50+ Great Adventure Chapter Books for Girls

A stunning novel from the author of the modern children’s classic Skellig – winner of the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Children’s Book Award. David Almond is also winner of the 2010 Hans Christian Andersen award.

Avi’s swashbuckling tale of murder and mutiny on the high seas has a fascinating twist: the heroine is a 13-year-old girl.

In 1832, Charlotte Doyle boards a ship bound for America and is caught in a battle between a mad captain and his ruthless crew.

Discover richly developed characters in the sweet but sophisticated Molly, the scary but familiar Black Stache, and the fearless Peter.

Treacherous battles with pirates, foreboding thunderstorms at sea, and evocative writing immerses the reader in a story that slowly and finally reveals the secrets and mysteries of the beloved Peter Pan.

Williwaw contains rich descriptions of Alaskan geography and wildlife.

Its likable characters and taut suspense will keep readers riveted until the last page.

An extraordinary debut weaving magic and heroism into a classic tale of good and evil, featuring a heroine you’ll never forget.

Twelve-year-old Artemis Fowl is a millionaire, a genuis, and, above all, a criminal mastermind.

But even Artemis doesn’t know what he’s taken on when he kidnaps a fairy, Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon Unit.

Bursting with memorable characters, fast-paced action, and laugh-out-loud moments, The Misadventures of Maude March is Newbery Honor winner Audrey Couloumbis’ most unforgettable work yet.

This acclaimed bestselling Newbery Honor Book from multi-award-winning author Sharon Creech is a classic and moving story of adventure, self-discovery, and one girl’s independence.

Kate DiCamillo takes us on an extraordinary journey, from the depths of the ocean to the net of a fisherman, from the bedside of an ailing child to the bustling streets of Memphis.

Along the way, we are shown a miracle — that even a heart of the most breakable kind can learn to love, to lose, and to love again.

A Girl Named Disaster is the humorous and heart-wrenching story of young girl who discovers her own courage and strength when she makes the dangerous journey from Mozambique to Zimbabwe.

In the year 793, siblings Jack and Lucy are captured by fearsome Vikings with a thirst for battle and pillaging.

Taken to the court of Ivar the Boneless, Jack and Lucy are sent on a perilous journey – full of dragons and giant spiders – deep into the magical kingdom of the trolls!

In Nobody’s Princess, author Esther Friesner deftly weaves together history and myth as she takes a new look at the girl who will become Helen of Troy.

The thrilling Newbery Medal–winning classic about an Eskimo girl lost on the Alaskan tundra.

The survival theme makes it a good pick for readers of wilderness adventures such as My Side of the Mountain, Hatchet, or Island of the Blue Dolphins.

In the wilderness, Billie Wind discovers that she must listen to the land and animals in order to survive.

With an otter, a panther cub, and a turtle as companions and guides, she begins to understand that the world of her people can give her the answers she seeks.

In this beloved first book in the Books of Bayern, from New York Times bestselling author Shannon Hale, Princess Ani must become a goose girl before she can become queen.

Master storyteller Shannon Hale’s beloved Book of a Thousand Days is equal parts fantastical and romantic, with an unforgettable protagonist to root for at its center.

How do you rescue a wild coyote trapped in an elevator in a downtown Seattle office building? How do you save an injured baby seal at the bottom of a cliff with the tide coming in?

Fourteen-year-old Shannon Young, visiting from New Jersey, is about to find out.

As Dawson City goes up in flames, Jason Hawthorn itches to join the new rush for gold in Nome – nearly 2,000 miles away.

Jamie Dunavant, the girl he loves, has just returned from the States and is ready for adventure.

When a race to Nome with a $20,000 prize is announced, the two of them decide to attempt the journey together in their canoe.

No adults, no permit, no river map.

After fifteen-year-old Jessie gets sent to Discovery Unlimited, an outdoor education program, she and six companions “borrow” the company’s rafting gear and take off down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon on their own.

Twelve-year-old Emma Bolton is determined to join her father and her sick mother on their voyage to France.

She disguises herself as a boy and sneaks aboard a vessel she’s told is her parents’ ship only to discover that she’s a stowaway on Black Lightning, the most notorious slave ship afloat!

Theodosia Throckmorton has her hands full at the Museum of Legends and Antiquities in London.

Her father may be head curator, but it is Theo and only Theo who is able to see and use all the black magic and ancient curses that still cling to the artifacts in the museum.

A thrilling adventure crafted by the author of Pippi Longstocking!

For more than 30 years, Robin McKinley’s richly woven saga has gripped the imagination of readers and caused critics to hail her as a master of fantasy.

Newbery Honor Roll

Harry Crewe, the Homelander orphan girl, is pleased with her new home.

Life in Istan is certainly easy, but a voice in her ear whispers that the home of her heart is among the Hillfolk, among the descendants of Lady Aerin, who once wielded Gonturan, the Blue Sword.

