Action & Adventure Stories

If pirates, jousting and horseback chases no longer appeal to you, you're too old or too boring. Adventure stories fell out of vogue among 20th century literary types who thought serious fiction had to be boring and depressing, but to those born with fire in their bones, adventure stories are deeply serious.

Not serious like existentialism or keeping a stiff upper lip, but serious like Robin Hood—devoted to protecting the downtrodden, committed to Maid Marian, sworn to fight injustice as long as a soul is in his body, always laughing and ready for a fight or a feast.

G. K. Chesterton wrote adventure stories because they best expressed the eternal joy that supported his generous frame. For those raised on Modern Adventure Stories, joy may seem an inappropriate word for an increasingly dark genre, but the fault lies with those who think adventures are forays into evil rather than romps with Gilbert Keith.

There's nothing evil about a good adventure. There may be bad guys (there ought to be), but if the Good Guy does his job there'll be more of his exploits to talk about than theirs. Because, should he be doing his job, the Hero will be sword-fighting, being clever, wooing, chasing and laughing to the detriment of his enemies on every page.

Average people don't have the adventures Heroes in Books have—they have the adventures of Modern Men in Books. But the way through the prosaic troubles of life isn't to immerse yourself in them, it's to let the Good Guys show The Way Out of Problems, and do your best to imitate them when you meet the less dramatic, but no less real, dangers of everyday existence.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
Did you find this review helpful?
Parent Categories
Action & Adventure Stories
193 Items found Print
Active Filters: 4th grade (Ages 9-10), Used Books & Materials
100-Year-Old Secret
Sherlock Files #1
by Tracy Barrett
1st edition from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Adam of the Road
by Elizabeth Janet Gray, illustrated by Robert Lawson
1962 Printing from Viking Press
for 3rd-5th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Adara
by Beatrice Gormley
from Eerdmans
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.00 $5.00 (2 in stock)
Adventures of Robin Hood
by E. Charles Vivian, illustrated by Jules Gotlieb
from Airmont Publishing Company, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Adventures of Tommy Blake
by Brother Ernest
from St. Anthony Guild Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Alexi's Secret Mission
by Anita Deyneka
from School of Tomorrow
for 1st-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Angry Waters
by Walt Morey
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Angry Waters
by Walt Morey
from E.P. Dutton & Co.
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Apache Gold
by Joseph A. Altsheler
from Appleton-Century-Crofts
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Art of Keeping Cool
by Janet Taylor Lisle
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
2001 Scott O'Dell Award
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$2.50 (2 in stock)
Banner in the Sky
by James Ramsey Ullman
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1955 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Battle for Skandia
Ranger's Apprentice #04
by John A. Flanagan
Reprint from Philomel Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Beast of Blackslope
Sherlock Files #2
by Tracy Barrett
1st edition from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Black Stallion's Filly
Black Stallion #8
by Walter Farley
from Random House
Realistic Animal Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Book Scavenger
by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
from Henry Holt and Company
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Buddy's Crazy True-Life Adventures
Buddy Davis Amazing Adventures
by Buddy Davis
from Answers in Genesis
for 3rd-6th grade
in Short Stories (Location: LIT-ANTH)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Call it Courage
by Armstrong Sperry
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Realistic Fiction for 2nd-6th grade
1941 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$4.99 $3.00 (2 in stock)
Call it Courage
by Armstrong Sperry
from Simon Pulse
for 4th-6th grade
1941 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Call it Courage
by Armstrong Sperry
1963 printing from Macmillan
for 2nd-6th grade
1941 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Camel Caravan
by Arthur Catherall, illustrated by Joseph Papin
from Seabury Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Canterbury Tales
by Barbara Cohen & Trina Schart Hyman
from William Morrow & Company
Medieval Literature for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$17.50 (1 in stock)
Caught
Missing #05
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
from Simon and Schuster
for 4th-7th grade
in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
$7.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Cay
by Theodore Taylor
from Yearling
Realistic Fiction for 2nd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Chasing Vermeer
Balliet Art Mystery Series
by Blue Balliett, Brett Helquist (Illustrator)
from Scholastic Inc.
Mystery & Suspense for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Chestnut King
100 Cupboards Book #3
