Eva Ibbotson has written lots of books for both younger and older children. Here are three pitched at a similar age..
Lots of girls dream of meeting and marrying a prince. But perhaps being a prince isn't all that it is meant to be. This is certainly the case for Karil, Prince of Bergania, in this wonderful tale set just before the beginning of World War 2.
Tally, the young daughter of a doctor in London is really upset to be sent away to a boarding school in the countryside to be away from the upcoming war. But when she gets there Delderton School is nothing like the schools that her rich cousins have told her about. Meeting amazing new friends, and even more amazing new teachers, she quickly falls in love with the wacky school.
Shear determination on her part leads to a class trip Bergania, a kingdom that appears to be out of many Disney films or Fairy Tales. But the enchanted kingdom is about to face it's darkest hour, positioned as it is in Hitler's path of destruction.
What follows is a head long chase back to England with a smuggled Prince. Even safe in England Karil feels even more trapped by his rich relatives. Eventually it takes the actions of an aged family pet to release him from his family's clutches and to the freedom of Delderton and his friends.
This book, to my mind, took a little while to getting going but I am so glad I kept going. What followed was a wonderful tale. I look forward to reading more books by Eva Ibbotson.