Even though many of the greatest literary works are written at the reading level of a 12 year old or earlier, only books written for the child audience are included in this list. These books will provide the foundation of literacy needed to read the most noteworthy books of all time. Parents are encouraged to transition their children into those books as they are ready for them and are included in the age-specific book lists. This list is compiled from credible children’s book lists. To reduce the likelihood of anyone’s biases, objectives, or blind spots affecting this list too much, only books that appeared in at least two of the following lists were included in this compilation:
- The same sources of the most noteworthy books of all time compilation
- The British Broadcasting Company’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books
- Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children
- New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books
- Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written
- Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
- Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
- Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
Pricing Markers:
*$10 or less on Amazon
**$5 or less on Amazon
Eight Book List Appearances
*Charlotte’s Web, E. B White (Audible)
~8, United State, 1952
“‘Some Pig. Humble. Radiant.’ These are the words in Charlotte’s Web, high up in Zuckerman’s barn. Charlotte’s spiderweb tells of her feelings for a little pig named Wilbur, who simply wants a friend. They also express the love of a girl named Fern, who saved Wilbur’s life when he was born the runt of his litter. E. B. White’s Newbery Honor Book is a tender novel of friendship, love, life, and death that will continue to be enjoyed by generations to come.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, TJEd.org’s Classics, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12.
The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh, A. A. Milne (Audible)
~8, United Kingdom, 1928
“In 1926, the world was introduced to a portly little bear named Winnie-the-Pooh. Along with his young friend, Christopher Robin, Pooh delighted readers from the very beginning. His often befuddled perceptions and adorable insights won the hearts of everyone around him, including his close group of friends. From the energetic Tigger to the dismal Eeyore, A. A. Milne created a charming bunch, both entertaining and inspirational. These simple creatures often reflected a small piece of all of us: humble, silly, wise, cautious, creative, and full of life. Remember when Piglet did a very grand thing, or Eeyore’s almost-forgotten birthday?” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
**Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak (**Audible)
~4, United States, 1963
“Introduce a new generation to Max’s imaginative journey with this special anniversary edition. Let the wild rumpus continue as this classic comes to life like never before with new reproductions of Maurice Sendak’s artwork. Astonishing state-of-the-art technology faithfully captures the color and detail of the original illustrations. Sendak himself enthusiastically endorsed this impressive new interpretation of his art before his death in 2012. This iconic story has inspired a movie, an opera, and the imagination of generations.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
Seven Book List Appearances
The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien (Audible)
~8, United Kingdom, 1937
“Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure. They have launched a plot to raid the treasure hoard guarded by Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon. Bilbo reluctantly joins their quest, unaware that on his journey to the Lonely Mountain he will encounter both a magic ring and a frightening creature known as Gollum.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, TJEd.org’s Classics, Art of Manliness’s 100 Books Every Man Should Read, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, C. S. Lewis (Audible)
*~8, United Kingdom, 1950
“Four adventurous siblings—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie—step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change . . . and a great sacrifice.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle (*Audible)
*~1, United States, 1969
“As the newborn caterpillar snacks through the pages (leaving behind a hole to stick a little finger through), he gets bigger, fatter, and turns into a lovely butterfly with wings the color of Swiss cheese, oranges, and cherry pie! Carle brings humor to the development of the caterpillar, one of the first science miracles a child learns.” – Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
Six Book List Appearances
**Goodnight Moon, Margaret Wise Brown (**Audible)
**~2, United States, 1947
“In a great green room, tucked away in bed, is a little bunny. “Goodnight room, goodnight moon.” And to all the familiar things in the softly lit room—to the picture of the three little bears sitting on chairs, to the clocks and his socks, to the mittens and the kittens, to everything one by one—the little bunny says goodnight. In this classic of children’s literature, beloved by generations of readers and listeners, the quiet poetry of the words and the gentle, lulling illustrations combine to make a perfect book for the end of the day.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
The Harry Potter Series, J. K. Rowling
~8, United Kingdom, 1995
“Harry Potter is a series of fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The main story arc concerns Harry’s struggle against Lord Voldemort, a dark wizard who intends to become immortal, overthrow the wizard governing body known as the Ministry of Magic and subjugate all wizards and Muggles (non-magical people).” – Wikipedia
More information on Common Sense Media: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien
Audible: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King
~9, United Kingdom, 1954
“In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell by chance into the hands of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins. From Sauron’s fastness in the Dark Tower of Mordor, his power spread far and wide. Sauron gathered all the Great Rings to him, but always he searched for the One Ring that would complete his dominion. When Bilbo reached his eleventy-first birthday he disappeared, bequeathing to his young cousin Frodo the Ruling Ring and a perilous quest: to journey across Middle-earth, deep into the shadow of the Dark Lord, and destroy the Ring by casting it into the Cracks of Doom. The Lord of the Rings tells of the great quest undertaken by Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring: Gandalf the Wizard; the hobbits Merry, Pippin, and Sam; Gimli the Dwarf; Legolas the Elf; Boromir of Gondor; and a tall, mysterious stranger called Strider.” – GoodReads
More information: Wikipedia, SparkNotes
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Open Education Database’s 50 Most Influential Books of All Time, TJEd.org’s Classics, Art of Manliness’s 100 Books Every Man Should Read, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
**The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Beatrix Potter (**Audible)
**~6, United Kingdom, 1901
“[The Tale of Peter Rabbit] tells the story of a very mischievous rabbit and the trouble he encounters in Mr McGregor’s vegetable garden!” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, TJEd.org’s Classics, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle (Audible)
*~10, United States, 1962
“It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger. Wild nights are my glory,” the unearthly stranger told them. “I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me sit down for a moment, and then I’ll be on my way. Speaking of ways, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesseract.” A tesseract (in case the reader doesn’t know) is a wrinkle in time. To tell more would rob the reader of the enjoyment of Miss L’Engle’s unusual book.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
Five Book List Appearances
*The Cat in the Hat, Dr. Seuss (**Audible)
*~4, United States, 1957
