Princess Academy
Recommended. Age: 10+. A Catholic review of this book for parents.
Our review
This is a warm, clean fantasy about learning, friendship and love for one's home. Miri grows by forgiving the girls who shut her out, helping rivals pass, and choosing her village over a crown. Good Books for Catholic Kids calls it character-forming. One note: a story-world creator god's priests pick the bride by a rite, and the stone carries silent speech. Both are story devices.
For parents
Read aloud from 8, independent reading from 10. Common Sense Media says 10 and up, Plugged In 9 and up. The bandit siege is tense. Ask why Miri stopped wanting to win and started helping her friends. Ask why the harsh teacher's lie hurt more than her punishments.