1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up

aulsmith: I missed a lot of what this book was about as a child.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. 1908 BritLit kid classic animal adventure story. Great fun for all. Equally appealing to boys & girls. Free ebook at Gutenberg.org. If you're buying a hard copy, get an edition with one of the best illustrators: Michael Hague, Inga Moore, Charles Van Sandwyk, Ernest H. Shepard

sturlington: An all-time favorite.

PitcherBooks : I love SF&F and Le Guin. But this isn't on my top 1000 list. Why is it on yours? No explanation on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read for the world.

PitcherBooks: Multiple Award Winner. JF, YA, All Ages. After his family is murdered, a baby is raised to boyhood by the departed denizens of the local graveyard. Interesting concept. Fun read. Equally appealing to boys & girls.

PitcherBooks : Nesbit does fine but not outstanding work. No explanation on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read for the world.

aulsmith: Nesbit was one of the first writers of domestic fantasy. I had a lot of trouble finding them as a child and would hate to have them disappear again.

PitcherBooks : E. Nesbit was never a favorite of mine but she has many fans. All of her books are in public domain and free downloads are available at: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=e.+nesbit http://manybooks.net/authors/nesbite.html

sturlington: I found portrayals of girls and Indians a little troubling. My son enjoyed this and requested a reading of the sequel.

cej1027: Except the last chapter, which you can skip most/all of.

PitcherBooks : Nesbit does fine but not outstanding work. No explanation on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read for the world.

PitcherBooks : Enright wrote a cute series. First of the series. No explanation on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read.

PitcherBooks : Enright wrote a cute series. This is the second of the series. No explanation on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read.

PitcherBooks: An exemplary & noteworthy book that is and has been an appealing classic for millennia. Very short tales using animal characters to teach a specific moral or bit of folk wisdom from Ancient Greece. A childhood favorite. Free ebook at Gutenberg.org. If you're buying a picture book version, get an edition with one of the best illustrators: Michael Hague, Heidi Holder, Arthur Rackham, Milo Winter, .... Of course, if you or your particular kid doesn't like it, give it a thumbs down. "sturlington: I have read a lot of these books. I decided to use this list to track books I have read with my son. I'll thumbs down books I wouldn't read with my son or that didn't work for him." Which makes me discount most of sturlington's ratings and comments as limited and anecdotal.

sturlington: Comic books as an entree to mythology. My son mostly read this with his father, actually.

sturlington: Loved this version of the Greek myths as a child. Passed it on to my son.

PitcherBooks : 3 stars? I love fairy tales and D'Aulnoy was a noted folklorist but no explanation by others on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read for the world.

sturlington : Read myself but not to my son. We'll just watch the Muppet version again.

sturlington : I really hate reading this book aloud.

aulsmith: Eager is one of my favorites, both as a child and an adult, though if I were to list only one, this one wouldn't be it.

aulsmith: I would be amazed at any child getting through the original. I didn't get past page one. Even as an adult I found it preachy, racist and dull.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. Politically-Correct CHILDREN's VERSIONS AVAILABLE. 1719 BritLit Survival Adventure Classic. A Lone shipwrecked sailor's adventures on a deserted tropical island. (Based on a true story.) What kid hasn't dreamed of the same!? ... Yet it remains a classic like Twain's works. Not into white-washing history. Discuss the book and some history with your kid when reading it. Geez. ... Aulsmith: Yet you put this title on this list? I'm confused.

sturlington : Agree with aulsmith.

aulsmith: I don't think this book is for children. It's actually about very adult things.

PitcherBooks : Definitely not JF but fine for YA. I think the moderator needs to make clear whether s/he considers YA part of children's books or not.

sturlington : Best introduced at the earliest in the teen years.

PitcherBooks : No explanation on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read for the world.

PitcherBooks : Agree with merrystar's evaluation.

merrystar : In my opinion this is not really a children's book.

sturlington : This book has adult themes and probably would be fairly boring for a child to read.

aulsmith: I don't know what the revised versions are like, but the older ones were dull and racist.

PitcherBooks : No explanation on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read for the world.

