Books like 'Miss Rumphius'
Readers who enjoyed Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical action / adventure classics outdoors realistic family children historical-fiction season-spring female-mc
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Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty, David Roberts
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsRosie may seem quiet during the day, but at night she's a brilliant inventor of gizmos and gadgets who dreams of becoming a great engineer. When her great-great-aunt Rose (Rosie the Riveter) comes for a visit and mentions her one unfinished goal--to fly--Rosie sets to work building a contraption to make her aunt's dream come true...Categorized as:
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The Empty Pot by Demi
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAn IRA-CBC Children's Choice.An American Bookseller "Pick of the Lists."When Ping admits that he is the only child in China unable to grow a flower from the seeds distributed by the Emperor, he is rewarded for his honesty...Categorized as:
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Hello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackall
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA lavish new picture book from Caldecott-winner Sophie Blackall that will transport readers to the seaside in timeless, nautical splendor!Watch the days and seasons pass as the wind blows, the fog rolls in, and icebergs drift by. Outside, there is water all around...Categorized as:
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Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsAn international bestseller: Grace learns that she can be anything she wants...Categorized as:
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Madeline and the Bad Hat by Ludwig Bemelmans
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe Spanish Ambassador has moved next door, and Madeline knows right away that his son, Pepito, is bad news...Categorized as:
children classics family female-mc historical-fiction realistic 20th-century action-adventure -
The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 44 ratingsThe little house first stood in the country, but gradually the city moved closer and closer. This picture book about the changes that come to a little house is beautiful and timeless...Categorized as:
children classics family historical-fiction outdoors realistic action-adventure audiobook -
Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey, Frank Scardino
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsWith their mothers, a little girl and a bear cub pick blueberries in the country. Wandering astray, however, each one mistakes the other's mother for her own...Categorized as:
children classics family outdoors realistic season-spring 20th-century action-adventure -
Winter Holiday by Arthur Ransome
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe fourth book in Arthur Ransome's classic series for children, Winter Holiday takes intrepid explorers John, Susan, Titty, and Roger Walker, and fearsome Amazon pirates Nancy and Peggy Blackett to the North Pole. Joined by budding novelist Dorethes Callum and her scientist brother Dick, the children plan an "Arctic" expedition...Categorized as:
children classics family historical-fiction realistic 20th-century action-adventure audiobook -
Paddle-to-the-Sea by Holling Clancy Holling
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA 1942 Caldecott Honor Book A young Indian boy carves a little canoe with a figure inside and names him Paddle-to-the-Sea. Paddle's journey, in text and pictures, through the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean provides an excellent geographic and historical picture of the region...Categorized as:
children classics historical-fiction outdoors realistic action-adventure animals audiobook -
The Four-Story Mistake by Elizabeth Enright, Pamela Dillman
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsSYNOPSIS: Meet the Melendys! Mona, the eldest, is thirteen. She has decided to become an actress and can recite poetry at the drop of a hat. Rush is twelve and a bit mischievous. Miranda is ten and a half. She loves dancing and painting pictures. Oliver is the youngest. At six, he is a calm and thoughful person...Categorized as:
children classics family historical-fiction realistic 20th-century action-adventure audiobook -
Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsLaura is almost fifteen. The long winter is over. With spring comes socials, dances, and "Literaries." There is also work to be done. Laura spends many hours each day sewing shirts to help send Mary to a college for the blind. But, in the evenings, Laura makes time for a new caller, Almazo Wilder...Categorized as:
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Then There Were Five by Elizabeth Enright
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsWith Father in Washington and Cuffy, their housekeeper, away visiting a sick cousin, almost anything might happen to the Melendy kids left behind at the Four-Story Mistake. In the Melendy family, adventures are inevitable: Mr...Categorized as:
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King of the Wind: The Story of the Godolphin Arabian by Marguerite Henry
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsHe was named "Sham" for the sun, this golden red stallion born in the Sultan of Morocco's stone stables. Upon his heel was a small white spot, the symbol of speed. But on his chest was the symbol of misfortune. Although he was as swift as the desert winds, Sham's proud pedigree would be scorned all his life by cruel masters and owners...Categorized as:
children classics exploration family historical-fiction outdoors realistic 20th-century -
