Books for Tween Girls: The Mother-Daughter Bookclub

This is the giveaway that I’ve been most excited to present. I hope that some of you will take my suggestion to heart and make that tween/early teen girl on your list very happy with The Mother-Daughter Bookclub series by Heather Vogel Frederick.

Each book features this group of diverse can-do girls as they read, discuss, and experience a classic novel, which dovetails nicely with the regular tween drama in their own lives.

The Mother Daughter Bookclub — (read mine and Amanda’s thoughts HERE) — introduces us to the girls and their moms. One reason that I like this series so much is that the mothers and the daughters are both fully characterized. Obviously reading literature featuring tweens can help you understand your own tween, but I think it can work in reverse too. There aren’t many books that feature parents in a realistic way, but this one does. In this first book, the girls delve into Little Women.

In the second book, Much Ado About Anne, the girls are now 12, dealing with a queen bee arch enemy, money troubles, and more. Check out my full review for my 5-Star impressions, and more details on the book and the series.

The third book Dear Pen Pal (linked to my full review) centers around the works of Jean Webster. Amanda and I each read Daddy Long Legs, and it was delightful. In this installment, the plot of the bookclub book is actually less prominent, and the story focuses on the girls, who are now quickly-maturing 8th-graders.

The classics read in the bookclub can pique a young girl’s interest in some of these books that she might not normally want to read. If you really want to round out the gift, try including the three classics that the fictional bookclub reads.

Carrie, our resident Anne fanatic, reviewed the Anne of Green Gables Treasury earlier this year, and it sounds like a perfect companion to this book, and Anne of Green Gables. She recommends it as a must-have for any Anne fan: “In this book you can learn how to prepare an Anne tea party (recipes included), orchestrate your garden with flowers that Anne likely (or did have) in hers, make-and-do crafts as Anne would have. The authors have done such a great job not trying to add to Montgomery’s work but rather to compliment it that I could not be more thrilled with it.

One of the things that so delights me about this book is that it is a work of love from mothers to their daughters to help them understand what life was life in the time that Anne lived.” Read her full review for more information about this terrific book.

While it’s fun to follow the story arc from beginning to end, each book stands on its own as well. And by the way, I hear that in the 4th book, the girls read Pride and Prejudice, and I can take a guess at the fun Lizzie/Darcy relationship that will be happening.

Jennifer gives these books her hearty endorsement, especially as a way to connect with that tween girl in your life. She writes about trying to do just that at her blog Snapshot.

One of you will receive the Anne of Green Gables Treasury, along with all three books in the series: The Mother Daughter Bookclub, Much Ado About Anne, and Dear Pen Pal.

Entries will be closed on December 8, and we will announce the winners on December 9. Please watch your email and check the site for your name, so that we can collect your shipping information and you can get your gift by Christmas.

This giveaway is now CLOSED.

Be sure you’ve entered all the giveaways in our 2009 Gift Guide and Giveaway event.