This book features a little African-American boy named Peter exploring his neighborhood after the first snowfall of the season. The book received the prestigious Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished picture book for children in 1963 for its striking collage design.
The Snowy Day (1962) by Ezra Jack Keats
Story of a doctor who shuns human patients in favour of animals, with whom he can speak in their own languages. Made famous by Eddie Murphy.
Doctor Doolittle (1920) by Hugh Lofting
A tale of "buccaneers and buried gold" whose influence on popular perception of pirates is vast, including treasure maps with an 'X', schooners, the Black Spot, tropical islands, and one-legged seamen with parrots on their shoulders. A bona fide sea classic.
Treasure Island (1883) by R. L. Stevenson
First published in 1947, it is a highly acclaimed example of a bedtime story and the content depicts the process of a little one saying goodnight to everything that can be seen.
Goodnight Moon (1947) by Margaret Wise Brown
A story focusing on events in the life of the title character, a young orphan, in Switzerland and one of the best known works of Swiss literature.
Heidi (1902) by Johanna Spyri
The story of the adventures of young Charlie Bucket, eccentric candymaker Willy Wonka and the Oompa-Loompas.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964) by Roald Dahl
Children's book set in the midwestern United States (Kansas) during the late 19th century that explores themes of loneliness and abandonment. The main character comes from Maine to Kansas and longs to go back. The novel was the basis for three television movies starring Glenn Close and Christopher Walken.
Sarah, Plain and Tall (1985) by Patricia MacLachlan
The books centre around a mysterious, vain and acerbic magical English nanny who is blown by the East wind to Number Seventeen Cherry Tree Lane, London and into the Banks household to care for their children. Adapted in 1964 into a musical Disney film starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.
Mary Poppins (1934) by P. L. Travers
Book about the mischievous adventures of an animated marionette, and his poor father, a woodcarver named Geppetto. It has spawned many derivative works of art, such as Disney's 1940 animated movie of the same name, and commonplace ideas such as a liar's long nose.
The Adventures of Pinocchio (1891) by Carlo Collodi
A novel focusing on four heavily anthropomorphised animal characters in a pastoral version of England and notable for its mixture of mysticism, adventure, morality, and camaraderie. The book was saved from obscurity by the playwright, A. A. Milne, who adapted it for stage in Toad of Toad Hall.
The Wind in the Willows (1908) by Kenneth Grahame
Classic that tells the story of a girl who falls down a rabbit-hole into a fantastic realm populated by peculiar and anthropomorphic creatures. The tale is filled with allusions to the author's friends (and enemies), and to the lessons that British schoolchildren were expected to memorize. The tale plays with logic in ways that have made the story of lasting popularity with adults as well as children. It is considered to be one of the most characteristic examples of the genre of literary nonsense.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) by Lewis Carroll
Written by a famous British writer better known for other books, some of the pourquoi stories in this book include How the Whale got his Throat, How the Camel got his Hump, How the Rhinoceros got his Skin, and How the Leopard got his Spots.
Just So Stories (1902) by Rudyard Kipling
This much-loved tale of a boy and his honey eating bear is set in the countryside of the Ashdown Forest in Southern England. All four volumes of the books were famously illustrated by E. H. Shepard.
Winnie-the-Pooh (1926) by A. A. Milne
This one was written by a noted conservationist whose based her characters from observations of the animals she kept at home. The main character is more adventurous than Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail and cannot avoid McGregor's garden.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1902) by Beatrix Potter
The book is about the imaginary adventures of a young boy named Max, who is punished for "making mischief" by being sent to his room without supper. Max wears a distinctive wolf suit during his adventures and encounters various mythical creatures.
Where the Wild Things Are (1963) by Maurice Sendak
The third-person narrative centers on a unicorn who, believing she is the last of her kind in the world, sets off on a journey to discover what has happened to the others. She encounters a host of diverse characters as her journey progresses, each of them bringing her closer to her goal. Part fractured fairy tale and part life parable, the novel provides a stunning social commentary through the interaction of typical fairy tale characters placed in very atypical roles.