The Matchbox Diary by Paul Fleischman, Bagram Ibatoulline
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratings"Pick whatever you like most. Then I’ll tell you its story." When a little girl visits her great-grandfather at his curio-filled home, she chooses an unusual object to learn about: an old cigar box. What she finds inside surprises her: a collection of matchboxes making up her great-grandfather’s diary, harboring objects she can hold in her hand, each one evoking a memory...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books fiction -
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The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsA VERY classic from Eric Carle, creator of The Very Hungry CaterpillarEarly one morning a little spider spins her web on a fence post. One by one, the animals of the nearby farm try to distract her, yet the busy little spider keeps diligently at her work... -
The Great Brain Does it Again by John D. Fitzgerald, Mercer Mayer
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAs entertaining as ever...readers will fall happily under The Great Brain's spell."-- "School Library Journal...Categorized as:
children classics family historical-fiction action-adventure book children-books comedy -
Mandy by Julie Andrews Edwards
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsThe magic of finding a home Mandy, a ten-year-old orphan, dreams of a place to call her own. Escaping over the orphanage wall to explore the outside world, Mandy discovers a tiny deserted cottage in the woods. All through the spring, summer, and fall, Mandy works to make it truly hers. Sometimes she "borrows" things she needs from the orphanage. Sometimes, to guard her secret, she even lies...Categorized as:
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Sapphire Battersea by Jacqueline Wilson, Nick Sharratt
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsHetty Feather is a Foundling Hospital girl and was given her name when she was left there as a baby. When she is reunited with her mother, she hopes her beautiful new name, Sapphire Battersea, will also mean a new life! But things don't always go as planned.…Follow the twists and turns of Hetty's adventure as she goes out to work as a maid for a wealthy man... -
Two Little Savages: Being the Adventures of Two Boys Who Lived as Indians and What They Learned by Ernest Thompson Seton
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThis is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process...Categorized as:
children classics historical-fiction outdoors action-adventure book children-books fiction -
Fiona's Lace by Patricia Polacco
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAn Irish family stays together with the help of Fiona’s talent for making one-of-a-kind lace in this heartwarming immigration story from the New York Times bestselling creator of The Keeping Quilt.Many years ago, times were hard in all of Ireland, so when passage to America becomes available, Fiona and her family travel to Chicago...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family children season-spring realistic children-books historical fiction -
A Sweet Smell of Roses by Angela Johnson
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsTwo young girls not only witness but help to change history in this inspiring and urgent Civil Rights-era picture book by three-time Coretta Scott King Award winner Angela Johnson.There's a sweet, sweet smell in the air as two young girls sneak out of their house, down the street, and across town to where men and women are gathered, ready to march for freedom and justice... -
Ruby's Wish by Shirin Yim Bridges, Sophie Blackall
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsRuby is unlike most little girls in old China. Instead of aspiring to get married, Ruby is determined to attend university when she grows up, just like the boys in her family...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family realistic children female-mc exploration children-books fiction -
The Velvet Room by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsRobin was always wandering off (her mother's words) to get away from the confusion she felt inside her. It was not until Robin's father found a permanent job at the McCurdy ranch, after three years as a migrant worker, that Robin had a place to wander to...Categorized as:
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The Bee Tree by Patricia Polacco
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen Mary Ellen gets bored with her reading, Grandpa knows a hunt for a bee tree is just what she needs. Half the town joins the exciting chase, but it's not until everyone returns home that Mary Ellen makes a discovery of her own: Sometimes, even the sweetest of things must be worked for...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction outdoors realistic season-spring action-adventure animals -
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The Seven Chinese Brothers by Margaret Mahy
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA magnificently illustrated and authentic retelling of the classic Chinese folktale of the seven brothers and their supernatural gifts. "Exceptional...Categorized as:
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That Book Woman by Heather Henson
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsCal is not the readin' type. Living way high up in the Appalachian Mountains, he'd rather help Pap plow or go out after wandering sheep than try some book learning. Nope. Cal does not want to sit stoney-still reading some chicken scratch. But that Book Woman keeps coming just the same. She comes in the rain. She comes in the snow...Categorized as:
children exploration family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books -
Sweet Home Alaska by Carole Estby Dagg
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThis exciting pioneering story, based on actual events, introduces readers to a fascinating chapter in American history, when FDR set up a New Deal colony in Alaska to give loans and land to families struggling during the Great Depression. Terpsichore can’t wait to follow in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s footsteps . . . now she just has to convince her mom...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family children realistic middle-grade fiction children-books historical -
I Survived the Joplin Tornado, 2011 by Lauren Tarshis
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsEleven-year-old Dexter has always wanted to see a tornado. So when he gets the incredible opportunity to go storm chasing with the famous Dr. Norman Rays, he has to say yes! Dr. Rays is the host of Tornado Mysteries, the show that Dex and his older brother, Jeremy, watched every night until Jeremy joined the U.S. Navy SEALs and left Joplin...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction outdoors realistic action-adventure audiobook book -
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Martin Woodside, Lucy Corvino
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFollowing Sterlings spectacularly successful launch of its childrens classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes a dazzling new series: Classic Starts . The stories are abridged; the quality is complete. Classic Starts treats the worlds beloved tales (and children) with the respect they deserve--all at an incomparable price...Categorized as:
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The Poky Little Puppy by Janette Sebring Lowrey
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 37 ratingsOne of the original 12 Little Golden Books, The Poky Little Puppy has sold nearly 15 million copies since 1942, making it one of the most popular children’s books of all time. Now this curious little puppy is ready to win the hearts and minds of a new generation of kids...Categorized as:
children classics family realistic season-spring 20th-century action-adventure animals -
The Explorer by Katherine Rundell
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFred, Con, Lila, and Max are on their way back to England from Manaus when the plane they’re on crashes and the pilot dies upon landing. For days they survive alone, until Fred finds a map that leads them to a ruined city, and to a secret...Categorized as:
children exploration family historical-fiction outdoors realistic action-adventure animals -
The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush by Tomie dePaola
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn spring, the hills and meadows of Texas and Wyoming are ablaze with the reds, oranges, and yellows of the Indian Paintbrush. How this striking plant received its name is told in an old Indian legend...Categorized as:
children classics family historical-fiction outdoors action-adventure book children-books -
Legacy by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsThe first of seven brand new 39 clues stories, leading up to one explosive reveal.Time is running out for Grace Cahill as she struggles to make the most important choice of her life: a decision that will shape the future of the Cahill family... and the world at large...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books fiction -
Alaska by James A. Michener
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn this sweeping epic of the northernmost American frontier, James A. Michener guides us through Alaska’s fierce terrain and history, from the long-forgotten past to the bustling present...Categorized as:
classics exploration family historical-fiction outdoors realistic action-adventure adult -
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Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsFor all of her nine years, fragile Elizabeth Ann has heard her Aunt Frances refer in whispers to her "horrid Putney cousins." But when her aunt can no longer care for her, Elizabeth Ann must leave her sheltered life to live in the wilds of Vermont with those distant relatives...Categorized as:
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The Best of Robert Service by Robert W. Service
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThis new and revised edition of poems about the men and women of the North features the most loved ballads by Robert Service, and is illustrated with lively art by Marilen Van Nimwegen. While living in Whitehorse, Robert Service wrote The Cremation of Sam McGee, and other well-known poems. He wrote and published into his mid-eighties...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction outdoors action-adventure adult anthologies fiction historical -
Wildwood by Elinor Florence
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA single mother. An abandoned farmhouse. An epic battle with the northern wilderness.Broke and desperate, Molly Bannister accepts the ironclad condition laid down in her great-aunt’s will: to receive her inheritance, Molly must spend one year in an abandoned, off-the-grid farmhouse in the remote backwoods of northern Alberta... -
Almost to Freedom by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsLindy and her doll Sally are best friends - wherever Lindy goes, Sally stays right by her side. They eat together, sleep together, and even pick cotton together. So, on the night Lindy and her mama run away in search of freedom, Sally goes too. This young girl's rag doll vividly narrates her enslaved family's courageous escape through the Underground Railroad...Categorized as:
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A Distant Hope by Ellin Carsta, Gerald Chapple
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn this breathtaking and emotional saga, a family must travel far from home to save what they hold dear. Hamburg 1888: After thirty prosperous years, coffee importer Peter Hansen & Sons faces hard times—and certain bankruptcy—unless three brothers can make savvy moves to save the faltering business after their father’s untimely death... -
Around the World in 80 Days by Deanna McFadden, Arthur Pober
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhen Phileas Fogg, a man of habit whose every day is like the one before, makes a bet that he can circle the globe in just 80 days, the race is on. Verne's classic story bubbles with excitement, suspense, and colorful locations. Illustrations...Categorized as:
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Aunt Harriet's Underground Railroad in the Sky by Faith Ringgold
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIllus. in full color. Cassie, who flew above New York in Tar Beach, soars into the sky once more. This time, she and her brother Be Be meet a train full of people, and Be Be joins them. But the train departs before Cassie can climb aboard...Categorized as:
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Fireworks by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe last of seven brand new 39 Clues stories, with an explosive secret revealed!The holidays can be hard for any family, but they're particularly tough for the Cahills. Amy Cahill is exhausted from her training. Dan can't forget the tragedies he witnessed on the Clue hunt. Ian and Natalie Kabra are trying to enjoy the London festivities, but it's hard without their parents...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books fiction -
Tree in the Trail by Holling Clancy Holling
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe history of the Great Plains and the Santa Fe Trail is told in text and pictures by focusing on a cottonwood tree and the events that happen around it...Categorized as:
children classics historical-fiction outdoors action-adventure book children-books fiction -
Elska by Catherine Hapka
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIceland, circa AD 1000Elska is a silver dapple Icelandic filly. She spends summers frisking about the countryside and winters in the farmyard, where the girl human Amma takes special care of her. But when a powerful neighbor notices Elska, her contented life suddenly changes. Here is Elska’s story . . . in her own words...Categorized as:
historical-fiction children realistic female-mc animals horses children-books middle-grade -
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The Queen of Thieves by Johan Rundberg
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsMika will do what it takes to uncover a string of thefts in the city―and keep her fellow orphans safe. After a merciless winter, spring has sprung in 1880 Stockholm, and the city awaits the arrival of the SS Vega , the first ship to have sailed the Northeast Passage...Categorized as:
historical-fiction children season-spring family female-mc mystery middle-grade fiction -
Ignition by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThink you know what happened at Grace Cahill's funeral? Think again. This top secret report reveals what REALLY occurred on that fateful day. Follow Ian and Natalie Kabra as they travel to Attleboro and discuss their strategy. Discover what the Holts were doing before they started the fire. And learn shocking information about a special guest none of the Cahills knew anything about . .Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books fiction -
Kavik the Wolf Dog by Walt Morey
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAn extraordinary journey of instinct and survival from the author of Gentle Ben When Andy Evans stumbles upon the snow-covered wreckage of a small plane, he's shocked to find a survivor. Should he put the gravely injured dog out of his misery? The look in the animal's eyes says he's not ready to die. It turns out that Kavik's a champion sled dog, and soon he makes a full recovery...Categorized as:
children classics historical-fiction outdoors realistic action-adventure animals anthropomorphism -
Caddie Woodlawn's Family by Carol Ryrie Brink, Marguerite Davis
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsCaddie Woodlawn is back and there are more frontier adventures to go on in this sequel to the Newbery Medal–winning novel, Caddie Woodlawn! The high-spirited Caddie is back with her lively siblings for some amusing escapades. In these fourteen stories, learn about frontier life with the seven Woodlawn children...Categorized as:
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Wilderness Days by Jennifer L. Holm
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratings"Remember -- you make your own luck." Abandoned on the frontier by her faithless fiance, Jane Peck prepares to head home, only to learn that the Philadelphia life she once knew is no more...Categorized as:
children female-mc historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book fiction historical -
Encounter by Jane Yolen
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen Christopher Columbus landed on the island of San Salvador in 1492, what he discovered were the Taino Indians. Told from a young Taino boy’s point of view, this is a story of how the boy tried to warn his people against welcoming the strangers, who seemed more interested in golden ornaments than friendship...Categorized as:
historical-fiction children exploration realistic family children-books historical fiction
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