I first read The Mists of Avalon around that age, or a little older. I loved it then, though I don't really remember how scary it was.
How about Wrinkle in Time and all its sequels?
'Dear Diary, Today I was pompous and my sister was crazy.' 'Today, we were kidnapped by hill folk never to be seen again. It was the best day ever.'
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Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.
There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."
Hil R. - Apr 16, 2009 1:01:32 pm PDT #8858 of 28414
Sometimes I think I might just move up to Vermont, open a bookstore or a vegan restaurant. Adam Schlesinger, z''l
Strega - Apr 16, 2009 1:19:39 pm PDT #8859 of 28414
I don't know how scary Harry Potter is, but I was 10 or 11 the first time I read Watership Down. I don't remember anything about it being scary. Sad sometimes, sure, but there aren't evil powers and monsters and ghosts and so on. I suppose it depends what in particular she finds scary. It's certainly got bad things happening to animals, but so did half of the books I read at that age, so I don't think it stood out.
le nubian - Apr 16, 2009 1:20:26 pm PDT #8860 of 28414
"And to be clear, I am the hell. And the high water."
I read a Wrinkle in Time when I was in 5th or 6th grade and it BLEW.MY.MIND. I think that is definitely age appropriate for good readers.
The sequel (A Wind in the Door) is a bit more advanced. I don't think it is suitable for younger than about 7th grade, if memory serves. The science in the book confused me until I read it again in high school.
Swiftly Tilting Planet is advanced. High school for sure IMO.
Typo Boy - Apr 16, 2009 1:20:58 pm PDT #8861 of 28414
Calli: My people have a saying. A man who trusts can never be betrayed, only mistaken.Avon: Life expectancy among your people must be extremely short.
Wrinkle in Time was wunderbar, but I seem to remember it as really really scary. One of the few books that ever terrified me. Beautiful, Beautiful writing though. Marvelous characters. May be Definitely a favorite.
Dana - Apr 16, 2009 1:21:31 pm PDT #8862 of 28414
I'm terrifically busy with my ennui.
Wrinkle in Time scared the crap out of me too.
meara - Apr 16, 2009 1:40:24 pm PDT #8863 of 28414
Mercedes Lackey! Anne McCaffrey! C'mon, all those fantasy ones that you loooooooved at that age?
Or, Tamora Pierce (definitely not very scary)
Barb - Apr 16, 2009 2:00:03 pm PDT #8864 of 28414
“Not dead yet!”
Yeah, Wrinkle is scary, although Abby just finished reading it and loved it. Swiftly Tilting Planet is my favorite of the original trilogy.
Dana - Apr 16, 2009 2:01:44 pm PDT #8865 of 28414
I'm terrifically busy with my ennui.
Oh, did someone mention Robin McKinley? Beauty, Blue Sword, Hero and the Crown, Spindle's End -- almost all her stuff should be suitable for that age.
le nubian - Apr 16, 2009 2:24:42 pm PDT #8866 of 28414
"And to be clear, I am the hell. And the high water."
What about Wrinkle in Time scared you all? I don't remember being scared through it.
But...I was reading mysteries and the like from a young age.
Dana - Apr 16, 2009 2:47:54 pm PDT #8867 of 28414
I'm terrifically busy with my ennui.
For me, it was the inhuman villains. All those children, bouncing balls at the same time, skipping rope to the same rhythm. It creeped me out very effectively.