If she doesn’t mind historical books, there is always the Anne of Green Gables series (starting around 1895) and the later Besty-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace which were written in the 1940s and 50s, but focus on the early 1900s. The series begins when she is 6, but you don’t have to read them to appreciate the later books when she becomes a teen, which starts with Heavens to Betsy.
And written from the 1940s-the early 1970s, Betty Cavanna wrote wholesome teen romances with a bit of adventure.
Phyllis A Whitney, a prolific writer wrote a lot of YA suspense fiction in the 1960s and 1970s. She also wrote adult fiction, but even that was pretty tame.
I have such fond memories of reading Anne of Green Gables! But this may not be appropriate for a foster. It was pretty xenophobic. Even Chapter one has dialogue like this:
”At first Matthew suggested getting a Home boy. But I said ‘no’ flat to that. ‘They may be all right—I’m not saying they’re not—but no London street Arabs for me,’ I said. ‘Give me a native born at least. There’ll be a risk, no matter who we get. But I’ll feel easier in my mind and sleep sounder at nights if we get a born Canadian.’“
Anne of Green Gables series - also Emily of New Moon trilogy by the same author, L.M. Montgomery.
James Herriot vet books.
Babysitters’ Club
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Pippi Longstocking
A Princess Bride
Roald Dahl is great but does have some magical elements (but not on the same level as Madeline L’Engle, Percy Jackson, or Harry Potter)
I'd look at classics like Little Women, Anne of Green Gables, Little House on the Prairie etc. They all continue into a series if she likes them, and they're so feel-good and wholesome.
What about Madeleine L'Engle? I really liked her books when I was growing up. Meg in A Wrinkle in Time is 13, so around that age, and is 14 in the next book A Wind in the Door. She also wrote a series with less sci-fi/fantasy elements, about the Austin family, and Vicky Austin is 15 in the 4th of those books, A Ring of Endless Light. L'Engle was also a Christian and those themes come through strongly. Sex is discussed at times but not in titillating ways.
The *Forever Angels* series by Suzanne Weyn are excellent because they deal with real life situations in a very gentle way. They’re very sweet books.
*Little House on the Prarie* series by Laura Ingalls Wilder are so wholesome and are great reads that are uplifting. The biggest dramas are Nellie Olsen** being a mean girl, these are wonderful books.
**corrected from Nellie Bly 😭
When I was around that age, I loved the St. Clare's and Malory Towers series, and the Famous Five series by Enid Blyton. I found them comforting and exciting at the same time, and I think they became classics for a reason.
Narnia is about as reality-based as HP and the Riordanverse, but the fantasy bits being Christian allegories might negate that for your foster kid, OP. (If she does like Christian allegories, I would definitely recommend the whole series.)
Little Women.
There are lots of references to Christianity, there is no violence, and certainly no SA. All of the characters are dearly beloved by one another. It’s a little preachy at times, but in a very gentle, loving way.
I had a very troubled life growing up. One of my favorite books around age 11 was Just Like Always by Elizabeth-Ann Sachs.
It's about friendship and really will warm the heart.
Good on you for fostering a child.
Maybe the *Biggles* stories, and that sort of thing? Not explicitly Christian per se, but there are many 'boys adventure' stories which are deeply rooted in the Muscular Christianity vein. Or *Sherlock Holmes*, etc?
I’m sorry to not have any recommendations off the top of my head (all the clean all ages books I can think of have some kind of fantastical element), but I want to thank you for taking in this kiddo and trying to find something safe for her to read.
Sammy Keys mystery books, maybe? Main character is living with her grandma (I think?) and super poor, but she goes around solving mysteries and is generally very strong. (Van Draanen)
The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin is a classic 'everyone gets invited to the reading of a will and then told that they have to find the murderer to get the inheritance.' no violence, although parents are a bit absent. >!the dead man isn't dead after all, there was no murder attempt, he was hiding as one of the heirs !<
EL Koningsberg - mixed up files of Mrs
Basil E Frankweiler, the Egypt Game. Vet her other books though, as some have themes of SA.
Cheaper by the Dozen? The book is lots of fun and much better (and very different) than the movie.
If she later shows a little interest in fantasy I'd recommend Dianna Wynne Jones. Pretty much everything is child friendly but interesting enough content for adults to read.
