Classic Childrens Literature

The only single-volume work to capture the rich and diverse history of children's literature in its full panorama, this extraordinary book reveals why J. R. R. Tolkein, Dr. Seuss, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Beatrix Potter, and many others, despite their divergent styles and subject matter, have all resonated with generations of readers.

There was once a velveteen rabbit, and in the beginning he was really splendid. He was fat and bunchy, as a rabbit should be; his coat was spotted brown and white, he had real thread whiskers, and his ears were lined with pink sateen. On Christmas morning, when he sat wedged in the top of the Boy's stocking, with a sprig of holly between his paws, the effect was charming.

A pilot stranded in the desert awakes one morning to see, standing before him, the most extraordinary little fellow. "Please," asks the stranger, "draw me a sheep." And the pilot realizes that when life's events are too difficult to understand, there is no choice but to succumb to their mysteries. He pulls out pencil and paper... And thus begins this wise and enchanting fable that, in teaching the secret of what is really important in life, has changed forever the world for its readers.

More than anything else in the world, Emily Byrd Starr wants to be a writer. When Emily's stern and proper Aunt Elizabeth finally consents to send her away to high school, the budding author is overjoyed...until she learns of her aunt's conditions. Emily must live with her even sterner and more proper Aunt Ruth, and she has to give up writing stories for the duration of her schooling. Still, to climb one step higher on the Alpine Path to success, Emily agrees. Follow Emily and her friends Ilse, Teddy, and Perry as they head off to school in Shrewsbury.

Children of all ages will adore this audiobook collection of some of the most notable stories in history. Listen to tales from the Grimm brothers, journey through the jungle with Mowgli in The Jungle Book, embrace youth with Wendy in Peter Pan, and run across pastures in Black Beauty.

As Jason enters fourth grade, he begins to think girls are okay, until he gets caught in a tricky rating game. Meanwhile Edward, now in first grade, is trying hard to keep his eyes open when he swings at the softball, to laugh instead of cry in the spooky neighborhood haunted house, and to keep cool when his pet rat, Spike, has a litter of tiny pink babies.

In "The Little Match Girl" by Hans Christian Andersen, a cold New Year’s Eve becomes a journey of courage, hope, and heartbreaking beauty. As a poor young girl wanders the snowy streets, trying to sell her matches to survive, each tiny flame she lights reveals a warm, shimmering vision—moments of comfort, love, and the life she longs for. With every spark, the boundary between harsh reality and glowing dreams begins to blur.

Un monde en péril, un livre fantastique et un garçon ordinaire. Prêts pour l'aventure ? Un jour, Bastien Balthazar Bux, dix ans, découvre un livre incroyable. Il conte l'histoire d'un pays fantastique, en proie à un mal qui le ronge petit à petit : le Néant. Ce monde est peuplé des personnages les plus étonnants, des elfes nocturnes montés sur des chauve-souris, les surprenants Mange-Pierres, sans oublier Atréju l'enfant guerrier et Fuchur, le bienveillant Dragon de la Fortune.

Mole, Rat, and Badger are Toad's dearest friends even as the aristocratic amphibian's wastrel ways get him into trouble. After being arrested and sentenced to jail, he returns to his ancestral home of Toad Hall to find it overrun with stoats and weasels from the Wild Wood. But his friends haven't abandoned him yet. In fact, they've conspired to help drive the villainous vermin from his home.

School can be kind of scary for someone who is just starting, but Betsy is trying very hard to be brave. It turns out that school is not what she thought it would be: school can be fun! She makes lots of new friends, her teacher is really nice, and the classroom is bright and sunny. She learns something new all the time and throughout the school year there are many surprising adventures waiting for her.

Eleven-year-old Josh and 12-year-old Amanda just moved into the oldest and weirdest house on the block - the two siblings think it might even be haunted! But of course their parents don't believe them. You'll get used to it, they say. Go out and make some new friends. But the creepy kids are not like anyone Josh and Amanda have ever met before. And when they take a shortcut through the cemetery one night, Josh and Amanda learn why.

A beautiful miller's daughter is locked away by the King and told she will never see her family again unless she spins straw into gold. Then an ancient dwarf promises to help - but there is a price to pay....

Something scary is happening in GOOSEBUMPS HORRORLAND, the all-new, all-terrifying series by R. L. Stine. Just how scary? You'll never know unless you crack open this classic prequel! Discover the fan-favorite thriller and chiller that first introduced the world to the wooden face of fear. The puppet who pulls all the strings. None other than Slappy the Dummy!

Baron Trump's Marvellous Underground Journey by Ingersoll Lockwood was published in 1893. The novel recounts the adventures of the German boy Wilhelm Heinrich Sebastian Von Troomp, who goes by the name "Baron Trump", and his dog Bulger, as they discover fantastic underground civilizations, offend the natives, escape from their involvements, and repeat this pattern until arriving back home at Castle Trump. The novel was part of a trend in American children's literature that responded to the demand for fantastic adventure stories created by Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Prince Fastidious travels the world to find his perfect princess. But something is not quite right about any of them. They either talk too much, or not at all. Some are too old for him, or too young. Others are spoiled or have too many noisy, little dogs. Find out what happens when Princess Rose accidentally comes to the castle at night because of a fierce storm. How does she prove to the Queen that she’s a real princess? A happy ending adds interest to this fairy tale and encourages a lifelong love of great storytelling.

No one would accuse 11-year-old Caddie Woodlawn of being dainty and ladylike. In spite of her mother’s best efforts, Caddie is as wild as the wind, playing freely and rambunctiously with her two brothers in the Wisconsin backwoods. There are rafts to build and trees to climb and pranks to play. Caddie especially likes to watch her friend Indian John build birchbark canoes at the river. Every day seems wide with possibility - as wide as the frontier. But living on the edge of civilization has its risks, too....

An unnamed island in the middle of the ocean hides a huge secret. During the day, inhuman screams are heard coming from a house. At night, the silence is only broken by stifled rumors that come from the forest. It is said that someone there played God. It is said that something went terribly wrong....

The discovery of a secret stairway running to the top of the castle leads Princess Irene to a revelation even more weighty than the fiendish plans of the goblin community that miner boy Curdie has discovered. Will the Princess and Curdie understand the significance of what they have found, or will Harelip and the goblins successfully execute their evil plan?

Orphaned at an early age, the young girl Heidi finds a home high in the Swiss Alps with her reclusive grandfather. There, each glorious day is filled with discovery, adventure and the friendship of a gentle goat boy, Peter. But when Heidi is sent away from her mountain paradise to a large, cold city, she is determined to find a way to return to the place she loves. For generations, children around the world have fallen under the spell of this small alpine girl. Heidi is the heartwarming story of an exuberant child’s goodness, courage, and love.

Frank and Joe Hardy drive to see the new Bayport Airport. Before even getting there the boys are almost run over by an airplane flown by the airmail pilot Giles Ducroy. As a result of the event, Ducroy loses his job, blames the boys, and then frames them for a mail robbery. Although the boys don’t have an alibi they are bailed out of jail by Mr. Applegate (from The Tower Treasure) and Mr. Jefferson (from The Mystery of Cabin Island). The Hardy boys overhear Ducroy and two other criminals planning a major robbery.