PitcherBooks: Multiple Award Winner. JF, YA, All Ages. 1962 KidLit SF&F classic. Loved this as a kid. Still do. First and best of the four book series.

sturlington : We only read this halfway, to be truthful. My son got bored. I still love these books but they do seem a little dated now.

aulsmith: I liked it as a child, but I wouldn't recommend it now. It didn't age well.

sturlington : My son would not like this; he hates any stories where animals are in danger.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA. 1952 Multiple Award-Winner. BritLit kid fantasy classic. First of a five book series. A family of tiny people live secretly in the walls & floors of an English house and "borrow" from the big people in order to survive.

sturlington: This is the very first book I read aloud to my son. I don't think he understood much of it, but I love this book!

PitcherBooks : What Katie said... "Originally published for adults, it has since become popular with adolescent readers for its themes of teenage angst and alienation." per wiki. So maybe just for YA & older.

sturlington : For teens, not for children.

katie4098 : This is definitely not for children (12 and under).

aulsmith: Wish I'd read this as a child. I found it dull as an adult.

sturlington: Childhood favorite.

sturlington : Not for children.

katie4098 : This is not a children's book

: Way too difficult for a child to read. I don't think it was ever aimed at children.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. Politically-Correct CHILDREN's VERSIONS AVAILABLE. 1876 Kid classic adventure story that will still thrill kids today. Tom Sawyer is an American icon! A childhood favorite. Free ebook at Gutenberg.org. I still recommend the original rather than re-write history. Discuss the book with your child after s/he reads it. .... Of course, if you or your particular kid doesn't like it, give it a thumbs down. "sturlington: I have read a lot of these books. I decided to use this list to track books I have read with my son. I'll thumbs down books I wouldn't read with my son or that didn't work for him." Which makes me discount most of sturlington's ratings and comments as limited and anecdotal.

sturlington : Started but my son didn't want to continue

aulsmith: Again a very adult book.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. Politically-Correct CHILDREN's VERSIONS AVAILABLE. 1884 Kid classic adventure story. Sequel to Adventures of Tom Sawyer and just as entertaining. A childhood favorite. Free ebook at Gutenberg.org. I still recommend the original rather than re-write history. Discuss the book with your child after s/he reads it. .... Of course, if you or your particular kid doesn't like it, give it a thumbs down. "sturlington: I have read a lot of these books. I decided to use this list to track books I have read with my son. I'll thumbs down books I wouldn't read with my son or that didn't work for him." Which makes me discount most of sturlington's ratings and comments as limited and anecdotal.

sturlington : This is a great book that is appropriately introduced in college with the historical context to demonstrate its importance in the canon. Not a book I think a lot of children would understand or enjoy these days.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. 1950 BritLit kid fantasy adventure classic. Equally appealing to both boys & girls. The first and best of the seven book Narnia series. ... Of course, if you or your particular kid doesn't like it, give it a thumbs down. "sturlington: I have read a lot of these books. I decided to use this list to track books I have read with my son. I'll thumbs down books I wouldn't read with my son or that didn't work for him." Which makes me discount most of sturlington's ratings and comments as limited and anecdotal.

sturlington: I have read a lot of these books. I decided to use this list to track books I have read with my son. I'll thumbs down books I wouldn't read with my son or that didn't work for him.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. 1937 BritLit kid fantasy adventure classic. Prequel to LOTR (and actually the only book of that series that I found truly enjoyable). A hobbit's journey and adventures with a wizard and dwarf troupe. Don't recommend the movie adaptations.

sturlington: My son preferred the graphic novel adaptation. The full text was a little too slow-going for him. He loves the movies.

aulsmith: Read as an adult and hated it.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. Multiple award winner. The 1998 book that started it all, first of the 7-book series. Harry Potter learns he's to be a student wizard at Hogwarts and so escape his awful Muggle relatives. Despite the dire predicaments his new status brings him, he is buoyed up with new friends and a wizard mentor. If you read one, you'll end up reading them all ... aulsmith: You have this listed as recommended book #67. Perhaps you might wish to delete if from your list if you hate it?

: Has hidden messages of racism, antisemitism, segregation, etc.

