The 4th Grade Reader for Girls

Twelve stories she can finish by herself. Twelve badges she earns for doing it.

She can read. She just doesn't always want to.

At nine, a lot of girls land in the same gap: the books at her level feel babyish, and the ones that look exciting are too long to finish before she gives up. Reading stops being something she does and starts being something she's told to do.

The 4th Grade Reader for Girls was built for that exact moment.

Twelve short stories. Each one finishes in a single sitting. Each one written at a true fourth-grade reading level, so she can read it on her own and feel it.

At the end of every story there's a badge to color in, sign, and date. Twelve stories, twelve badges. And when she's earned all twelve, the last page holds a Certificate of Achievement with a space for her name, ready to tear out and put on the fridge.

That's the difference between a book she reads and a book she finishes.

Nora Bennett is nine. Over twelve stories she has to speak in front of her whole class, sit with the new girl when nobody else will, forgive a friend who hurt her, and hand back two points on a math quiz that nobody would ever have noticed.

Nothing here is tidy. Her voice shakes the whole way through. A friend stays annoyed at her. She works all summer and still comes second. The lesson is never spelled out, because girls this age can spot a lecture from a mile away.

• Confidence - speaking up, and losing to a friend


• Courage - saying no when everyone else says yes


• Friendship - being replaced, and choosing to forgive


• Integrity - telling the truth when it costs something

• 12 illustrated short stories, about 1,200 words each


• A full-page badge after every story, ready to color and sign


• A tear-out Certificate of Achievement on the final page


• Written at a fourth-grade reading level, for ages 9 to 10


• One story per sitting, readable in any order

Perfect for independent reading time, a reading log, a classroom read-aloud, a birthday gift, or the twenty minutes before lights out.