“Poor Dick and Sally. It’s cold and wet and they’re stuck in the house with nothing to do . . . until a giant cat in a hat shows up, transforming the dull day into a madcap adventure and almost wrecking the place in the process! ” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*Harold and the Purple Crayon, Crockett Johnson (**Audible)
*~2, United States, 1955
“One evening Harold decides to go for a walk in the moonlight. Armed only with an oversize purple crayon, young Harold draws himself a landscape full of wonder and excitement. Harold and his trusty crayon travel through woods and across seas and past dragons before returning to bed, safe and sound. Full of funny twists and surprises, this charming story shows just how far your imagination can take you.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (**Audible)
*~10, France, 1943
“A pilot crashes in the Sahara desert. While attempting to fix his plane a thousand miles from any habitation, he meets a strangely dressed little boy who seems to have come from nowhere and who demands that he draw a sheep. “When a mystery is too overpowering, one dare not disobey,” so the pilot attempts to draw a sheep. Gradually the Little Prince reveals his story…” – Common Sense Media
More information: SparkNotes, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Madeline, Ludwig Bemelmans
*~3, United States, 1939
“Nothing frightens Madeline—not tigers, not even mice. With its endearing, courageous heroine, cheerful humor, and wonderful, whimsical drawings of Paris, the Madeline stories are true classics that continue to charm readers” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*Pippi Longstocking, Astrid Lindgren (Audible)
*~8, Sweden, 1950
“Tommy and his sister Annika have a new neighbor, and her name is Pippi Longstocking. She has crazy red pigtails, no parents to tell her what to do, a horse that lives on her porch, and a pet monkey named Mr. Nilsson. Whether Pippi’s scrubbing her floors, doing arithmetic, or stirring things up at a fancy tea party, her flair for the outrageous always seems to lead to another adventure.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in Bokklubben World Library’s 100 Best Books of All Time, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Snowy Day, Ezra Jack Keats (**Audible)
*~2, United States, 1962
“No book has captured the magic and sense of possibility of the first snowfall better than The Snowy Day. Universal in its appeal, the story has become a favorite of millions, as it reveals a child’s wonder at a new world, and the hope of capturing and keeping that wonder forever. The adventures of a little boy in the city on a very snowy day.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
Four Book List Appearances
*The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain (**Audible)
~12, United States, 1884
“The novel’s preeminence derives from its wonderfully imaginative re-creation of boyhood adventures along the Mississippi River, its inspired characterization, the author’s remarkable ear for dialogue, and the book’s understated development of serious underlying themes: “natural” man versus “civilized” society, the evils of slavery, the innate value and dignity of human beings, and other topics. Most of all, Huckleberry Finn is a wonderful story, filled with high adventure and unforgettable characters.” – Amazon
Other synopses: Video SparkNotes, Common Sense Media
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Bokklubben World Library’s 100 Best Books of All Time, TJEd.org’s Classics, and Art of Manliness’s 100 Books Every Man Should Read
*Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Judith Viorst (*Audible)
*~6, United States, 1972
“Alexander knew it was going to be a terrible day when he woke up with gum in this hair.
And it got worse… His best friend deserted him. There was no dessert in his lunch bag. And, on top of all that, there were lima beans for dinner and kissing on TV! This handsome new edition of Judith Viorst’s classic picture book is sure to charm readers of all ages.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll (*Audible)
**~8, United Kingdom, 1865
“In 1862 Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, a shy Oxford mathematician with a stammer, created a story about a little girl tumbling down a rabbit hole. Thus began the immortal adventures of Alice… Countless scholars have tried to define the charm of the Alice books—with those wonderfully eccentric characters the Queen of Hearts, Tweedledum, and Tweedledee, the Cheshire Cat, Mock Turtle, the Mad Hatter et al.—by proclaiming that they really comprise a satire on language, a political allegory, a parody of Victorian children’s literature, even a reflection of contemporary ecclesiastical history. Perhaps… Alice is no more than a dream, a fairy tale about the trials and tribulations of growing up—or down, or all turned round—as seen through the expert eyes of a child.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*Anne of Green Gables, L. M. Montgomery (Audible)
~8, Canada, 1908
“As soon as Anne Shirley arrives at the snug white farmhouse called Green Gables, she is sure she wants to stay forever . . . but will the Cuthberts send her back to to the orphanage? Anne knows she’s not what they expected—a skinny girl with fiery red hair and a temper to match. If only she can convince them to let her stay, she’ll try very hard not to keep rushing headlong into scrapes and blurting out the first thing that comes to her mind. Anne is not like anyone else, the Cuthberts agree; she is special—a girl with an enormous imagination. This orphan girl dreams of the day when she can call herself Anne of Green Gables.” – GoodReads
Other synopses: Common Sense Media, SparkNotes
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, TJEd.org’s Classics, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl (Audible)
~8, United Kingdom, 1964
“Willy Wonka’s famous chocolate factory is opening at last! But only five lucky children will be allowed inside. And the winners are: Augustus Gloop, an enormously fat boy whose hobby is eating; Veruca Salt, a spoiled-rotten brat whose parents are wrapped around her little finger; Violet Beauregarde, a dim-witted gum-chewer with the fastest jaws around; Mike Teavee, a toy pistol-toting gangster-in-training who is obsessed with television; and Charlie Bucket, Our Hero, a boy who is honest and kind, brave and true, and good and ready for the wildest time of his life!” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
**Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault (Audible)
**1+, United States, 1989
“A told B and B told C, ‘I’ll meet you at the top of the coconut tree.’” When all the letters of the alphabet race one another up the coconut tree, will there be enough room?” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**Corduroy, Don Freeman (*Audible)
**1+, United States, 1968
“Poor Corduroy! Why won’t anyone buy him? Could it be because his overalls are missing a button? Late at night the teddy bear searches the store for his button. He never finds it, but he does find…” – Common Sense Media
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank (Audible)
**~11, Netherlands, 1947
“In 1942, with Nazis occupying Holland, a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the next two years, until their whereabouts were betrayed to the Gestapo, they and another family lived cloistered in the “Secret Annex” of an old office building. Cut off from the outside world, they faced hunger, boredom, the constant cruelties of living in confined quarters, and the ever-present threat of discovery and death. In her diary Anne Frank recorded vivid impressions of her experiences during this period. By turns thoughtful, moving, and amusing, her account offers a fascinating commentary on human courage and frailty and a compelling self-portrait of a sensitive and spirited young woman whose promise was tragically cut short.” – Amazon
Other synopses: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Open Education Database’s 50 Most Influential Books of All Time, TJEd.org’s Classics, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, Mo Willems (*Audible)
2+, United States, 2003