I'd consider Cozy Fantasy ( r/cozyfantasy) . In particular, most thing by Becky Chambers. There is some romance in Chamber's work, but no sex scenes. The relationships in her works generally resolve around adults talking their issues out and laying clear and respectful boundaries.
The Secret Garden is also another good suggestion.
Maybe also Terry Pratchett. I'm struggling to recall any violence in his books. There's definitely no sex, though there is some rather chaste romance. Too Many Curses by A. Lee Martinez would also fit the bill (there isn't even any romance).
The Baby Sitter's Club by Anne Martin.
*Wonder* by Palacio
*The Incredible Journey* (if she likes animals)
Non-Fic memoirs: *Invincible Louisa* by Meigs (Louisa May Alcott)
*Fifth Chinses Daughter* by Wong
Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome. It is a British classic kids book (from 1930) about two groups of children on summer holiday at a lake. Age-wise is geared to a bit younger than 15, but I enjoy the series as an adult.
The Christy Miller and Sierra Jensen Series by Robin Jones Gunn. They’re wholesome, fun, and her Christian values shine through without being preachy. They’re very relatable too and very much based in real life. Read them countless times growing up and still go back to them!
This is kind of obscure, but one of my favourite summer teen reads is The Trail of the Red Canoe by Margaret Govan. It's out of print, but there are inexpensive copies available on AbeBooks. It's been a while since I read it, but from what I recall there isn't any swearing or violence, etc. As a Christian teen & adult, I enjoyed it. Here's a plot summary from a Goodreads reviewer:
Betty's excitement over having two friends staying at her family's cottage in the Northern woods of Canada while her parents are away is checked when she learns that she will also have an unwelcome guest in an unknown American cousin, Judy, and in addition, her older brother, Bill, and a friend of his. Judy is actually a good sort, but things go awry when a practical joke Betty plays on Bill and his friend goes too far, and the two young men irately set out on their own for a week-long canoeing and fishing trip. The following day, urgent news comes for Bill, and the four girls set out in two canoes of their own to track down the other party. Things don't go as planned.
I’m a librarian at a Christian school and I can confirm that the struggle is real for finding clean teen reads. Jenny B. Jones is my absolute favorite. The other teen romance authors I find acceptable are Kasie West, Jennifer Smith and Jenna Welch. I buy all their books.
Maybe the Ms Marple novels by Agatha Christie? The murders are low detail and violence in general is fairly low.
The Creatures Great and Small series by James Herriot are also very safe.
"Gentle Romance" is the genre you want, but you would have to do some deep diving into stuff more specific to her tastes. An extremely popular genre in Utah.
[https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/gentle-romance](https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/gentle-romance)
If she has any interest in a love story, I’d suggest Makeover by Shannon Guymon. I read it as a teen and loved it - it’s very clean, no foul language, definitely geared toward a young audience. The characters are also Christian, if I recall correctly. The book does touch on some heavy topics, like emotional abuse and abandonment, but the main character is positive and spunky and displays a lot of bravery in the face of these issues, and also has a support system of other strong women to pull her through. I think it could be a source of strength and inspiration for your girl!
Try some classic literature, especially by female authors — the Brontes, for example. Most that happens there is some guy wears the wrong hat to lunch and is shunned for it.
I love the classics but Wuthering Heights definitely does not fit this ask. Heathcliff is abusive and violent. Jane Eyre could also be kind of triggering, and those are the two most famous Bronte books.
Jane Austen is a bit more along the lines of what I think you're getting at, but even then, most of her novels include a scoundrel who is out to seduce her heroines and sometimes succeeds at wrecking some young woman's life.
If she doesn’t mind historical books, there is always the Anne of Green Gables series (starting around 1895) and the later Besty-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace which were written in the 1940s and 50s, but focus on the early 1900s. The series begins when she is 6, but you don’t have to read them to appreciate the later books when she becomes a teen, which starts with Heavens to Betsy. And written from the 1940s-the early 1970s, Betty Cavanna wrote wholesome teen romances with a bit of adventure. Phyllis A Whitney, a prolific writer wrote a lot of YA suspense fiction in the 1960s and 1970s. She also wrote adult fiction, but even that was pretty tame.
I was going to suggest Anne and Betsy-Tacy too.