The Last Unicorn (1968) by Peter S. Beagle
This book may have a simple title but has enduring classic stories like The Snow Queen, The Little Mermaid, Thumbelina, The Emperor's New Clothes and The Ugly Duckling.
Fairy Tales (1827) by Hans Christian Andersen
Clues: A mischievous boy who flies and magically refuses to grow up, spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with fairies and pirates, and from time to time meeting ordinary children from the world outside.
Peter Pan (1911), by J. M. Barrie
Fern Arable saves the pig Wilbur's life - and the pig later befriends a wise spider and Templeton, a sneaky rat. The book was famously illustrated by Garth Williams and Publishers Weekly listed it as the best-selling children's paperback of all time as of 2000.
Charlotte's Web (1952) by E. B. White
Along with the title story, this collection includes The Nightingale and the Rose, The Selfish Giant, The Devoted Friend, and The Remarkable Rocket.
The Happy Prince and Other Tales (1888) by Oscar Wilde
This book starts when Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy have been sent to a house in the country to avoid the air raids. A faun invites Lucy for tea and the adventure starts...did you read it or see it at the movies?
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950) by C. S. Lewis
Story of a very unconventional, assertive, rich and extraordinarily strong Swedish girl who lives in Villa Villekulla with her monkey and horse.
Pippi Longstocking (1950) by Astrid Lindgren
The story concerns the lives and loves of the March sisters - Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy - growing up during the American Civil War. Each of the March girls displays a major character flaw: Meg, vanity; Jo, a hot temper; Beth, shyness; and Amy, selfishness. They overcome their flaws through lessons learned the hard way. Many of the chapter titles in this first part are allusions to the allegorical concepts and places in Pilgrim's Progress.
Little Women (1868) by Louisa May Alcott
This classic is often used as a beginner's book for French language students. The book starts when the narrator is mending his crashed plane in the Sahara and is met by a small boy who wants him to draw a sheep.
The Little Prince (1944) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
This recent classic's title is a quotation of a remark made by the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 1894 short story Silver Blaze. The story is written in the first-person narrative of Christopher John Francis Boone, a 15-year-old boy living in Swindon, Wiltshire in 1998, who is described as having Asperger syndrome.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (2003) by Mark Haddon
Originally published in German as Kinderund Hausmarchen in 2 volumes and collected as a part of research into linguistics, this classic includes world renowned tales of Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, Rapunzel and Snow White.
Children's and Household Tales, commonly known as Grimm's Fairy Tales (German: 1812-1814, English: 1884) by Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm
First book of a renowned children's author that was published in 1937. The main character, Marco, watches the sight and sounds of people and vehicles traveling along this namesake street. Marco dreams up an elaborate story to tell to his father at the end of his walk, but decides instead to simply tell him what he actually saw.
And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937) by Dr. Seuss
The author found her inspiration for this book in a newspaper article describing a couple that was mistakenly sent an orphan girl instead of a boy, yet decided to keep her. The book is set on Canada's Prince Edward Island.
Anne of Green Gables (1908) by L. M. Montgomery
Plot: When Tom Long's brother Peter gets measles, Tom is sent to stay with his uncle Alan and aunt Gwen in a flat and when he hears the communal grandfather clock strangely strike 13, he investigates and finds the small back yard is now a large sunlit garden. Here he meets another lonely child called Hatty, who is the only one who can see him. They have adventures which he gradually realises are taking place in the 19th century.
Tom's Midnight Garden (1958) by Philippa Pearce
Originally written to educate people who worked with horses in animal welfare, this book quickly became a children's classic. The story is told in the first person as an autobiographical memoir told by a highbred horse - beginning with his carefree days as a foal on an English farm, to his difficult life pulling cabs in London, to his happy retirement in the country.
Black Beauty (1877) by Anna Sewell
The story chronicles the adventures of a girl named Dorothy and is one of the best-known stories in American popular culture. Enuf' said.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) by L. Frank Baum