“When a bus driver takes a break from his route, a very unlikely volunteer springs up to take his place-a pigeon! But you’ve never met one like this before. As he pleads, wheedles, and begs his way through the book, children will love being able to answer back and decide his fate.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*The Frog and Toad Collection, Arnold Lobel (*Audible)
*~4, United States, 1970
“Frog and Toad are always there for each other—just as best friends should be! From sledding in winter to eating ice cream on hot summer days, these two friends have fun together the whole year round! ” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media: 1, 2, 3, 4, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*Green Eggs and Ham, Dr. Seuss (**Audible)
*~3, United States, 1960
“Dr. Seuss created this book by transposing ham and eggs, coloring them green, and using the word ‘not’ eighty-two times. The unquenchable Sam-I-am drags poor Mr. Negativity over hill, dale, and precarious aerial train track (with a cheerful mouse, fox, and goat in tow) until the hapless green-eggs-and-ham-hater consents to try the despised green breakfast.” – Wikipedia
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
If You Give a Moose a Muffin, Laura Numeroff
~4, United States, 1991
“If a big hungry moose comes to visit, you might give him a muffin to make him feel at home. If you give him a muffin, he’ll want some jam to go with it. When he’s eaten all your muffins, he’ll want to go to the store to get some more muffin mix.” – Amazon
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Little Engine That Could, Watty Piper (*Audible)
*~3, Hungary, 1930
“The story of a train filled with toys and gifts for little boys and girls that breaks down before reaching the children. After asking several passing trains for help over the hill, a little blue train agrees to help the stranded toys. Even though she is small, the blue train tries her best to bring the toys to the children on the other side of the hill.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Little House Series, Laura Ingalls Wilder
~8, United States, 1932
“In these books, Laura Ingalls travels with her family from the Big Woods of Wisconsin, to the prairies of Kansas, and up to Minnesota—all while facing the challenges of life on the frontier. And in Farmer Boy, Almanzo Wilder lives with his brother and sisters on a big farm in New York State.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics, BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Where the Sidewalk Ends, Shel Silverstein
~6, United States, 1974
“You’ll meet a boy who turns into a TV set, and a girl who eats a whale. The Unicorn and the Bloath live there, and so does Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout who will not take the garbage out. It is a place where you wash your shadow and plant diamond gardens, a place where shoes fly, sisters are auctioned off, and crocodiles go to the dentist.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
Three Book List Appearances
**Amelia Bedelia, Peggy Parish (*Audible)
**~4, United States, 1963
“From dressing the chicken to drawing the drapes, Amelia Bedelia does exactly what Mr. and Mrs. Rogers tell her to do. If things get a bit mixed up, well, that’s okay. When Amelia Bedelia is involved, everything always turns out perfectly in the end!” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*A Bear Called Paddington, Michael Bond (Audible)
*~6, United Kingdom, 1958
“Paddington Bear had traveled all the way from Peru when the Browns first met him in Paddington Station. Since then, their lives have never been quite the same . . . for ordinary things become extraordinary when a bear called Paddington is involved.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Borrowers, Mary Norton (Audible)
*~8, United Kingdom, 1952
“The Borrowers—the Clock family: Homily, Pod, and their fourteen-year-old daughter, Arrietty, to be precise—are tiny people who live underneath the kitchen floor of an old English country manor. All their minuscule home furnishings, from postage stamp paintings to champagne cork chairs, are “borrowed” from the “human beans” who tromp around loudly above them. All is well until Pod is spotted upstairs by a human boy! Can the Clocks stay nested safely in their beloved hidden home, or will they be forced to flee?” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Bread and Jam for Frances, Russell Hoban
~6, United States, 1964
“Can there be too much bread and jam?… Frances is a fussy eater. In fact, the only thing she likes is bread and jam. She won’t touch her squishy soft-boiled egg. She trades away her chicken-salad sandwich at lunch. She turns up her nose at boring veal cutlets. Unless Mother can come up with a plan, Frances just might go on eating bread and jam forever!” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Bridge to Terabithia, Katherine Paterson (Audible)
*~10, United States, 1977
“Jess Aarons has been practicing all summer so he can be the fastest runner in the fifth grade. And he almost is, until the new girl in school, Leslie Burke, outpaces him. The two become fast friends and spend most days in the woods behind Leslie’s house, where they invent an enchanted land called Terabithia. One morning, Leslie goes to Terabithia without Jess and a tragedy occurs. It will take the love of his family and the strength that Leslie has given him for Jess to be able to deal with his grief.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, SparkNotes
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*The Giver, Lois Lowry (Audible)
*~12, United States, 1993
“The haunting story centers on twelve-year-old Jonas, who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver of Memory does he begin to understand the dark, complex secrets behind his fragile community.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Giving Tree, Shel Silverstein
*2+, United States, 1964
“Since it was first published fifty years ago, Shel Silverstein’s poignant picture book for readers of all ages has offered a touching interpretation of the gift of giving and a serene acceptance of another’s capacity to love in return.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Gruffalo, Julia Donaldson (**Audible)
*~7, United Kingdom, 1999
“A mouse is taking a stroll through the deep, dark wood when along comes a hungry fox, then an owl, and then a snake. The mouse is good enough to eat but smart enough to know this, so he invents… the gruffalo! As Mouse explains, the gruffalo is a creature with terrible claws, and terrible tusks in its terrible jaws, and knobbly knees and turned-out toes, and a poisonous wart at the end of its nose. But Mouse has no worry to show. After all, there’s no such thing as a gruffalo…” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Holes, Louis Sachar (Audible)
~10, United States, 1998
“Stanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since followed generations of Yelnatses. Now Stanley has been unjustly sent to a boys’ detention center, Camp Green Lake, where the boys build character by spending all day, every day digging holes exactly five feet wide and five feet deep. There is no lake at Camp Green Lake. But there are an awful lot of holes. It doesn’t take long for Stanley to realize there’s more than character improvement going on at Camp Green Lake. The boys are digging holes because the warden is looking for something. But what could be buried under a dried-up lake? Stanley tries to dig up the truth in this inventive and darkly humorous tale of crime and punishment—and redemption.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
The Hunger Games Trilogy, Suzanne Colins
Audible: Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mocking Jay
~12, United States, 2008
“In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister’s place in the Games. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media: 1, 2, 3, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*I Want My Hat Back, Jon Klassen (*Audible)
*2+, Canada, 2011
