Challenging (but not too adult) books for an able 11yr old reader...

A Traveller in Time by Alison Uttley

All of the above will take her into the teen section (which she is obviously keen to do) without the content being too inappropriate. Could I just say however that 'teen' does not equate to challenging. There are still some wonderful reads for her age group and it may be than she just needs to widen what she reads rather than to head straight to the teen section.

Also

The Twelfth Day of July

Back Home

The Other Side of Truth

Spy for the Queen of Scots

Fallen Grace

Chinese Cinderella

A Gathering Light

My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece

The 5th Wave

Girl Missing

Elidor (still scares me a bit, but I know that I'm a wuss!)
The Earthsea books
The Railway Children
The Chronicles of Narnia
Alice in Wonderland/Looking Glass
Peter Pan
The Wind in the Willows

How about some poetry? Dd, also 11, is currently going to bed with a BBC anthology Poems of Childhood. It's not poems for children, but poems about childhood.
Spike Milligan
Hilaire Belloc

WEllwellwell - -I think I might have to go and reread my David Eddings books, now. Thank you!

Another vote for the Uglies series. I thought it was quite thoughtprovoking, kind of Brave New World for YA - but not as dark as say Hunger Games / Divergent.

DD also really enjoyed the Ingo series. As well as Garth Nix's Mr Monday series, the Sabriel series are also fine for this age.

Just also remembered Seraphina (+ sequel)? another fantasy one dd liked.

I started David eddings at that age and loved them.

I read my first Isaac Asimov at 11: Caves of Steel. It hooked me, and I worked my way through all his short stories. It started a life-long addiction to classic sci-fi.

When I was 11 many years ago I was hooked on agatha Christie and the James Herriot vet books.

There is also a follow up to Louis Sacher's Holes, it's Small Steps, a bit darker with rather more adult themes.

Had she read any Joan Aitken? Midnight is a Place, Tis, Wolves of Willoughby Chase

It is Polkadots! My favourite childhood book
I still have my original copy and reread it at least once a year!

Cataline is that the one about Rusty? I haven't read that for years, but loved it.

Eva Ibbotsen ones are good, The Secret Countess, A Company of Swans etc.(although I'd probably leave The Morning Gift a little while).

Agree with the Sally Lockhart ones too - I loved them. It took me a few goes to get into Northern Lights, I found the lady taking children absolutely terrifying.

My Family and Other Animals (all the Gerald Durrell ones really).
Tamora Pierce maybe.
Inkheart, Inkspell and Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke
Eragon
The Hermux Tantamoq series.
Wolf Brother etc.
The Printer's Devil
Garth Nix (there are a couple of series, the rainbow one is probably the youngest, the the days of the week one).
Uglies/Pretties etc.
Bootleg by Alex Shearer(might be a bit young)
The Little White Horse
The Fire Within (although I thought the series went a bit far-fetched and rubbishy after the first few. The first one's well worth reading though.)

Also, there are lots of the classics free or very cheap on the kindle - I'll have a look and post some more tomorrow.

His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman,
Mister Monday by Garth Nix and the following six books are superb.
Also the Windsinger trilogy by William Nicholson.
Lastly, Back Home by Michelle Magorian (goodnight mr Tom) is a fabulous book.

I have read FioS and so have my 12 and 11 year old dd's. They both loved it. The book is sad. No happy ending. But it is interesting and quite different.

Not sure if these were in the lists above but my 2 have enjoyed:-

• the boy in the striped pyjamas
• holes
• wonder
• Alex rider series
• divergent series
• hunger games series

YY to Susan Cooper, I love "The Dark is Rising" especially when read during December.

Ingo (starts off easy but the whole series is intriguing and 11 would be a good age, imo) Ballet Shoes, The Little Grey Men, The Bogwoppit...

My 16yo says 'the fault in our stars' would be ok for 12 up, and not so bad really but I haven't read it myself. She likes the author's other books.

Yes, I have read it. I'm not sure I would want my daughter reading it. It was quiet upsetting :-(

How about Philip Pullman, the Northern Lights trilogy or the Sally Lockhart ones? Very well written, strong female lead characters, gripping plots and I think fine for an 11 year old content-wise.

Or Lian Hearn "Tales of the Otori" trilogy, starts with " Across a Nightingale Floor"

DD is 11, and in the last year or so has read and enjoyed some John Green (Fault in our stars and others), Hunger Games, Wonder, some of the Eva Ibbotson books aimed at older children, The Book Thief, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (& the sequel), lots of things by Sophie McKenzie, all the Robert Muchamore books and loads of others.

As far as classics go, she liked Alice in Wonderland/through the looking glass, and What Katy Did and What Katy Did Next, but I haven't managed to interest her in much else.

I am not sure that Hitchhiker's Guide is a great pick for this age - they could certainly read it, and there is nothing very inappropriate, but I think they would get more out of the humour with a bit more life experience. I tried DS on it at around 11 or 12, but he was a bit bored by it. He picked it up again by choice this summer, aged 16, and was laughing out loud for a couple of days. It seems a shame to 'waste' such a fun book by trying to read it too early.