by N. D. Wilson
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99 $5.50 (1 in stock)
Choose Your Own Adventure 04
by R. A. Montgomery
from Chooseco
for 3rd-6th grade
in Series Books (Location: SER-MISC)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Choose Your Own Adventure 05
by R. A. Montgomery
from Chooseco
for 3rd-6th grade
in Series Books (Location: SER-MISC)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Computer Nut
by Betsy Cromer Byars
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Countdown
by Ben Mikaelsen
from Hyperion Books for Children
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Cowboy Boots
by Shannon Garst
from Abingdon-Cokesbury Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Cry From Egypt
by Hope Auer
from Great Waters Press
for 4th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.50 (2 in stock)
Danger Downriver
by Emmy West and Christine Govan, illustrated by Charles Robinson
First Ediition from Viking Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Danger on Shadow Mountain
by Marian Rumsey, Illustrated by Lydia Rosier
from William Morrow & Company
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Danny Dunn and the Anti-Gravity Paint
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin; illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (3 in stock)
Danny Dunn and the Automatic House
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin; illustrated by Owen Kampen
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (2 in stock)
Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Danny Dunn and the Swamp Monster
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin; illustrated by Paul Sagsoorian
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Danny Dunn and the Universal Glue
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Paul Sagsoorian
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Danny Dunn and the Voice from Space
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Leo Summers
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Danny Dunn on a Desert Island
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats
1971 printing from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$25.00 (1 in stock)
Danny Dunn on the Ocean Floor
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin; illustrated by Brinton Turkle
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Dipper of Copper Creek
by Jean Craighead George, John George
from Puffin Books
for 4th-7th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Dobie Sturgis and the Dog Soldiers
by Carl G. Hodges
First Edition from Bobbs-Merril Co
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Dolphin Adventure
by Wayne Grover
from HarperTrophy
for 3rd-7th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$5.99 $3.50 (4 in stock)
Dolphin Treasure
by Wayne Grover
from HarperTrophy
for Ages 8-12
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$5.99 $3.50 (2 in stock)
Drackenberg Adventure
by Lloyd Alexander
from E.P. Dutton & Co.
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Ear, the Eye, and the Arm
by Nancy Farmer
from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
ECL: Around the World in Eighty Days
by Jules Verne, illustrated by Don Irwin
for 3rd-8th grade
in Educator Classic Library (Location: VIN-ECL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
ECL: Virginian
Educator Classic Library #6
by Owen Wister, illustrated by Don Irwin
Complete and Unabridged Edition from Classic Press
in Educator Classic Library (Location: VIN-ECL)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
Endymion Spring
by Matthew Skelton
from Delacorte Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Erak's Ransom
Ranger's Apprentice #07
by John A. Flanagan
from Philomel Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Fifty Famous Stories Retold
by James Baldwin
from Yesterday's Classics
for 1st-4th grade
$11.95 $7.00 (1 in stock)
Five Get Into Trouble
Famous Five #8
by Enid Blyton
from Hodder Children's
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Five Go Adventuring Again
Famous Five #2
by Enid Blyton
2001 Printing from Hodder Children's
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Five On Kirrin Island Again
Famous Five #6
by Enid Blyton
Revised 2010 edition from Hodder Children's
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Frightful's Mountain
by Jean Craighead George
from Puffin Books
Adventure for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
by E.L. Konigsburg
37th printing from Atheneum
for 4th-6th grade
1968 Newbery Medal Winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.50 (2 in stock)
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
by E. L. Konigsburg
35th Anniversary Edition from Atheneum
Mystery/Suspense for 4th-7th grade
1968 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Ghost in the Tokaido Inn
by Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler
from Puffin Books
for 4th-7th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
Girl Named Disaster
by Nancy Farmer
First Printing Dec.2011 from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Good Comrades
by Felix Salten
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Gregor The Overlander
Underland Chronicles #1
by Suzanne Collins
from Scholastic Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Half Moon Investigations