“The bear’s hat is gone, and he wants it back. Patiently and politely, he asks the animals he comes across, one by one, whether they have seen it. Each animal says no, some more elaborately than others. But just as the bear begins to despond, a deer comes by and asks a simple question that sparks the bear’s memory and renews his search with a vengeance. Told completely in dialogue, this delicious take on the classic repetitive tale plays out in sly illustrations laced with visual humor—and winks at the reader with a wry irreverence that will have kids of all ages thrilled to be in on the joke.” – GoodReads
More information: Common Sense Media, GoodReads
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Love You Forever, Robert Munsch
~4, Canada, 1986
“A young woman holds her newborn son
And looks at him lovingly. Softly she sings to him: ‘I’ll love you forever, I’ll like you for always, As long as I’m living, My baby you’ll be.’ So begins the story that has touched the hearts of millions worldwide.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Make Way for Ducklings, Robert McCloskey (*Audible)
*~3, United States, 1941
“Mrs. Mallard was sure that the pond in the Boston Public Gardens would be a perfect place for her and her eight ducklings to live. The problem was how to get them there through the busy streets of Boston. But with a little help from the Boston police, Mrs. Mallard and Jack, Kack, Lack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack arive safely at their new home.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Matilda, Roald Dahl (Audible)
*~6, United Kingdom, 1988
“Matilda is a sweet, exceptional young girl, but her parents think she’s just a nuisance. She expects school to be different but there she has to face Miss Trunchbull, a kid-hating terror of a headmistress. When Matilda is attacked by the Trunchbull she suddenly discovers she has a remarkable power with which to fight back. It’ll take a superhuman genius to give Miss Trunchbull what she deserves and Matilda may be just the one to do it!” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, and Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written
*Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Richard and Florence Atwater (*Audible)
*~6, United States, 1938
“The Poppers unexpectedly come into possession of a penguin, then get a penguin from the zoo who mates with the first penguin to have 10 baby penguins. Before long, something must be done before they eat the Poppers out of house and home!” – GoodReads
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Outsiders, S. E. Hinton (Audible)
~11, United States, 1967
“No one ever said life was easy. But Ponyboy is pretty sure that he’s got things figured out. He knows that he can count on his brothers, Darry and Sodapop. And he knows that he can count on his friends—true friends who would do anything for him, like Johnny and Two-Bit. But not on much else besides trouble with the Socs, a vicious gang of rich kids whose idea of a good time is beating up on “greasers” like Ponyboy. At least he knows what to expect—until the night someone takes things too far.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, GoodReads
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books, Art of Manliness’s 100 Books Every Man Should Read, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
The Ramona Series, Beverly Cleary (Audible)
~8, United States, 1955
“Kids everywhere feel connected to Ramona’s unique way of looking at the world as she tries to adjust to new teachers, encounters bullies at school, and puts up with her bossy older sister. The scrapes she gets herself into—like wearing pajamas to school or accidentally making egg yolk shampoo—are funny and heartwarming, and sometimes embarrassing. No matter what, Ramona’s lively, curious spirit shines through.” – Amazon
More information on Common Sense Media: Ramona the Pest, Ramona and Her Father, Beezus and Ramona
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*A Sick Day for Amos McGee, Philip C. Stead (**Audible)
*~3, United States, 2010
“Friends come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. In Amos McGee’s case, all sorts of species, too! Every day he spends a little bit of time with each of his friends at the zoo, running races with the tortoise, keeping the shy penguin company, and even reading bedtime stories to the owl. But when Amos is too sick to make it to the zoo, his animal friends decide it’s time they returned the favor.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
The Story of Babar: the Little Elephant, Jean De Brunhoff (Audible)
~4, France, 1931
“It tells of a young elephant, named Babar, whose mother is killed by a hunter. Babar escapes, and in the process leaves the jungle, visits a big city, and returns to bring the benefits of civilization to his fellow elephants. Just as he returns to his community of elephants, their king dies from eating a bad mushroom. Because of his travels and civilization, Babar is appointed king of the elephant kingdom.” – Wikipedia
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**The Story of Ferdinand, Munro Leaf (*Audible)
**~3, United States, 1936
“Ferdinand is the world’s most peaceful–and–beloved little bull. While all of the other bulls snort, leap, and butt their heads, Ferdinand is content to just sit and smell the flowers under his favorite cork tree.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Stuart Little, E. B. White (Audible)
*~6, United States, 1945
“Stuart Little is no ordinary mouse. Born to a family of humans, he lives in New York City with his parents, his older brother George, and Snowbell the cat. Though he’s shy and thoughtful, he’s also a true lover of adventure. Stuart’s greatest adventure comes when his best friend, a beautiful little bird named Margalo, disappears from her nest. Determined to track her down, Stuart ventures away from home for the very first time in his life. He finds adventure aplenty. But will he find his friend?” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*Tales from the Arabian Nights (Audible)
*Note: these paperback and audible versions are not the same.
~10, Middle East, 1704 (Originally)
“King Shahryar kills a new wife every night, because he is afraid she will stop loving him. But his new bride Shahrazad has a clever plan to save herself. Her nightly stories–of Sinbad the Sailor, Ali Baba, and many other heroes and villains–are so engrossing that King Shahryar has to postpone her execution again and again…” – Amazon
More information: YouTube, Wikipedia
Appearing in Open Education Database’s 50 Most Influential Books of All Time, Bokklubben World Library’s 100 Best Books of All Time, and TJEd.org’s Classics
*Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, Judy Blume (Audible)
*~8, United States, 1972
“Two is a crowd when Peter and his little brother, Fudge, are in the same room. Grown-ups think Fudge is absolutely adorable, but Peter and his pet turtle, Dribble, know the truth. From throwing temper tantrums to smearing mashed potatoes on the wall, Fudge causes mischief wherever he goes!” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time, and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson (*Audible)
~10, United Kingdom, 1882
“Traditionally considered a coming-of-age story, Treasure Island is a tale noted for its atmosphere, characters and action, and also as a wry commentary on the ambiguity of morality – as seen in Long John Silver – unusual for children’s literature. It is one of the most frequently dramatized of all novels. The influence of Treasure Island on popular perceptions of pirates is enormous, including such elements as treasure maps marked with an “X”, schooners, the Black Spot, tropical islands, and one-legged seamen bearing parrots on their shoulders.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics, Art of Manliness’s 100 Books Every Man Should Read, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, Jon Scieszka (**Audible)
*~5, United States, 1989
“In this hysterical and clever fracture fairy tale picture book that twists point of view and perspective, young readers will finally hear the other side of the story of ‘The Three Little Pigs.’” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children, New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books, and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
(Here are the *paperback and **audible versions of the original Three Little Pigs story in case your kids need to learn it first.)
