Just wondering

[rabidsamfan]

allisona asked about children's classics and it got me to thinking. What are the books that we think of as "classics" for children? I know they vary from country to country, of course, but there must be some overlap.

Mind you, I'm a children's librarian, so I've got a few ideas. Add some of yours:



Where the Wild Things Are, by Maurice Sendak
Winnie the Pooh, by A.A. Milne
The Hardy Boys series
Follow My Leader, by James Garfield
The Secret Garden, by F.H. Burnett
A Little Princess, ditto
Call It Courage, by Armstrong Sperry
The Cat in the Hat, by Dr. Seuss
Go Dog Go, by P.D. Eastman
Goodnight, Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown
The Tale of Peter Rabbit, by Beatrix Potter
Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates, by Mary Mapes Dodge
The Swiss Family Robinson, by Johann Wyss
The Children of Green Knowe, by L.M. Boston
Ragged Dick, by Horatio Alger Jr.
Pollyanna, by Elanor H. Porter
Little Women, by Louise May Alcott
Daddy-Long-Legs, by Jean Webster
Understood Betsy, by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain

Comments

[semyaza.livejournal.com]

Nicholas Stuart Gray is essential reading, both his novels and his plays. I should have mentioned his The Seventh Swan as well. I don't know if Nichols' novels would stand up to a re-reading after all these years, but they're definitely classics. Even better are the books he wrote about his house and his garden. As for Mrs. Pepperpot--lovely illustrations, too.

Did anyone mention Joan Aiken?

And no, I haven't. *puts it on list*

[rabidsamfan.livejournal.com]

I've read something by Gray, although the title escapes me at the moment. And I love Aiken. "The Wolves of Willoughby Chase" is definitely a classic, although to tell the truth I love "Midnight is A Place" even more.