50 Favourite Children's Books
On Boxing Day, you may or may not have watched David Walliams and guests count down, read and talk about 50 of the nation's favourite children's books on Channel 4. I did watch it and whilst I agreed with a heck of a lot, it also got me thinking about my 50 favourites, as a child and now.
So without further ado, here's my 50 best!
- The Harry Potter series (especially The Prisoner of Azkaban which was my first love and Deathly Hallows which I re read the most). - J.K. Rowling.
- Roald Dahl Stories (most notably Matilda, George's Marvellous Medicine and Fantastic Mr Fox) - Roald Dahl.
- Jacqueline Wilson Stories (favs including Tracy Beaker, the Girls series, The Lottie Project and Lola Rose) - Jacqueline Wilson.
- My Naughty Little Sister Stories - Dorothy Edwards.
- Once There Were Giants - Martin Waddell.
- The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter - Beatrix Potter.
- Kipper Collection - Mick Inkpen.
- Michael Morpurgo books (absolute favs War Horse, Private Peaceful, The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips and Out Of The Ashes) - Michael Morpurgo.
- The Snowman - Raymond Briggs.
- The Famous Five Stories - Enid Blyton.
- Holes - Louis Sachar.
- The Jolly Postman & The Jolly Christmas Postman - Janet and Allan Ahlberg.
- Horrid Henry Series - Francesca Simon.
- This Is Not My Hat - Jon Klassen.
- The Day The Crayons Quit & The Day The Crayons Came Home - Drew Daywalt.
- Rosie's Babies - Martin Waddell.
- Ten Little Fingers & Ten Little Toes - Mem Fox.
- Owl Babies - Martin Waddell.
- Peepo! - Janet & Allan Ahlberg.
- Emma's Lamb - Kim Lewis.
- Floss - Kim Lewis.
- The Last Noo Noo - Jill Murphy.
- Five Minutes Peace - Jill Murphy.
- The Magic Faraway Tree - Enid Blyton.
- The True Story Of The Three Little Pigs - Jon Scieszka.
- The Worst Witch - Jill Murphy.
- Jam Panda Books - Caroline Repchuk.
- The Queen's Hat - Steve Antony.
- Grandad's Island - Benji Davies.
- Sam & Dave Dig A Hole - Mac Barnett.
- On Sudden Hill - Linda Sarah.
- The Storm Whale - Benji Davies.
- When The Dragons Came - Lynne Moore.
- Ten In The Bed - Penny Dale.
- Topsy & Tim Series - Jean Adamson.
- Those Dreadful Children - Enid Blyton.
- Inky Pinky Plot - Judith Nicholls.
- Spaghetti With The Yeti - Charlotte Guillain.
- Yucky Worms - Vivian French.
- Iggy Peck, Architect - Andrea Beaty.
- Hattie Peck - Emma Levey.
- The Pea & The Princess - Mini Grey.
- Friends - Kim Lewis.
- The Shepard Book - Kim Lewis.
- The First Slodge - Jeanne Willis.
- Wolves - Emily Gravett.
- How To Wash A Wooly Mammoth - Michelle Robinson.
- The Dark - Lemony Snicket.
- The Owl & The Pussycat - Ian Beck.
- We're Going On A Bear Hunt - Michael Rosen.
You can also read the Channel 4's list below or watch the original programme here.
- Winnie the Pooh (especially The House at Pooh Corner)
A.A. Milne (illustrated by E H Shepard) - The Chronicles of Narnia (especially The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe)
C.S. Lewis (illustrated by Pauline Baynes) - Harry Potter (especially Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone)
J.K. Rowling - Where the Wild Things are
Maurice Sendak - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Roald Dahl (illustrated by Quentin Blake) - The Wind in the Willows
Kenneth Grahame (illustrated by E H Shepard) - The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Eric Carle - A Bear Called Paddington
Michael Bond (illustrated by Peggy Fortnum) - The Gruffalo
Julia Donaldson (illustrated by Axel Scheffler) - The Hobbit
J.R.R. Tolkien - The Cat in the Hat
Dr Seuss - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Lewis Carroll (illustrated by John Tenniel) - We're Going on a Bear Hunt
Michael Rosen (illustrated by Helen Oxenbury) - Little Women
Louisa May Alcott - Alfie and Annie Rose (especially Dogger)
Shirley Hughes - Pippi Longstocking
Astrid Lingren (illustrated by Lauren Child) - The Tiger Who Came to Tea
Judith Kerr - Finn Family Moomintroll
Tove Jansson - The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter (especially The Tale of Peter Rabbit)
Beatrix Potter - Journey to the River Sea
Eva Ibbotson - The Story of Tracy Beaker
Jacqueline Wilson (illustrated by Nick Sharratt) - Kensuke's Kingdom
Michael Morpurgo - Goodnight Mr Tom
Michelle Magorian - Rooftoppers
Katherine Rundell - A Monster Calls
Patrick Ness (illustrated by Jim Kay) - The Railway Children
E. Nesbitt - Millions
Frank Cottrell Boyce - The Snowman
Raymond Briggs - The Arrival
Shaun Tan - The Snow Queen
Hans Christian Andersen - Black Beauty
Anna Sewell - Famous Five (especially Five on a Treasure Island)
Enid Blyton - Just William (especially Just William)
Richmal Crompton - Holes
Louis Sachar - Stig of the Dump
Clive King - The Boy in the Dress
David Walliams (illustrated by Quentin Blake) - Charlie and Lola (especially I Will Never Not Ever Eat a Tomato)
Lauren Child - The Jolly Postman
Allan and Janet Ahlberg - Horrid Henry (especially Horrid Henry Strikes it Rich)
Francesca Simon (illustrated by Tony Ross) - How to Train your Dragon
Cressida Cowell - The Wee Free Men
Terry Pratchett - Alex Rider (especially Stormbreaker)
Anthony Horowitz - Mortal Engines (especially Mortal Engines)
Philip Reeve - The Secret Garden
Francis Hodgson Burnett (illustrated by Inga Moore) - Just So Stories
Rudyard Kipling - This is Not my Hat
Jon Klassen - Fortunately, the Milk
Neil Gaiman (illustrated by Chris Riddell) - Charlotte's Web
E B White (illustrated by Garth Williams) - Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Jeff Kinney - Treasure Island
Robert Louis Stevenson