*The Ugly Duckling, Hans Christian Andersen (**Audible)
*~6, Denmark, 1843
“The story tells of a homely little bird born in a barnyard who suffers abuse from the others around him until, much to his delight (and to the surprise of others), he matures into a beautiful swan, the most beautiful bird of all. The story is beloved around the world as a tale about personal transformation for the better.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Bokklubben World Library’s 100 Best Books of All Time, TJEd.org’s Classics, and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Two Book List Appearances
*The Adventures of Pinocchio, Carlo Collodi (**Audible)
~9, Italy, 1883
“Pinocchio, in Carlo Collodi’s original version, is an adventure-filled, menacing fairy tale with a moral. Made by the woodcarver Geppetto, the puppet Pinocchio dreams of becoming a real child. But his unrestrained curiosity, dishonesty, and selfishness put him in constant peril. As he journeys from the deceptive “Field of Miracles,” where he plants gold coins to make them grow, to the land where lazy boys turn into donkeys, Pinocchio’s path is paved with mistakes, willfulness, and danger.And all the while his nose keeps growing bigger and bigger and bigger every time he tells a fib, so all the world can see what a liar he is…” – Amazon
More information: Better Than Food, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books and TJEd.org’s Classics
The Arrival, Shaun Tan
~9, Australia, 2006
“In a heartbreaking parting, a man gives his wife and daughter a last kiss and boards a steamship to cross the ocean. He’s embarking on the most painful yet important journey of his life- he’s leaving home to build a better future for his family. Shaun Tan evokes universal aspects of an immigrant’s experience through a singular work of the imagination. He does so using brilliantly clear and mesmerizing images. Because the main character can’t communicate in words, the book forgoes them too. But while the reader experiences the main character’s isolation, he also shares his ultimate joy.” – GoodReads
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children and New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books
*Because of Winn-Dixie, Kate DiCamillo (Audible)
*~9, United States, 2000
“One summer’s day, ten-year-old India Opal Buloni goes down to the local supermarket for some groceries – and comes home with a dog. But Winn-Dixie is no ordinary dog. It’s because of Winn-Dixie that Opal begins to make friends. And it’s because of Winn-Dixie that she finally dares to ask her father about her mother, who left when Opal was three. In fact, as Opal admits, just about everything that happens that summer is because of Winn-Dixie.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
The Berenstain Bears, Jan and Stan Berenstain
3+, United States, 1974
“The Berenstain Bears… are all about new experiences children encounter in their early years. With good-natured wisdom, love, and gentle humor, these books ease the way for kids – and their parents – through these first times.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Black Beauty, Anna Sewell (Audible)
~8, United Kingdom, 1877
“While forthrightly teaching animal welfare, [this story] also teaches how to treat people with kindness, sympathy, and respect. Black Beauty became a forerunner to the pony book genre of children’s literature.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books and TJEd.org’s Classics
*Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Bill Martin, Jr (and Eric Carle) (**Audible)
*~3, United States, 1967
“A big happy frog, a plump purple cat, a handsome blue horse, and a soft yellow duck–all parade across the pages of this delightful book. Children will immediately respond to Eric Carle’s flat, boldly colored collages. Combined with Bill Martin’s singsong text, they create unforgettable images of these endearing animals.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
The Complete Fairy Tales and Stories, Hans Christian Andersen (Audible)
~9, Denmark, 1835
“The fairy tales Hans Christian Andersen wrote, such as “The Snow Queen,” “The Ugly Duckling,” “The Red Shoes,” and “The Nightingale,” are remarkable for their sense of fantasy, power of description, and acute sensitivity, and they are like no others written before or since. Unlike the Brothers Grimm, who collected and retold folklore, Andersen adopted the most ancient literary forms of the fairy tale and the folktale and distilled them into a genre that was uniquely his own.” – Amazon
Other synopsis: Wikipedia
Appearing in Bokklubben World Library’s 100 Best Books of All Time and TJEd.org’s Classics
*Curious George, H.A. Rey (Audible)
*~4, United States, 1939
“The first adventure in this highly popular series tells how the little monkey Curious George, caught in the jungle and brought back to the city by a man in a yellow hat, can’t help being interested in all the new things around him. Though well meaning, George’s curiosity always gets him into trouble. Young readers can easily relate, and Rey’s cheerful illustrations celebrate Curious George’s innocence.” – GoodReads
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**Dear Zoo, Rod Campbell
**1+, Scotland, 1982
“Young readers love lifting the flaps to discover the animals the zoo has sent-a monkey, a lion, and even an elephant! But will they ever find the perfect pet?” – Amazon
More information: GoodReads
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney (*Audible)
~9, United States, 2007
“It’s a new school year, and Greg Heffley finds himself thrust into middle school, where undersized weaklings share the hallways with kids who are taller, meaner, and already shaving. The hazards of growing up before you’re ready are uniquely revealed through words and drawings as Greg records them in his diary.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
*Esperanza Rising, Pam Munoz Ryan (Audible)
*~8, United States, 2000
“Esperanza thought she’d always live a privileged life on her family’s ranch in Mexico. She’d always have fancy dresses, a beautiful home filled with servants, and Mama, Papa, and Abuelita to care for her. But a sudden tragedy forces Esperanza and Mama to flee to California and settle in a Mexican farm labor camp. Esperanza isn’t ready for the hard work, financial struggles brought on by the Great Depression, or lack of acceptance she now faces. When Mama gets sick and a strike for better working conditions threatens to uproot their new life, Esperanza must find a way to rise above her difficult circumstances-because Mama’s life, and her own, depend on it.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Common Sense Media’s 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They’re 12
**Go, Dog. Go!, P. D. Eastman
**~3, United States, 1961
“Reading goes to the dogs in this timeless Beginner Book edited by Dr. Seuss. From big dogs and little dogs to red, green, and blue dogs, dogs going up and dogs going fast . . . who knew dogs were so busy? And laughter will ensue at the repeated question ‘Do you like my hat?’” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Grandfather’s Journey, Allen Say (*Audible)
*~4, United States, 1993
“Lyrical, breathtaking, splendid—words used to describe Allen Say’s Grandfather’s Journey when it was first published. At once deeply personal yet expressing universally held emotions, this tale of one man’s love for two countries and his constant desire to be in both places captured readers’ attention and hearts.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Gulliver’s Travels, Jonathan Swift (**Audible)
