keep reading 10 must-read fantasy books for 4th graders
The thing I love most about fantasy books is how many kinds of fantasy books are out there: high fantasy, portal fantasy, xenofiction, epic fantasy. The list goes on and on!
You are reading: Fantasy books for 4th graders
so even if you think you don’t like fantasy, there’s probably a subgenre of fantasy that you’ll enjoy. Today I’m going to walk you through some of the fantasy genres and provide you with some fantasy book recommendations for kids in 4th grade or around 10 years old.
Looking for books for older readers?
- click here for fantasy books for 11 year olds!
- click here for fantasy books for 12 year olds!
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descriptions come from amazon; some are edited for length
fantasy books for 4th grade
high fantasy
high fantasy is what one usually thinks of when thinking of fantasy books. high fantasy takes place in a totally fictional world of ours. it’s a made-up world containing fictional creatures and sometimes fictional languages.
the girl who drank the moon by kelly barnhill
“every year, the people of the protectorate leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. they hope this sacrifice will prevent her from terrorizing the city of her. but the witch of the forest, xan, is kind. Xan rescues the children and delivers them to foster families on the other side of the forest, feeding the babies starlight along the way. One year, Xan accidentally feeds a baby with moonlight instead of starlight, filling the ordinary child with extraordinary magic. xan decides that she should raise this girl, whom she calls luna, as her own. As Luna’s thirteenth birthday approaches, her magic begins to emerge, with dangerous consequences.”
the frog princess from e.d. baker
“Princess Emerald, also known as Emma, isn’t exactly an ideal princess. her laughter is more donkey bray than jingle bells, she trips over her own feet and she doesn’t like prince george, whom her mother hopes to marry. But if Emma ever thought of escaping her troubles, she never expected it to happen by turning into a frog! When she is convinced to kiss a frog so he can be a prince again, somehow the spell is reversed and she turns into a frog. thus begins her adventure: a quest to return to human form.”
If you are interested in more high fantasy books, please click the link below.
low fantasy
On the opposite side of the spectrum is low fantasy. low fantasy takes place in our earthly time and space, but magical or supernatural forces are present. it can sometimes be called magical realism, which is the real world with magical elements.
james and the giant peach by roald dahl
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“were the slow green crystals the little man gave james really magical? maybe, but james lost the magic when he tripped and spilled the crystals next to the old peach tree. now he seemed like he would never escape the horrible ants on him. but what happened to that peach on the top of the tree? he was growing bigger and bigger. . . was as big as a house? And when James walked in, he found a house full of friends: giant grasshopper, ladybug, centipede and more. then, with a snip of the stem, the peach rolled and wonderful things began to happen.”
the indian in the closet of lynne reid banks
“it’s omri’s birthday, but all he gets from his best friend, patrick, is a little plastic indian toy. Trying to hide his disappointment from him, Omri puts the Indian in a metal cabinet and locks the door with a mysterious skeleton key that once belonged to his great-grandmother. Little does Omri know that with the turn of the key, he will transform his ordinary plastic Indian into a real, living man from a completely different time and place! Omri and the little warrior named Little Bear couldn’t be more different, but soon the two forge a very special friendship. Will omri be able to keep the little bear without anyone finding out and taking the precious Indian from him? ”
check out more low fantasy books at the link below!
fantasy portal
portal fantasy is one of my favorites! it is literally a portal to another world or dimension. are probably some of your favorite books that you never knew had a specific sub-genre.
the adventures of alice in wonderland by lewis carroll
“After falling down the rabbit hole, Alice finds herself far from home in the wacky world of Wonderland. As Alice explores, she meets a cast of strange characters and fantastic beasts: the White Rabbit, the March Hare, the Mad Hatter, and many other extraordinary personalities.”
Check out the post below for more portal fantasy books.
fairy tales, folk tales and myths
Fairy tales, folk tales, and mythology are another subgenre of fantasy. classic tales or reconversions of good against evil and stories that narrate the origin of the world are just a few examples.
the little prince by antoine de saint-exupéry
“With timeless charm, it tells the story of a young boy who leaves the safety of his tiny planet to travel the universe, learning the vagaries of adult behavior through a series of extraordinary encounters. his personal odyssey culminates in a journey to earth and more adventures.”
sid fleischman’s spanking boy
“a prince and a pauper. the brat prince and his scapegoat inadvertently switch places after becoming involved with dangerous outlaws. the two boys have nothing in common and less reason to like each other. But when they find themselves taken hostage after fleeing, they have no choice but to trust each other.”
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click below to see more fairy tales, folk tales and myths!
science fiction
You can think of science fiction as a genre of its own, but it’s actually a subgenre of fantasy. science fiction stories are based on “imagined future scientific or technological advances that often portray space or time travel and life on other planets.”
the wild robot by peter brown
“can a robot survive in the wild? When Roz the robot opens her eyes for the first time, she discovers that she is alone on a remote and wild island. she has no idea how she got there or what her purpose is, but she knows she needs to survive. after battling a violent storm and escaping from a ferocious bear attack, she realizes that her only hope of survival is to adapt to her surroundings and learn from the island’s unwelcoming animal inhabitants. As Ella Roz befriends the animals, the island begins to feel like home until, one day, the robot’s mysterious past comes back to haunt her.”
Interested in more science fiction books? click the image below.
xenofiction
xenofiction is another subgenre of fantasy fiction. what the hell is xenofiction, you ask? It is a story told from the point of view of an animal. That’s your surly housewife trivia for the day!
avi poppy
“mr. ocax the owl has promised to protect the mice occupying an abandoned farm as long as they ask permission before “moving”. poppy, a shy deer mouse, is a loyal and obedient fellow until he sees mr. ocax devours his promised little mouse. Poppy embarks on a dangerous and revealing quest, ending with her face-to-face battle with Ocax.”
fantasy book series
One of the things we love most about fantasy books is the stories they tell. and often the stories cannot be contained in a single book. enter, the book series. some of the best known book series are actually fantasy books!
the lion, the witch and the wardrobe by c.s. louis
“Four adventurous siblings, peter, susan, edmund and lucy pevensie, walk through a cupboard door and into the land of narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the white witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the great lion, Aslan, signals a great change. . . and a great sacrifice.”
click below to see more fantasy book series!
There you have it! 10 fantasy books perfect for fourth graders. I hope you enjoyed the little mini-lesson on fantasy fiction subgenres.
Happy reading!
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