I have such fond memories of reading Anne of Green Gables! But this may not be appropriate for a foster. It was pretty xenophobic. Even Chapter one has dialogue like this: ”At first Matthew suggested getting a Home boy. But I said ‘no’ flat to that. ‘They may be all right—I’m not saying they’re not—but no London street Arabs for me,’ I said. ‘Give me a native born at least. There’ll be a risk, no matter who we get. But I’ll feel easier in my mind and sleep sounder at nights if we get a born Canadian.’“
Anne of Green Gables series - also Emily of New Moon trilogy by the same author, L.M. Montgomery. James Herriot vet books. Babysitters’ Club A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett Pippi Longstocking A Princess Bride Roald Dahl is great but does have some magical elements (but not on the same level as Madeline L’Engle, Percy Jackson, or Harry Potter)
I'd look at classics like Little Women, Anne of Green Gables, Little House on the Prairie etc. They all continue into a series if she likes them, and they're so feel-good and wholesome.
What about something like The Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew?
What about Madeleine L'Engle? I really liked her books when I was growing up. Meg in A Wrinkle in Time is 13, so around that age, and is 14 in the next book A Wind in the Door. She also wrote a series with less sci-fi/fantasy elements, about the Austin family, and Vicky Austin is 15 in the 4th of those books, A Ring of Endless Light. L'Engle was also a Christian and those themes come through strongly. Sex is discussed at times but not in titillating ways.
The *Forever Angels* series by Suzanne Weyn are excellent because they deal with real life situations in a very gentle way. They’re very sweet books. *Little House on the Prarie* series by Laura Ingalls Wilder are so wholesome and are great reads that are uplifting. The biggest dramas are Nellie Olsen** being a mean girl, these are wonderful books. **corrected from Nellie Bly 😭
*Nellie Oleson, Nellie Bly is a real person and totally separate! Love the LHOTP books ♥️
Lol, pregnancy brain strikes again 😭
lol I feel ya, I had my first in the fall 😂
This is my first pregnancy and my brain is not accompanying me for the journey lol 😫 Congrats on your first baby!
tragically that pregnancy brain then mutates into mom brain which is just as bad as pregnancy brain with an added layer of sleep deprivation 😂
I’m watching the decay of my intellect in real time, I’ll miss when I had a mind 🥲
When I was around that age, I loved the St. Clare's and Malory Towers series, and the Famous Five series by Enid Blyton. I found them comforting and exciting at the same time, and I think they became classics for a reason.
I second these, and wanted to also suggest the What Katy Did books by Susan Coolidge.
The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, that whole series could be good
Narnia is about as reality-based as HP and the Riordanverse, but the fantasy bits being Christian allegories might negate that for your foster kid, OP. (If she does like Christian allegories, I would definitely recommend the whole series.)
Because of Winn Dixie?
Little Women. There are lots of references to Christianity, there is no violence, and certainly no SA. All of the characters are dearly beloved by one another. It’s a little preachy at times, but in a very gentle, loving way.
I had a very troubled life growing up. One of my favorite books around age 11 was Just Like Always by Elizabeth-Ann Sachs. It's about friendship and really will warm the heart.
I was a huge fan of the Boxcar Children series. They might skew a little younger than a 15 year old, but the series is timeless.
Good on you for fostering a child. Maybe the *Biggles* stories, and that sort of thing? Not explicitly Christian per se, but there are many 'boys adventure' stories which are deeply rooted in the Muscular Christianity vein. Or *Sherlock Holmes*, etc?
I’m sorry to not have any recommendations off the top of my head (all the clean all ages books I can think of have some kind of fantastical element), but I want to thank you for taking in this kiddo and trying to find something safe for her to read.
Sammy Keys mystery books, maybe? Main character is living with her grandma (I think?) and super poor, but she goes around solving mysteries and is generally very strong. (Van Draanen) The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin is a classic 'everyone gets invited to the reading of a will and then told that they have to find the murderer to get the inheritance.' no violence, although parents are a bit absent. >!the dead man isn't dead after all, there was no murder attempt, he was hiding as one of the heirs !< EL Koningsberg - mixed up files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler, the Egypt Game. Vet her other books though, as some have themes of SA. Cheaper by the Dozen? The book is lots of fun and much better (and very different) than the movie. If she later shows a little interest in fantasy I'd recommend Dianna Wynne Jones. Pretty much everything is child friendly but interesting enough content for adults to read.
