Forgotten classic books for children

[susieq100]

"What Katy Did" - I loved that although I was probably a bit older and read it to myself.
Valley of Adventure, Mountain of Adventure, Island of Adventure etc - Enid Blyton, also "Naughtiest Girl in School" by Enid Blyton.

[alldigging]

The secret garden.
The Little Princess.

I read hundreds of Enid Blyton as well. Magic far away tree was a fav as were all the school books. Oh and the Famous Five. Although the TV series ruined that for me.

[julesapple]

Arthur Ransome books I read, and still read every Summer;

Swallows & Amazons
Coot Club
The Big Six
Pigeon Post
Winter Holiday
We Didn't Mean to Go To Sea
Swallowdale
Peter Duck
Secret Water
Missee Lee
Great Northern?
The Picts & The Martyrs

These books are made for the summer hols! Once read, never forgotten.....my utter favourites. Ransome never treats children like they're stupid, he never patronises.

[veggiechicken]

Ooohh -The Secret Garden with its door in the wall has always appealed to me. One day, I'll have one too...........
Just been looking at the bookshelves for my old books:-
Water Babies - Charles Kingsley,
Lorna Doone - RD Blackmore
Black Beauty -Anna Sewell (but so sad when Ginger dies)
All the Little Women books
Gerald Durrell books too - I used to spend hours copying the drawings of animals in there
Alice in Wonderland etc
Nonsense Poems by Edward Lear and Lewis Carroll - Do you read poetry to your daughter, Mikey? I loved the rhymes.

[mothhawk]

I remember the TV series of Belle and Sebastian. Can even remember the theme tune but it was in French before I did it at school.

Just for you, Donna

eta: hijacking your thread a bit Mikey, sorry, but wanted to add, when this vid finishes, it shows more to play, and they are all childrens TV favourites of mine - Follyfoot, White Horses, Robinson Crusoe, Tarzan, Black Beauty....

[donnakebab]

Saturday mornings and the Banana Splits!

Sausage butties for breakfast!

[donnakebab]

When I was buying books to read to my kids I used to choose ones with great illustrations.

These two are rhyming stories.



The Sip's Cat is a feast for the eyes.

[RedThorn]

Enchanted wood series (already mentioned) famous 5

And the series by Willard Price (13-14 books) absolutely loved them

Robinson Crusoe loved that too ooh and Jack London's books White fang and Call of the wild (still have a major love of wolves thanks to JD)

But then I was a strange kid, had completed reading Tolkien by the age of 11

[chris]

Just remembered a couple more...

Might have been mentioned, but cba to trawl through the thread - I didn't get much sleep

Famous Five (ah, just read above - yep mentioned )
Secret Seven

Also one, about the holy grail being found, via some lad going through a wardrobe, finding a secret passage, and it leading to some caves in Penzance ... think it had something to do with king arty too.. argh what's the name of it!!!! [it was an awesome book - I used to dream about it at night, couldn't wait to get to school to read another few pages of it in class]

*thinking cap on*

[mothhawk]

I remember a book we read in class at junior school, but I've never been able to find it since. The title was "Simon" and I can't remember the author, but it was about two boys who were friends, then the English civil war starts, and their families are on opposite sides in the conflict.

Always wondered if that book was what Mr Harris based "Two Little Boys" on.

eta: wikipedia triumphs again. It's by Rosemary Sutcliffe

[Mikey]

When you said that Mothhawk, it reminded me of 'Huckleberry finn' and 'Stig of the dump', I remember enjoying them as a boy, I wonder if my daughter would like them.

[mothhawk]

When you said that Mothhawk, it reminded me of 'Huckleberry finn' and 'Stig of the dump', I remember enjoying them as a boy, I wonder if my daughter would like them.

Depends whether or not she's a 'girly' girl. I was very much a tomboy, growing up with older brothers for company. I liked Huck Finn, but I've not read Stig. One of my very favourite quotations, which I use quite a lot even now, is from Huck Finn:

"Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits".

[Creemteez]

I was going to suggest Stig of the Dump, Mikey - Our techer used to read us a chapter every Friday afternoon -and used to do some REALLY good "Stig" faces! She'll love it -I'm sure!

[CaroltheCarrot]

I loved the Faraway tree, (Moonface if my memory serves)
Anne of Green Gables by L.M.Montgomery
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (Yes I did have to google it!!)

Making me quite nostalgic, I may have to visit Amazon

[SarzWix]

The books that Chris is trying to remember are 'The Dark is Rising' sequence by Susan Cooper, starting with Over Sea, Under Stone, and they absolutely fantastic. Probably a bit old for your daughter, but get them anyway and read them yourself - they have a lot of connections with Wales later on in the series

I'd second the 'Milly Molly Mandy' recommendations, my daughter has loved them for years (she always read above her age too). Also, the 'One End Street' books by Eve Garnett give a great glimpse into working class family life before the war, I loved them as a child and my daughter likes those too. And what about Tom's Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce?