100 Best Children's Books

• About the book

The latest in the much praised 100 Best Books series (Fiction, Nonfiction and Translations) comes a superb selection of children's books made by the one of the most revered children's books specialists, Brian Alderson. The list is made up of novels or books that are primarily stories supported by illustrations, rather than picture books. The selection is made from the English language alone, but from both sides of the Atlantic. It begins with Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress and ends with (of course!) Harry Potter. In between the choices are maybe half very well known classics, one quarter books we all recognise but which perhaps are not known as classics, and a quarter gems that have never really made it into the spotlight. Here is a brief name-check of some of the authors who appear, in chronological order (which is how the book is organised). Defoe, Swift, Andersen, Verne, Lewis Carroll, Frank Baum, JM Barrie, Beatrix Potter, Kipling, Kenneth Grahame, AA Milne, Ransome, Streatfield, Tol