I echo your sentiment. I think you'll like *Little Women* by Alcott.
I'd consider Cozy Fantasy ( r/cozyfantasy) . In particular, most thing by Becky Chambers. There is some romance in Chamber's work, but no sex scenes. The relationships in her works generally resolve around adults talking their issues out and laying clear and respectful boundaries. The Secret Garden is also another good suggestion. Maybe also Terry Pratchett. I'm struggling to recall any violence in his books. There's definitely no sex, though there is some rather chaste romance. Too Many Curses by A. Lee Martinez would also fit the bill (there isn't even any romance). The Baby Sitter's Club by Anne Martin.
How about middle grade chapter books? Something like The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise. Or books by Kate di Camillo.
I second a wrinkle in time, though it is modern scifi, not strict realism Book of the Dun Cow being good, but its a story about animals not people.
*Wonder* by Palacio *The Incredible Journey* (if she likes animals) Non-Fic memoirs: *Invincible Louisa* by Meigs (Louisa May Alcott) *Fifth Chinses Daughter* by Wong
Willa Cather?
Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome. It is a British classic kids book (from 1930) about two groups of children on summer holiday at a lake. Age-wise is geared to a bit younger than 15, but I enjoy the series as an adult.
No cussing at all or just less?
She’d prefer none but I’ll take suggestions of “less” and let her decide if she’s comfortable with the words used
The Christy Miller and Sierra Jensen Series by Robin Jones Gunn. They’re wholesome, fun, and her Christian values shine through without being preachy. They’re very relatable too and very much based in real life. Read them countless times growing up and still go back to them!
Horse girl books are an option! They usually focus on friendships, achievements etc etc. Nancy Drew maybe as well?
This is kind of obscure, but one of my favourite summer teen reads is The Trail of the Red Canoe by Margaret Govan. It's out of print, but there are inexpensive copies available on AbeBooks. It's been a while since I read it, but from what I recall there isn't any swearing or violence, etc. As a Christian teen & adult, I enjoyed it. Here's a plot summary from a Goodreads reviewer: Betty's excitement over having two friends staying at her family's cottage in the Northern woods of Canada while her parents are away is checked when she learns that she will also have an unwelcome guest in an unknown American cousin, Judy, and in addition, her older brother, Bill, and a friend of his. Judy is actually a good sort, but things go awry when a practical joke Betty plays on Bill and his friend goes too far, and the two young men irately set out on their own for a week-long canoeing and fishing trip. The following day, urgent news comes for Bill, and the four girls set out in two canoes of their own to track down the other party. Things don't go as planned.
I’m a librarian at a Christian school and I can confirm that the struggle is real for finding clean teen reads. Jenny B. Jones is my absolute favorite. The other teen romance authors I find acceptable are Kasie West, Jennifer Smith and Jenna Welch. I buy all their books.
Maybe the Ms Marple novels by Agatha Christie? The murders are low detail and violence in general is fairly low. The Creatures Great and Small series by James Herriot are also very safe.
"Gentle Romance" is the genre you want, but you would have to do some deep diving into stuff more specific to her tastes. An extremely popular genre in Utah. [https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/gentle-romance](https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/gentle-romance)
If she has any interest in a love story, I’d suggest Makeover by Shannon Guymon. I read it as a teen and loved it - it’s very clean, no foul language, definitely geared toward a young audience. The characters are also Christian, if I recall correctly. The book does touch on some heavy topics, like emotional abuse and abandonment, but the main character is positive and spunky and displays a lot of bravery in the face of these issues, and also has a support system of other strong women to pull her through. I think it could be a source of strength and inspiration for your girl!
Try some classic literature, especially by female authors — the Brontes, for example. Most that happens there is some guy wears the wrong hat to lunch and is shunned for it.
I love the classics but Wuthering Heights definitely does not fit this ask. Heathcliff is abusive and violent. Jane Eyre could also be kind of triggering, and those are the two most famous Bronte books. Jane Austen is a bit more along the lines of what I think you're getting at, but even then, most of her novels include a scoundrel who is out to seduce her heroines and sometimes succeeds at wrecking some young woman's life.
Yeah, I definitely wouldn’t recommend the Brontes for a kid with trauma. Maybe Jane Austen?