~11, Ireland, 1726
“Regarded as the preeminent prose satirist in the English language, Jonathan Swift (1667–1745) intended this masterpiece, as he once wrote Alexander Pope, to “vex the world rather than divert it.” Savagely ironic, it portrays man as foolish at best, and at worst, not much more than an ape. The direct and unadorned narrative describes four remarkable journies of ship’s surgeon Lemuel Gulliver, among them, one to the land of Lilliput, where six-inch-high inhabitants bicker over trivialities; and another to Brobdingnag, a land where giants reduce man to insignificance. Written with disarming simplicity and careful attention to detail, this classic is diverse in its appeal: for children, it remains an enchanting fantasy. For adults, it is a witty parody of political life in Swift’s time and a scathing send-up of manners and morals in 18th-century England.” – Amazon
More information: SparkNotes, Wikipedia
*The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman (Audible)
*~10, United Kingdom, 2008
“Nobody Owens, known as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn’t live in a graveyard, being raised by ghosts, with a guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor the dead. There are adventures in the graveyard for a boy—an ancient Indigo Man, a gateway to the abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible Sleer. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, he will be in danger from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod’s family.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children and New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books
*Grimm’s Fairy Tales, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (Audible)
~8, Germany, 1812
“Grimms’ Fairy Tales… is a collection of fairy tales by the Grimm brothers or “Brothers Grimm” – Wikipedia
“When Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published their “Children’s and Household Tales” in 1812, followed by a second volume in 1815, they had no idea that such stories as “Rapunzel,” “Hansel and Gretel,” and “Cinderella” would become the most celebrated in the world.” – Amazon
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books and TJEd.org’s Classics
*Harriet the Spy, Louise Fitzhugh (Audible)
*~8, United States, 1964
“Harriet M. Welsch is a spy. In her notebook, she writes down everything she knows about everyone, even her classmates and her best friends. Then Harriet loses track of her notebook, and it ends up in the wrong hands. Before she can stop them, her friends have read the always truthful, sometimes awful things she’s written about each of them. Will Harriet find a way to put her life and her friendships back together?” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Hatchet, Gary Paulsen (Audible)
*~12, United States, 1986
“Thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson, haunted by his secret knowledge of his mother’s infidelity, is traveling by single-engine plane to visit his father for the first time since the divorce. When the plane crashes, killing the pilot, the sole survivor is Brian. He is alone in the Canadian wilderness with nothing but his clothing, a tattered windbreaker, and the hatchet his mother had given him as a present. At first consumed by despair and self-pity, Brian slowly learns survival skills—how to make a shelter for himself, how to hunt and fish and forage for food, how to make a fire—and even finds the courage to start over from scratch when a tornado ravages his campsite. When Brian is finally rescued after fifty-four days in the wild, he emerges from his ordeal with new patience and maturity, and a greater understanding of himself and his parents.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Art of Manliness’s 100 Books Every Man Should Read and New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books
*Heidi, Johanna Spyri (Audible)
~10, Switzerland, 1880
“Little orphan Heidi goes to live high in the Alps with her gruff grandfather and brings happiness to all who know her on the mountain. When Heidi goes to Frankfurt to work in a wealthy household, she dreams of returning to the mountains and meadows, her friend Peter, and her beloved grandfather.” – GoodReads
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books and TJEd.org’s Classics
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Laura Numeroff
~4, United States, 1985
“If a hungry little mouse shows up on your doorstep, you might want to give him a cookie. And if you give him a cookie, he’ll ask for a glass of milk. He’ll want to look in a mirror to make sure he doesn’t have a milk mustache, and then he’ll ask for a pair of scissors to give himself a trim…” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Knuffle Bunny, Mo Willems (*Audible)
~4, United States, 2004
“Merging expressive cartoon network-esque illustrations with beautiful black and white photographs of Brooklyn, this funny story tells how Trixie and Knuffel Bunny’s trip to the laundromat with Dad goes terribly wrong when Trixie realizes some bunny’s been left behind…! Her attempts to alert Dad all the way home are unsuccessful, until Mum points out that Knuffel Bunny is missing and the family hotfoot it back to the laundromat. Fortunately, KB is safe, if a little wet…” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Reader’s Digest’s 25 Best Children’s Books Ever Written and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse, Kevin Henke
~4, United States, 1996
“Lilly loves everything about school, especially her cool teacher, Mr. Slinger. But when Lilly brings her purple plastic purse and its treasures to school and can’t wait until sharing time, Mr. Slinger confiscates her prized possessions. Lilly’s fury leads to revenge and then to remorse and she sets out to make amends. Lilly, the star of Chester’s Way and Julius, the Baby of the World, is back. And this time she has her name in the title – something she’s wanted all along. If you thought Lilly was funny before, you are in for a treat. So hurry up and start reading. Lilly can’t wait for you to find out more about her.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, GoodReads
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Little Women, Louisa May Alcott (Audible)
~7, United States, 1868
“Although Little Women was a novel for girls, it differed notably from the current writings for children, especially girls. The novel addressed three major themes: “domesticity, work, and true love, all of them interdependent and each necessary to the achievement of its heroine’s individual identity.”Little Women “has been read as a romance or as a quest, or both. It has been read as a family drama that validates virtue over wealth”, but also “as a means of escaping that life by women who knew its gender constraints only too well”. According to Sarah Elbert, Alcott created a new form of literature, one that took elements from Romantic children’s fiction and combined it with others from sentimental novels, resulting in a totally new format.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics and BBC’s 11 Greatest Children’s Books
*Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story From China, Ed Young (*Audible)
*~4, China (Originally), 1989
