Adventure Stories

Younger Elementary Chapter Books

Bang-Campbell, Monka. Little Rat Sets Sail*. (J First Chapter Ba).
With a little courage and a lot of practice, Little Rat overcomes her fear of sailing.

Cooper, Susan. The Magician’s Boy. (J First Chapter Co).
After misplacing a puppet, the magician’s boy is suddenly transported to the strange Land of Story, where he must find Saint George. The boy's hunt for Saint George is full of adventures with oddly familiar people.

Duffey, Betsy. Cody Unplugged. (J First Chapter Du).
Concerned that his television and video habits have gotten out of hand, Cody’s parents send him to Camp Bear where he learns to experience real life rather than virtual reality.

King-Smith, D. The Mouse Family Robinson (J First Chapter Kingsmi).
After a close call with a cat, a family of wild mice immigrates to a more mouse-friendly house down the block.

Kraft, Erik. Lenny and Mel’s Summer Vacation. (J First Chapter Kr).
Summer has finally arrived, and Lenny and Mel have big plans: to do as little as possible. Unfortunately, their parents have other ideas.

Osborne, Mary Pope. The Magic Tree House.* (J First Chapter Os).
Travel through time and space with Jack and Annie, as they pursue adventures from the Amazon to Hawaii to Camelot.

Peterson, John. The Littles.* (J FirstChapter Pe)
A tiny family has a variety of adventures under the Bigg’s house.

Smith, Alexander McCall. Akimbo and the Lions*. (J First Chapter Sm).
When Akimbo and his park ranger father unintentionally capture a lion cub near an African game park, Akimbo tries to keep the cub.

Steig, William. Abel’s Island. (J St).
Castaway on an uninhabited island, Abel, a very civilized mouse, finds his resourcefulness and endurance tested to the limit as he struggles to survive and return to his home.

Older Elementary Chapter Books

Avi. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle. (J Av).
As the lone “young lady” on a transatlantic voyage in 1832, Charlotte learns that the captain is murderous and the crew rebellious.

Colfer, E. Airman. (J Colfer)
In the late 19th century, when Conor Broekhart discovers a conspiracy to overthrow the king, he is branded a traitor, imprisoned, and forced to mine for diamonds while he plans a daring escape from Little Saltee prison by way of a flying machine of his own invention.

DiCamillo, Kate. The Tale of Despereaux. (J Di).
The adventures of Despereaux Tilling, a small mouse of unusual talents, the princess that he loves, the servant girl who longs to be a princess and devious rat determined to bring them all to ruin.

Du Bois, William Pene. The Twenty-one Balloons. (J Classics)
Follow the incredible adventures of Prof. William Waterman Sherman who sets off in a balloon across the Pacific Ocean and is eventually picked up in the Atlantic Ocean.

Farmer, Nancy. A Girl Named Disaster. (J Fa).
While fleeing from Mozambique to Zimbabwe to escape an unwanted marriage, Nhamo, and eleven-year-old Shona girl, struggles to escape drowning and starvation and in so doing comes close to the luminous world of the African spirits.

Fleischman, Sid. The Whipping Boy. (J Fl).
A bratty prince and his whipping boy have many adventures when they inadvertently trade places after becoming involved with dangerous outlaws.

George, Jean Craighead. Julie of the Wolves.* (J Ge).
An Eskimo girl must survive with the help of a wolf pack on the forbidding North Slope of Alaska.

Hale, S. Rapunzel's Revenge. (J Graphic Novels Hale).
Rapunzel is raised in a grand villa surrounded by towering walls. She climbs over the wall to find her mother who is a slave in a gold mine. In this Old West retelling, Rapunzel uses her hair as a lasso and to take on outlaws.

Hart, James V. Capt. Hook: the Adventures of a Villainous Youth.  (J Ha).
Describes the youthful adventures of J.M. Barrie’s classic character, Captain Hook.

Herge. The Adventures of Tintin.* (J He).
Classic graphic novel adventure stories of the young reporter Tintin and his dog, Snowy.

Horse, H. The Last Polar Bears*. (J Horse).
Letters from Grandfather, who has gone on an expedition with his little dog Roo, to find the last polar bears at the North Pole.

Jacques, Brian. Redwall. * (J Ja).
Peaceful life of ancient Redwall Abbey is shattered by the evil rat Cluny. Matthias, a young mouse, determines to find the legendary sword of Martin the Warrior which will help Redwall’s inhabitants destroy the enemy.

McAllister, Margaret. Urchin of the Riding Stars. Mistmantle Chronicles 1. * (J Ma).
A group of animals, led by a heroic orphaned squirrel, band together to defend their island kingdom against evil forces.

Matthews, L.S. Fish. (J Ma).
As fighting closes in on the village where Tiger’s parents have been working, the three of them and a mysterious guide set out on a difficult journey to safety.

Mikaelsen, Ben. Stranded. (J Mi).
Twelve-year-old Koby, who has lost in an accident, sees a chance to prove her self-reliance to her parents when she tries to rescue two stranded pilot whales near her home in the Florida Keys.

Napoli, Donna Jo. North. (J Na).
Tired of his mother’s over protectiveness and intrigued by the life of African American explorer Matthew Henson, twelve-year-old Alvin travels north and spends a season with a trapper near the Arctic Circle.

Paulsen, Gary. Hatchet.* (J Pa).
After a plane crash, thirteen-year-old Brian spends fifty-four days in the wilderness, learning to survive initially with only the aid of a hatchet given him by his mother. In the wilderness, Brian also learns how to survive his parent’s divorce.

Pullman, Philip. Spring-Heeled Jack. (J Pu).
Three children make their escape from a London orphanage and after a series of misadventures are reunited with their father through the efforts of the legendary Spring-Heeled Jack.

Speare, Elizabeth George. The Sign of the Beaver. (J Sp).
Left alone to guard the family’s wilderness home in eighteenth-century Maine, a boy is hard-pressed to survive until local Native Americans teach him their skills.

Springer, Nancy. Rowan Hood.*
(J Sp) In her quest to connect with Robin Hood, the father she has never met, thirteen-year-old Rosemary disguises herself as a boy, befriends a half-wolf, half-dog, a runaway princess, and an overgrown boy whose singing is hypnotic, and makes peace with her elfin heritage.

Stevenson, Robert Louis. Treasure Island. (J St Classics).
While going through the possessions of a deceased guest who owed them money, the mistress of the inn and her son find a treasure map that leads them to a pirate’s fortune as well as great danger.

Stewart, T. L. The Mysterious Benedict Society*. (J Stewart).
After passing a series of mind-bending tests, four children are selected for a secret mission that requires them to go undercover at the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, where the only rule is that there are no rules.

Vernon, U. Nurk: The Strange, Surprising Adventures of a (Somewhat) Brave Shrew. (J Vernon).
Nurk packs up a few pairs of clean socks and sails off on an accidental adventure, guided by wisdom found in the journal of his famously brave and fierce grandmother, Lady Surka the warrior shrew.

Updated by Children's Services Librarians, Summer 2007