Without question you have to try "The Dark is Rising" series, by Susan Cooper. Get the books seppearatly, and not the omnibus edition, which looks scarily large to a younger child! From Memory (hope I remember right >.<) they go:
Over Sea, Under Stone,
The Dark is Rising,
Greenwich,
The Grey King,
Silver On the Tree.
I read the first two Chrestomanci books by Diana Wynne Jones when I was about 10, and loved them. Apparently there's more of them out now, I'll have to find them myself! She's written heaps of others, and some of those also are fantastic children's books. The first two Chrestomanci books:
A Charmed Life
The Magicians of Caprona.
Alan Garner was another childhood favourite author. The name that sticks out is "The Weirdstone of Brisingamen"
"Which Witch" by Eva Ibbotson. The plot might sound really girly, but I remember it as being full of wonderfully gruesome things.
All of the above stick in my mind as utterly entrancing me as a child. I too was an advanced reader, having got through the Hobbit when I was 8, and TLOTR when I was nine. "The Worst Witch" cames to mind too, but I can't remember any of the story, so I can't tell you if it's any good.
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I know he's about a year and a half away from how old I was when I started reading The Clan Of The Cave Bear (Earth's Children Series). Looking back I definitely wouldn't want my son reading those yet! I'm gonna re-read The Hobbit, I think it's probably fine for him, but I honestly can't remember all of it. I don't think any of the fight scenes were the type to leave awful images in his head either.
Hahahahaha omg! The Clan of the Cave Bear and it's sequels I read when I was 14 or 15, and above anything else they struck me as being full of sex, sex, and more sex. I was initially entranced with it all, but by the third book, I actually abandonded it because there didnt' seem to be anything more going on than fights and make-up sex.
I read a heap of adult books when I was a young teenager, and they all were WONDERFULLY educational. When I finally got round to losing my virginity at 18, I was very confident with it all, because of all my reading experience! Kids have to learn some time, but yeah, I think clan of The Cave Bear is better left around for a fourteen year old to find than a ten year old!
Edited, Dec 20th 2007 4:35am by Aripyanfar