Classic Childrens Literature

It is Olivia’s birthday, and when she blows out the candles on her cake and makes a wish, she gets exactly what she wanted—SNOW, SNOW, and MORE SNOW, even though it’s summertime. All that snow leads to too much trouble, though, so Olivia’s parents bake her another cake so she can make a new wish that will get rid of it. But when that wish, and the next one, and the next one lead to even more trouble, what will Olivia do to solve it? Wait and see!

Set 10 years after Little Men, Jo's Boys revisits Plumfield, the New England school still presided over by Jo and her husband, Professor Bhaer. Jo's Boys — including sailor Emil, promising musician Nat, and rebellious Dan — are grown. Jo remains at the center of this tale, holding her boys fast through shipwreck and storm, disappointment...and even murder.

A classic fable from Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, read by Johnny Morris. Have you ever wondered how and why the animals came to be as they are? In these magical tales, drawn from stories he heard as a child in India as well as on folk traditions he later collected all over the world, Rudyard Kipling gives some wonderfully imaginative explanations.

When the Water Rat invites the unassuming Mole to spend his first day ever in a boat on the river, and wise Badger comes along for the ride as well, so begins a marvellous season of adventure for the three friends. Mr Toad (he of Toad Hall) completes a happy foursome, but his tendency to get into hot water leads him into some rather hair-raising scrapes of his own.

Deep beneath the ocean, there is a shimmering palace. Built of coral walls and windows of clearest amber, it is the kingdom of the merpeople. And one of these mermaids you might know well: she is the youngest, and is gifted with the most beautiful voice. Unhappy with her life as a mermaid, she dreams of living on dry land. One day, on her birthday, she ascends to the surface to find a magnificent three-masted ship drifting in calm waters. There, amongst the passengers, she meets the brown-eyed prince.

This is a classic fantasy story about four animals who behave like humans. They talk, philosophize, and emphasize friendship but also keep their animal habits. They are Mole, Rat, Toad, and Badger. There are some adult books enjoyed by children and some children’s books enjoyed by adults. However, this one appeals to both because it stresses a main theme of doing your best at all times, forgiving others, and setting a goal to make the world a better place.

"Last stop! Everybody out!" Jonathan is trying not to make a mess, but someone has put a subway station in his apartment. So Jonathan goes to City Hall to fix the computer.

The Deerslayer is the first of the Leatherstocking Tales of James Fenimore Cooper. Here we meet Natty Bumppo as a young man living in upstate New York in the early 1740s. The action begins as Bumppo, called "Deerslayer", and his friend Hurry Harry approach Lake Glimmerglass, or Oswego, where the trapper Thomas Hutter lives with his daughters, the beautiful Judith and the feeble-minded Hetty.

Five tales which range from the jungles of India to the frozen emptiness of the North... In all of them, Kipling's extraordinary powers of description and ability to identify with human aspiration and animal survival are vividly shown. Rikki-Tikki-Tavi must battle with Nag, the cobra, in his territory; Toomai has a unique glimpse of the elephant world, Kotick, the White Seal, searches for sanctuary, while Kotuko has to find food for his starving Eskimo village. Above all, Kipling's love of life in all its variety shines through.

The first thing every listener will want to know is whether Anne Shirley appears in these stories of Avonlea and Spencervale. She certainly does. As a matter of fact, page one starts off in this manner: "Anne Shirley was curled up on the window seat of Theodora Dix's sitting room one Saturday evening, looking dreamily afar at some fair starland beyond the hills of sunset. Anne was visiting for a fortnight of her vacation."

The original story of Aladdin is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It concerns an impoverished young man named Aladdin. He is recruited by a sorcerer from the Maghreb, who passes himself off as the brother of Aladdin's late father and convinces Aladdin and his mother of his goodness by making arrangements to set up the lad as a wealthy merchant. His real motive is to persuade young Aladdin to retrieve a wonderful oil lamp from a booby-trapped magic cave.

When Angela's father gets lost at the airport, she looks for him everywhere, even inside an airplane. But when Angela's love of button-pressing proves too great, she finds herself in charge of flying the plane. Can Angela make it back down to the runway?

All night long, Jason gets woken up by strange noises that lead him to find his dad in the most unexpected places—from on top of the refrigerator to the freezing cold woods outside his house. In order to finally get a good night’s sleep, Jason musters up all of his resources and comes up with a most unexpected solution—tying his dad’s toe to the bathroom doorknob to keep him in place.

Randy and Oliver Melendy awake one morning full of gloom. Their brothers and sisters are away, the house seems forlorn and empty, and even Cuffy, their adored housekeeper, can't pick up their spirits. Will they have to face a long and lonely winter?

This bundle includes Peril at Granite Peak and The Battle of Bayport.

Tandis que les Schtroumpfs décorent leur village, un étranger maléfique rend visite au vilain sorcier Gargamel. Les deux petits enfants qu'il convoite seront-ils sauvés par la bonté des Schtroumpfs ?

For more than a century, The Wind in the Willows and its endearing protagonists have enchanted children of all ages. Whether the four friends are setting forth on an exciting adventure, engaging in a comic caper, or simply relaxing by the River Thames, their stories are among the most charming in all English literature.

When Jule Ann goes outside in her brand-new clothes, a mud puddle jumps on her and gets her completely dirty. The mud gets in her ears, eyes, and even her mouth. Jule Ann’s mother scrubs her clean and puts her in new clothes, but every time Jule Ann ventures out, the mud puddle finds her and pounces. Finally, Jule Ann has had enough: clutching two bars of smelly yellow soap, she heads outside one more time....

Alice in Wonderland is the timeless story of a curious young girl who follows a white rabbit into a world that makes no sense and yet feels strangely familiar. In this dreamlike place, nothing stays steady for long. Alice grows taller, then smaller. She meets creatures who talk in riddles, argue about everything, and change their minds without warning. As she moves from one strange encounter to another—the grinning Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter’s tea table, the Queen of Hearts shouting for order—Alice tries to understand a world that refuses to follow ordinary rules.

With Christmas just a few days away, why not pause your regular reading and savor a Christmas stories by Lucy Maud Montgomery? Christmas and New Year's is a season of celebration and reflection, of taking stock of the months gone by and looking forward to the year to come. Here you will find 14 Christmas stories written by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Treat yourself to some fireside reading and capture the holiday spirit with a bit of old-fashioned storytelling from Christmas past. Contents: The Red Room, A Christmas Mistake, A Christmas Inspiration, The Josephs' Christmas and others.