>>If anyone has suggestions on books for pre-teens, pass them along<<
You can pick up your missing Trixie Beldens on ebay. Also, try out Judy Boltons, by Margaret Sutton - currently they are only available on ebay, but they're about to be reprinted.
An excellent girls' series that has just been reprinted is the Beany Malone series by Lenora Mattingly Weber.The publisher,
http://www.imagecascade.com/, is reprinting many well-loved & wholesome children's books - Sally Watsons are good too. I wish I'd known those were being reprinted - a few months ago, hardcovers were going for up to $600 on the web, and I've got three. The Chip Hilton series, for boys, has been republished by a Christian press, with a Christian writer revising the books to increase the religious tone. Those are available at Borders; the Beany Malones are available at the website - the Malone family is Catholic, with a strong faith.
I disagree on Harry Potter - and until I read the books for myself, I leaned toward your point of view. Remember the Goosebumps & Christopher Pike crazes? THOSE were dangerous books - while they were fictional, they were NOT fantasy, as is Harry Potter.
Thanks for the information on the books ... when summer comes, I want to be prepared with reading material!