PitcherBooks: YA, All Ages. Award-Winner. 1. It's a well-written, interesting and altogether compelling piece of historical fiction. 2. You can't live in America without reading it at least once. 3. If you love the movie (who didn't?), the book is even better. 1960 Pulitzer Prize winner. "Deals with the issues of racism that were observed by the author as a child in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. Despite being Lee's only published book, it led to Lee being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom of the United States for her contribution to literature in 2007. Lee has also been the recipient of numerous honorary degrees..." per Wikipedia.

sturlington : Dated and overly didactic.

sturlington: Listened to the audio version. Wonderful.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA. 1880 Swiss KidLit classic. A little orphan girl's idyllic life and adventures for three years with her grandfather in the Swiss Alps disrupted by her aunt's taking her to a large town to be a companion to a rich family's daughter. A sweet story and a childhood favorite. Free ebook at Gutenberg.org.

aulsmith: This is not a children's book.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. 1726 BritLit Fantasy Adventure Satire Classic. CHILDREN'S VERSIONS AVAILABLE. (often covers just the Voyage to Lilliput but not always). The best PICTURE BOOK VERSION I've seen is Gulliver's Adventures in Lilliput illustrated by Gennady Spirin. The original adult edition contains 4 voyages: 1. Lilliput (tiny people); 2. Brobdingnag (Giants); 3. Laputa (Flying Island, Impractical Music & Math, Preposterous Schemes & Silly Science), Balnibarbi, Luggnagg (Aged & Infirm Immortals), Glubbdubdrib (Magician & Ghosts), and Japan; 4. Houyhnhnms (Intelligent horses rule, Human animals act as beasts of burden). Milo Winters did excellent illustrations for the YA/Adult version. Free ebook at Gutenberg.org. ... aulsmith: If that is your view, why do you have it on your list? .... Of course, if you or your particular kid doesn't like it, give it a thumbs down. "sturlington: I have read a lot of these books. I decided to use this list to track books I have read with my son. I'll thumbs down books I wouldn't read with my son or that didn't work for him." Which makes me discount most of sturlington's ratings and comments as limited and anecdotal.

merrystar: My 7-yr-old enjoyed an abridged version of this. She missed the satire and just saw adventure/fantasy

PitcherBooks: 1885 Classic collection of children's poetry written by Stevenson. Free e-book at Gutenberg.org. If you're buying a copy, treat yourself to an edition with one the top illustrators: Eulalie, Charles Robinson, Tasha Tudor, Jesse Willcox Smith, Eloise Wilken ...

aulsmith: I certainly missed what this poem was about as a child.

PitcherBooks: JF, YA, All Ages. PictureBook. Robert Frost's lovely winter poem gorgeously illustrated by Susan Jeffers. The illustrations in this book turn Frost's poem into a lovely Christmas story. Equally appealing to both boys & girls. .... Of course, if you or your particular kid doesn't like it, give it a thumbs down. "sturlington: I have read a lot of these books. I decided to use this list to track books I have read with my son. I'll thumbs down books I wouldn't read with my son or that didn't work for him." Which makes me discount most of sturlington's ratings and comments as limited and anecdotal.

aulsmith: The children's versions are all expurgated for a reason. These are for adults.

PitcherBooks: Politically-Correct CHILDREN's VERSIONS AVAILABLE. Classic anthology of folk tales, fairy tales and legends from Persia & India. First english translation was in 1706. Many childrens' versions exist both as a storybook anthology and as picturebooks of individual stories. Get a CHILDREN's EDITION by one of the top illustrators: Walter Crane, E.J. Detmold, Edmund Dulac, Errol le Cain, Maxfield Parrish, W. Heath Robinson, ...

PitcherBooks: JF. PictureBook. Edward Lear's 1871 kid classic nonsense poem wonderfully illustrated by Jan Brett. Equally appealing to boys & girls. ... Of course, if you or your particular kid doesn't like it, give it a thumbs down. "sturlington: I have read a lot of these books. I decided to use this list to track books I have read with my son. I'll thumbs down books I wouldn't read with my son or that didn't work for him." Which makes me discount most of sturlington's ratings and comments as limited and anecdotal.

aulsmith: My mother loved this, but I found it dull.

PitcherBooks : Fun PopLit but not a top 1000 read. No explanation on what makes this particular edition a top 1000 must-read for the world.