“The story is set in China. Three sisters, Shang, Tao, and Paotze are left alone overnight while their mother goes to visit their grandmother, Po Po, for the grandmother’s birthday. She warns them as she leaves to “Be good” and “Remember to close the door tight at sunset and latch it well”. The wolf, who sees the mother leave, then decides to come over to harm the children. The wolf pretends to be their grandmother, Po Po, to try to gain entry. The children question the wolf through the door,” Why are you here so late?”, “Why is your voice so low?”, to which the wolf has clever answers. The two youngest children finally open the door and let the wolf in…” – Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
The Lorax, Dr. Seuss (**Audible)
~5, United States, 1971
“Dr. Seuss’s beloved story teaches kids to speak up and stand up for those who can’t. With a recycling-friendly “Go Green” message, The Lorax allows young readers to experience the beauty of the Truffula Trees and the danger of taking our earth for granted, all in a story that is timely, playful, and hopeful. The book’s final pages teach us that just one small seed, or one small child, can make a difference. ” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Lost and Found, Oliver Jeffers
~3, United Kingdom, 2005
“There once was a boy… and one day a penguin arrives on his doorstep. The boy decides the penguin must be lost and tries to return him. But no one seems to be missing a penguin. So the boy decides to take the penguin home himself, and they set out in his row boat on a journey to the South Pole. But when they get there, the boy discovers that maybe home wasn’t what the penguin was looking for after all…” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Millions of Cats, Wanda Gág (*Audible)
*2+, United States, 1928
“Once upon a time there was an old man and an old woman who were very lonely. They decided to get a cat, but when the old man went out searching, he found not one cat, but millions and billions and trillions of cats! Unable to decide which one would be the best pet, he brought them all home. How the old couple came to have just one cat to call their own is a classic tale that has been loved for generations.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Miss Nelson is Missing!, Harry Allard (**Audible)
*~4, United States, 1977
“So begins this quirky classic, first published in 1977 and still relevant today as a lighthearted reminder to show our appreciation to those we value. The students don’t proffer a shred of respect for their good-natured teacher Miss Nelson, but when the witchy substitute Miss Viola Swamp appears on the scene, they start to regret their own wicked ways. James Marshall’s scritchy, cartoonish full-color ink and wash illustrations are hilarious. A back-to-school perennial!” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**My Father’s Dragon, Ruth Stiles Gannett (*Audible)
**~5, United States, 1948
“My Father’s Dragon is a children’s novel by Ruth Stiles Gannett about a young boy, Elmer Elevator, who runs away to Wild Island to rescue a baby Dragon. The narrative mode is unusual, in that the narrator refers to the protagonist only as “my father”, giving the impression that this is a true story that happened long ago.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Oh, the Places You’ll Go!, Dr. Seuss (**Audible)
~5, United States, 1990
“From soaring to high heights and seeing great sights to being left in a Lurch on a prickle-ly perch, Dr. Seuss addresses life’s ups and downs with his trademark humorous verse and illustrations, while encouraging readers to find the success that lies within.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, GoodReads
Appearing in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Olivia, Ian Falconer (**Audible)
*2+, United States, 2000
“Have fun with Olivia… dressing up, singing songs, building sand castles, napping (maybe), dancing, painting on walls and – whew! – going to sleep at last.” – GoodReads
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, Kimberly Dean, James Dean, Eric Litwin
~4, United States, 2008
“Pete the Cat goes walking down the street wearing his brand-new white shoes. Along the way, his shoes change from white to red to blue to brown to WET as he steps in piles of strawberries, blueberries, and other big messes! But no matter what color his shoes are, Pete keeps movin’ and groovin’ and singing his song…because it’s all good. Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes asks the reader questions about the colors of different foods and objects—kids love to interact with the story.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Phantom Tollbooth, Norton Juster (Audible)
*~8, United States, 1961
“For Milo, everything’s a bore. When a tollbooth mysteriously appears in his room, he drives through only because he’s got nothing better to do. But on the other side, things seem different. Milo visits the Island of Conclusions (you get there by jumping), learns about time from a ticking watchdog named Tock, and even embarks on a quest to rescue Rhyme and Reason! Somewhere along the way, Milo realizes something astonishing. Life is far from dull. In fact, it’s exciting beyond his wildest dreams…” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics and New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books
**The Poky Little Puppy, Janette Sabring Lowrey
**~3, United States, 1942
“The story of a curious puppy, who digs holes under fences and who has to go to bed without any strawberry shortcake, has delighted families for generations. It is, quite simply, an icon.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Press Here, Herve Tullet (Audible)
*~3, France, 2010
“Press the yellow dot on the cover of this interactive children’s book, follow the instructions within, and embark upon a magical journey! Each page of this surprising touch book instructs the reader to push the button, shake it up, tilt the book, and who knows what will happen next! Children and adults alike will giggle with delight as the dots multiply, change direction, and grow in size! Especially remarkable because the adventure occurs on the flat surface of the simple, printed page, this unique interactive picture book about the power of imagination and interactivity will provide read-aloud fun for all ages!” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, GoodReads
Appearing in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
The Real Mother Goose, Tomie dePaola (*Audible)
~4, 16th Century France (Originally)
“Tomie dePaola’s collection of traditional rhymes is a visual treat for both children and parents. His cheerful, humorous style enlivens 200 rhymes that star both the familiar Mother Goose cast of characters and those not as well known. Some pages are devoted to one rhyme–including all the verses–while other pages feature a variety of shorter rhymes or thematic groupings (such as verses about weather). Amidst the nursery rhymes are American poems such as “Yankee Doodle” and “Hush Little Baby,” along with traditional poems such as “Three Little Kittens.” This collection is a delightful introduction to poetry as well as an entertaining, comprehensive Mother Goose book. ” – Amazon
More information: GoodReads
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics and New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books
(Here are 18th century manuscripts of Mother Goose tales, which are closer to the original versions.)