Life as a ship’s boy aboard HMS Dolphin is a dream come true for Jacky Faber; but Jacky is a girl.

Jacky will have to use every bit of her spirit, wit, and courage to keep the crew from discovering her secret.

Between the smothering concern of her separated parents and the awkward glances from the kids at school after a serious accident, Koby only feels at home when she is on the ocean in her dinghy.

That all changes when she rescues two dying pilot whales.

Day after day, she visits the whales as they begin their long road to recovery.

A spellbinding tale of survival and self-discovery from award-winning author Michael Morpurgo.

Lord Thistlebottom’s Book of Pitfalls and How to Survive Them has taught Roxie Warbler how to handle all sorts of situations.

However, he has no advice to help Roxie deal with Helvetia’s Hooligans, the meanest band of bullies in school.

Island of the Blue Dolphins is the remarkable story of a strange and beautiful Indian girl who lives a serene and courageous life as the solitary survivor on a rocky island off the California coast.

A young Eskimo girl encounters frightening obstacles when she takes her father’s place in the Iditarod, the annual 1,172-mile dogsled race in Alaska.

As familiar and moving as Beauty and the Beast, yet as fresh and original as only the best fantasy can be, East is a bold retelling of the classic tale “East of the Sun and West of the Moon,” a sweeping story of grand proportions.

Breo-Saight, the young archer from Hero’s Song, has abandoned her lifelong mission to avenge her father’s murder.

Just as she stops pursuing the murderers, they turn up again, leading Brie to her birthright — a fire arrow.

A New York Times bestseller from the fantasy author who is a writing legend herself.

In this first book in the Beka Cooper Trilogy, Beka uses her unique magic and street smarts to crack the kingdom’s worst cases!

Discover a land of enchantment, legend, and adventure in this first book of the Immortals series.

Filled with swords and sorcery, adventure and intrigue, good and evil, Alanna’s first adventure begins — one that will lead to the fulfillment of her dreams and make her a legend in the land.

From the author of The Golden Compass comes a fantastical new story that follows Lila, a young girl who will do anything to become a Firework-Maker like her father, as she, along with a vocal white elephant named Hamlet, confronts pirates, demons, the Fire-Fiend and anyone else that stands in the way of her dream.

For anyone who loves sailing and adventure, Arthur Ransome’s classic Swallows and Amazons series stands alone.

Swallows and Amazons introduces the Walker family, the camp on Wild Cat Island, the able-bodied catboat “Swallow”, and the two intrepid Amazons, plucky Nancy and Peggy Blackett.

A world away, in the rugged Wyoming wilderness, a wild mustang called Artemisia runs free, belonging only to the stars.

In a land where mountain lions and wranglers pose an ever-present threat, she must vigilantly protect her new foal… until a devastating act separates them from their band.

Author Sherry Shahan’s dramatic story displays perceptive insights into the conflicted hearts and minds of teenagers, as well as a thorough understanding of the natural world and technical details of mountaineering.

With the help of a prince and an apprentice wizard, Wren strives to rescue her best friend, a princess named Tess, from the fortress of a wicked king.

The murder of her mother leads 13-year-old Rowan to a desperate decision.

She must set out alone across dangerous country to find the father she has never met: a famous outlaw of Sherwood Forest named Robin Hood.

A sequel to the award-winning Rowan Hood, this action-packed adventure is sure to delight all young readers.

This remarkable and acclaimed debut novel by the Newbery-winning author of When You Reach Me introduces readers to a captivating, hidden world below the ice…

First time children’s novelist Trenton Lee Stewart takes listeners on an adventure that puts friends, family, and foe to the test.

Are you up to the challenge?

As in all of Ransome’s books, the emphasis is on self-reliance, courage, and resourcefulness.

We Didn’t Mean to Go to Sea is a story to warm any mariner’s heart.

Full of nautical lore and adventure, it will appeal to young armchair sailors and seasoned sailors alike.

For fans of Hatchet and Island of the Blue Dolphins comes Theodore Taylor’s classic bestseller and Lewis Carroll Shelf Award winner, The Cay.

This thrilling new adventure story from bestselling author Theodore Taylor is a moving testament to the bond between brothers — and to the strength of the human spirit.

New York Times best-selling author Megan Whalen Turner’s entrancing and award-winning Queen’s Thief novels bring to life the world of the epics and feature one of the most charismatic and incorrigible characters of fiction, Eugenides the thief.

Megan Whalen Turner’s Queen’s Thief novels are rich with political machinations and intrigue, battles lost and won, dangerous journeys, divine intervention, power, passion, revenge, and deception.

Award-winning children’s author Lloyd Alexander packs this entertaining tale with fun-filled farce and and elegant comedy.