understand.
I think that all of the books listed above are better-suited to girls, and that it would be much better to find books written for boys. It is important that little boys and little girls develop a gender-identity, and one way to do this is to provide appropriate literary role models. When the boys get older and have a solid sense of their own masculinity, then they can possibly enjoy the āgirlsā books.ā In fact, I believe that
Little Women should be required reading for all teenaged boys and girlsāit changed the way childrenās literature was done.
The exception would be
Farmer Boy, by Laura Ingalls Wilder (itās one of the Little House books, but the least popular of the series). This is the wonderful story of Lauraās real-life husband, Almanzo Wilder, and it is ALL boy and lots of fun! I think a little boy would enjoy this book.
However, I am a big believer in selecting books for children that are age-appropriate, even if the child is āsmart.ā Sometimes I think that parents and other well-meaning adults want their children to āskipā the ābaby booksāānot sure why, but I suspect that these adults have a strong desire for their child to be different/better than all the other ānormalā children.
I think parents and other adults need to be careful about this. We shouldnāt rush children through their childhood and expose them to art and entertainment that they donāt have the emotional maturity to appreciate and understand.
If you check with your local library, they have a list of the books that are appropriate for every age of childhood. Select from that list. If the child is truly so intelligent that they read these books in a few minutes and ask for more books, then move up the list to the next highest-age.
But in my opinion, itās important for parents who give children āadvancedā books to provide a context for those books. E.g., tell the child about war, the Civil War, and take them to see the various Civil War landmarks and memorials. Even if you live up North, chances are good that there is some kind of Civil War Memorial in your area.
My husband would recommend the Danny Dunn books for young boys. My husband was (and still is) very intelligent and read advanced books, but he loved the stories written for young boys.
I recommend the Gone-Away series by Enrightālots of fun, and pretty gender-neutral.