*The Red Balloon, Albert Lamorisse
*~3, France, 1956
“The Red Balloon is the moving story of a boy and his best friend—a bright red balloon. Told through captivating photographs taken during filming, and set against the unmistakable beauty of the streets of Paris, Albert Lamorisse’s beloved story is a moving tribute to childhood that continues to inspire readers of every generation.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Rumpelstiltskin, Brothers Grimm (**Audible)
*~5, Germany, 1812
“Richly hued oil paintings complement a story simply and gracefully told.”Children…love the story for its mystery, and its familiarity. Adults will find that, like most classic fairy tales, this one rewards periodic rethinking.” —New York Times Book Review
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics and New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books
**The Runaway Bunny, Margaret Wise Brown (Audible)
**~3, United States, 1942
“A little bunny keeps running away from his mother in this imaginary game of hide-and-seek. Children will be profoundly comforted by this lovingly steadfast mother who finds her child every time.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett (**Audible)
**~9, United States, 1911
“‘When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle, everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen’… So begins the famous opening of one of the world’s best-loved children’s stories… [T]his is the poignant tale of a lonely little girl, orphaned and sent to a Yorkshire mansion at the edge of a vast lonely moor. At first, she is frightened by this gloomy place, but with the help of the local boy Dickon, who earns the trust of the moor’s wild animals with his honesty and love, the invalid Colin, a spoiled, unhappy boy terrified of life, and a mysterious, abandoned garden, Mary is eventually overcome by the mystery of life itself—its birth and renewal, its love and joy.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**The Snowman, Raymond Briggs
**~4, United Kingdom, 1978
“One snowy winter’s day, a boy builds a snowman who comes to life at the stroke of midnight. He and the boy play with appliances, toys and other bric-a-brac in the house, all while keeping quiet enough not to wake his parents. After they play with the lights on the family car, he prepares a feast that the duo eat by candlelight. The snowman takes the boy outside and they begin to fly over the South Downs and watch the sun coming up from Brighton pier before returning home.” – Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, Jon Scieszka (*Audible)
~8, United States, 1992
“The entire book, with its unconventional page arrangement and eclectic, frenetic mix of text and pictures, is a spoof on the art of book design and the art of the fairy tale. The individual tales, such as The Really Ugly Duckling and Little Red Running Shorts, can be extracted for telling aloud, with great success. Another masterpiece from the team that created The True Story of the Three Little Pigs!” -Horn Book
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Strega Nona, Tomie dePaola (**Audible)
*~4, United States, 1975
“When Strega Nona leaves him alone with her magic pasta pot, Big Anthony is determined to show the townspeople how it works in this classic Caldecott Honor book from Tomie dePaola. Strega Nona—”Grandma Witch”—is the source for potions, cures, magic, and comfort in her Calabrian town. Her magical everfull pasta pot is especially intriguing to hungry Big Anthony. He is supposed to look after her house and tend her garden but one day, when she goes over the mountain to visit Strega Amelia, Big Anthony recites the magic verse over the pasta pot, with disastrous results.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Swiss Family Robinson, Johann Davide Wyss (Audible)
~8, Switzerland, 1812
“Following a wild and raging storm, the Swiss family Robinson are stranded at sea. But the thundering waves have swept them off to a tropical island, where a new life awaits them. Their ship is laden with supplies and the island is packed with treasures, so they soon adapt and discover new dangers and delights every day.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in TJEd.org’s Classics and Art of Manliness’s 100 Books Every Man Should Read
*Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, William Steig (**Audible)
*3+, United States, 1969
“Sylvester can’t believe his luck when he finds a magic pebble that can make wishes come true. But when a lion jumps out at him on his way home, Sylvester is shocked into making a wish that has unexpected consequences. After overcoming a series of obstacles, Sylvester is eventually reunited with his loving family.” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Tiger Who Came to Tea, Judith Kerr (**Audible)
~4, United Kingdom, 1968
“The doorbell rings just as Sophie and her mummy are sitting down to tea. Who could it possibly be? What they certainly don’t expect to see at the door is a big furry, stripy tiger!” – GoodReads
More information: Wikipedia
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children and Reedsy Discovery’s 120 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*Tuesday, David Wiesner
*~4, United States, 1991
“Now, with remarkable advances in the technology of color reproduction, the original artwork for Tuesday is being reproduced anew, for an edition even more faithful to the palette and texture of David Wiesner’s watercolor paintings. The whimsical account of a Tuesday when frogs were airborne on their lily pads will continue to enchant readers of all ages.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in New York Public Library’s 100 Great Children’s Books and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
**Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe (Audible)
~8, United States, 1852
“Uncle Tom’s Cabin is the story of the slave Tom. Devout and loyal, he is sold and sent down south, where he endures brutal treatment at the hands of the degenerate plantation owner Simon Legree. By exposing the extreme cruelties of slavery, Stowe explores society’s failures and asks a profound question: “What is it to be a moral human being?” And as the novel that helped to move a nation to battle, Uncle Tom’s Cabin is an essential part of the collective experience of the American people.” – Amazon
Other synopses: SparkNotes, Wikipedia
Appearing in Open Education Database’s 50 Most Influential Books of All Time and TJEd.org’s Classics
Watership Down, Richard Adams (Audible)
~9, United Kingdom, 1972
“Set in the Hampshire Downs in Southern England, an idyllic rural landscape, this stirring tale of “suspense, hot pursuit, and derring-do” (Chicago Tribune) follows a band of rabbits in flight from the incursion of man and the destruction of their home. Led by a stouthearted pair of brothers, they travel forth from their native Sandleford warren through harrowing trials to a mysterious promised land and a more perfect society. “A marvelous story of rebellion, exile, and survival” (Sunday Telegraph)…” – Amazon
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books and Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children
**We’re Going on a Bear Hunt, Michael Rosen
**2+, United Kingdom, 1989
“Full of delightful comedy and high drama, this tale of a brave family’s joyous romp through sweeping landscapes is sure to win new fans.” – Amazon
More information: Wikipedia, GoodReads
Appearing in Book Trust’s 100 Best Books for Children and Time Magazine’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time
*The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame (Audible)
~7, United Kingdom, 1908
“Meet little Mole, willful Ratty, Badger the perennial bachelor, and petulant Toad. Over one hundred years since their first appearance in 1908, they’ve become emblematic archetypes of eccentricity, folly, and friendship. And their misadventures-in gypsy caravans, stolen sports cars, and their Wild Wood-continue to capture readers’ imaginations and warm their hearts long after they grow up. Begun as a series of letters from Kenneth Grahame to his son, The Wind in the Willows is a timeless tale of animal cunning and human camaraderie.” – GoodReads
More information: Common Sense Media, Wikipedia
Appearing in Wikipedia’s Best-Selling Books and TJEd.org’s Classics