The Mysterious Benedict Society and its sequel. She'll love the hook. Anything by Deborah Wiles. Savvy by Ingrid Law. Ella Enchanted and Fairest by Gail Carson Levine. If she is into mysteries, she should check out the Enola Holmes Mysteries by Nancy Springer (I think the 4th one comes out in the fall). The Secret Order of the Gumm Street Girls by Elise Primavera.

The "Warriors" series by Erin Hunter is very good and comes in three distinct arcs "Warriors", "Warriors: The New Prophecy", and "Warriors: The Power of Three". The three authors that are collectively Erin Hunter are also coming out with a new series called "Seekers". Also "The Books of Ember" series is really good. And the first book, "The City of Ember" has been made into a movie and will come out in theaters in October and by the look of the previews, which you can find online, it looks pretty good.

The Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper -- they were some of my favorites as a kid and at 34 they still are. And the Wizard of Earthsea trilogy by Ursula LeGuin.

The Ven Polypheme series by Elizabeth Haydon is fantastic. The first book, The Floating Island, has been one of my best handsells for the past couple of years -- I haven't heard a negative report yet. The two other books in the series (Thief Queen's Daughter -- avail now -- and Dragons Lair -- out in July or Aug) can be read as complete standalones, and are both fun and inventive.

On a related note, my 5 year old (five!) is obsessed with the Spiderwick Chronicles. We brought her, with reservations, to see the movie with her older sister & friends, and she loved it and we are now reading the books to her. We also got her the glossy "field guide" and she watched the movie again the other day and proudly said, "Daddy look, that's my book!"

You never know what will strike a chord.

The reading group I'm in tries to read at least one children's/young adult novel a year. Books we've enjoyed: "Stargirl" (Jerry Spinelli), "Hatchet" (Gary Paulsen), "When Zachary Beaver Came to Town" (Kimberly Willis Holt), "Walk Two Moons" (Sharon Creech), and "Holes" (Louis Sachar).

How about "Higher Power of Lucky" by Susan Patron, long ago gems but still fun "Singing Tree" & "Good Master" by Kate Seredy, time travel"The Seems: Glitch in Sleep" by Wexler/Hulme and the fantastic "Howl's Moving Castle" by Diana Wynn Jones.

I know this is going to sound old fashioned... but really, I'm only 25 so there is some young resonance. When I was MM's age, I LOVED Anne of Green Gables and Laura Ingles Wilder. The Chronicles of Narnia are a no-brainer, but also try the classics... 2,000 Leagues Under the Sea (or anything else by Jules Verne). I appreciate a young girl who isn't obsessed with princesses and fairies. Keep up the good reading!

The Westing Game...the Blue Balliet books...and for more old fashioned fun, Lenora Mattingly Weber books (they were old when I read them in the late 70s but I loved them!)

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Stewart, Dear Dumb Diary for LOL fun, Painting the Wind by Pam Ryan--a girl and horses=perfect combo. For adventure, try the Gregor the Overlander series by Suzanne Collins or Garth Nix's Keys to the Kingdom. There's also Here Lies the Librarian by Richard Peck--totally awesome!

Oh, you are all fantastic! I'd completely forgotten about Dark Is Rising. I did manage to foist All-of-A-Kind Family on her. She's dubious, but it was one of my favorites as a child, so I thinkt the foisting is worth it. I'm making a list now... BTW, for all librarians out there: we bought this passel of books because Little Miss Maven is off to three weeks of sleepaway camp. Many of today's suggested titles will be plucked from the shelves of our local library later this summer.

I would recommend "From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" and "Jennifer, Hecate, MacBeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth." "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" was another a favorite of mine.

I would highly, highly recommend "Inkspell" by Cornelia Funke. It's the first in a series and it's spellbinding (pun intended!). Also, the Olympians series by Rick Riordan is fantastic--the first book is "The Lightning Thief." And "The Guardians of Ga'hoole" series by Kathy Lasky is lots of fun. Oh, and "Gregor and the Overlander." And "The Chronicles of the Wolf Brotherhood" by Michelle Paver. Enjoy!

Well I'll certainly rise to this challenge, Bethanne, since you've specifically beckoned to me for advice! The commenters who beat me to the punch have all come up with great suggestions. To theirs I would add Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan, the Sammy Keyes series by Wendelin Van Draanen, So B. It by Sarah Weeks, The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall, Pish Posh by Ellen Potter, Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff, Shug by Jenny Han, The Liberation of Gabriel King by K. L. Going, Hana's Suitcase by Karen Levine (a fabulous non-fiction read), Shakespeare's Secret by Elise Broach, Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R. L. LaFevers, Darby by Jonathon Scott Fuqua, Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko, The Mulberry Project by Linda Sue Park, and (wow...) so many more! I view it as a very GOOD thing that so many of us find it harder to STOP listing great books for girls in this age group than to find books worth listing in the first place. And I'm glad that the bookseller at your local independent bookstore was struck by the same "problem" (which is anything but)!

Princess Ben or any books by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

"From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler". Loved it.

Go Mini-Maven! I had a list but then I saw it was exactly what Rebecca P listed! Have a great time at camp MM.

I see lots of favorites on this list and have just one to add: I not only loved Island of the Blue Dolphins at Mini-Maven's age, but my brother and I acted out the story with our own myriad variations one entire summer around my parents pool, with river rocks as the food staple abalone and our fox terrier playing the part of one of the ferocious wolves. (Save the sequel until she's a little older though.) Happy Reading, Mini-Maven!

The Patricia C. Wrede quartet that starts with Dealing with Dragons is fantastic (clever, fun, and strong female lead). I would also suggest anything by Tamora Pierce, she's long been my favorite author. For the younger Mini-Maven, I would say start her with the Circle of Magic quartet, the main characters are all about 10 years old and the story is beyond wonderful.