by Eoin Colfer
Reprint from Disney-Hyperion
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Halt's Peril
Ranger's Apprentice #09
by John A. Flanagan
from Philomel Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Hans Brinker
Windermere Readers #7
by Mary Mapes Dodge, illustrated by Milo Winter
1954 Edition, 2nd printing from Rand McNally
for 4th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$10.00 (2 in stock)
Haunted Railway Game
by Enid Blyton, illustrated by Gary Rees
from Hodder & Stoughton
for 3rd-6th grade
in Mystery & Suspense (Location: FIC-MYS)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Heath Cousins and the Kingsgate Bridge
Heath Cousins #02
by Eileen Hobbs
from Palmetto Publishing Group
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Heath Cousins and the Moonstone Cave
Heath Cousins #01
by Eileen Hobbs
from Xlibris Corp.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Hidden Peril
from Cupples & Leon
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Holes
Holes Series #1
by Louis Sachar
10th Anniversary Edition from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 4th-6th grade
1999 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Horse and His Boy
Chronicles of Narnia Book 3
by C. S. Lewis
from HarperCollins
Allegorical Fantasy for 3rd-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Horse and His Boy
Chronicles of Narnia Book 3
by Lewis, C. S.
from HarperCollins
Allegorical Fantasy for 3rd-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$12.99 $7.00 (4 in stock)
Horse and His Boy
by C. S. Lewis
Reprint from HarperCollins
for 3rd-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
House of Dies Drear
by Virginia Hamilton
Reissue from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99 $4.00 (4 in stock)
I Survived the Bombing of Pearl Harbor, 1941
by Lauren Tarshis
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-5th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Incident at Hawk's Hill
by Allan W. Eckert
from Little, Brown & Company
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Indian Captive
by Lois Lenski
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 4th-9th grade
1942 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
Indian in the Cupboard
Indian in the Cupboard #1
by Lynne Banks
from HarperCollins
Fantasy for 4th-7th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Indian in the Cupboard
Indian in the Cupboard #1
by Lynne Banks
from Weekly Reader
Fantasy for 4th-7th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Innocent Voyage
by Richard Hughes, illustrated by Lynd Ward
from Heritage Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$7.00 (2 in stock)
It's a Jungle Out There!
Rani Adventures #1
by Ron Snell
from Hannibal Books
for 4th-8th Grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Ivan and the American Journey
by Myrna Grant
from Christian Focus Publications
for 3rd-6th grade
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Ivan and the Informer
by Myrna Grant
from Christian Focus Publications
for 3rd-6th grade
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Ivan and the Moscow Circus
by Myrna Grant
from Christian Focus Publications
for 3rd-6th grade
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Ivan and the Secret in the Suitcase
by Myrna Grant
from Christian Focus Publications
for 3rd-6th grade
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Jack Plank Tells Tales
by Natalie Babbitt
First Edition (first thus) from MDC Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Jericho's Journey
by G. Clifton Wisler
from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Jerry Todd and the Oak Island Treasure
Jerry Todd #03
by Leo Edwards, illustrated by Bert Salg
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Julie of the Wolves
"Julie" Trilogy Book 1
by Jean Craighead George
from Scholastic Inc.
Adventure for 4th-8th grade
1973 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Julie of the Wolves
"Julie" Trilogy Book 1
by Jean Craighead George
from HarperCollins
Adventure for 4th-8th grade
1973 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Julie of the Wolves
"Julie" Trilogy Book 1
by Jean Craighead George, illustrated by John Schoenherr
from HarperCollins
Adventure for 4th-8th grade
1973 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Julie's Wolf Pack
"Julie" Trilogy Book 3
by Jean Craighead George
from HarperCollins
Adventure for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Julie's Wolf Pack
by Jean Craighead George
1st edition from HarperCollins
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.50 (2 in stock)
Jungle Book
by Rudyard Kipling
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Just So Stories
by Rudyard Kipling, illustrated by Safaya Salter
from Henry Holt and Company
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Kensuke's Kingdom
by Michael Morpurgo
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-7th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$5.99 $3.00 (1 in stock)
Key to the Indian
by Lynne Banks
from HarperCollins
Fantasy for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$6.99 $3.50 (1 in stock)
Kings Mountain
by G. Clifton Wisler
1st edition from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Land of Williwaws
by M. I. Ross, illustrated by George M. Richards
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
12