# Parents: what one book or short story do you want your children to know, above all others? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 29, 2011, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328 "2011-06-29T23:36:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![all1966](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@all1966](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/all1966)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2011, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328/61 "2011-09-02T23:42:11Z")
The Velveteen Rabbit…Discoverying loveability even when all fur has been rubbed off, and you’re the toy in the box no one plays with, etc? What a lovely thing to learn early on…true beauty goes all the way through to the heart… ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328/62 "2011-09-03T07:03:29Z")
I STILL enjoy “Green Eggs and Ham,” and I’m a Grandma! The set of books I gave to my daughter to encourage her to love to read was the Laura Ingalls Wilder “Little House” books. They’re priceless. I’ll probably give a set to my granddaughter when she’s old enough, if my daughter doesn’t beat me to it. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![GoodOmens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@GoodOmens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoodOmens)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328/63 "2011-09-05T13:58:09Z")
Really, this thread ended with the first post. _To Kill a Mockingbird._ And the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Chicken\_Fingers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Chicken\_Fingers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chicken_Fingers)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328/64 "2011-09-05T17:14:55Z")
I agree with a lot of these books mentioned. Another one I loved was “A Little Princess” by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I read it to my kids because I wanted to explain a lot of the Victorian England details, and they loved it, even the boy who only normally reads sci-fi and fantasy. It’s beautifully written and defines “princess” as one who is brave, kind, generous, smart, and strong. It’s a good antidote to the modern weak and shallow princess stuff. Also, if you read it aloud you get to do ridiculously bad Cockney accents. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328/65 "2011-09-05T18:06:04Z")
> [@Chicken\_Fingers](#): > > I agree with a lot of these books mentioned. Another one I loved was “A Little Princess” by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I read it to my kids because I wanted to explain a lot of the Victorian England details, and they loved it, even the boy who only normally reads sci-fi and fantasy. It’s beautifully written and defines “princess” as one who is brave, kind, generous, smart, and strong. It’s a good antidote to the modern weak and shallow princess stuff. Also, if you read it aloud you get to do ridiculously bad Cockney accents. In the first place, mentioning _A Little Princess_ when you could have recommended _The Secret Garden_ is simple madness. In the second place I am unable to do bad Cockney accents, far less _ridiculously_ bad ones. My Cockney accent is perfect. That is both my gift and my curse. There was a third thing about _The Lost Prince_ but I forgot what it was. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328/66 "2011-09-05T18:10:40Z")
Perrault’s Donkeyskin for my niece. I’m guessing the original version is the one where the princess is fleeing from her widowed father (who’s decided he’ll marry her) and not a marriage arranged against her will by her remarried father and the usual evil step-mother, but in any case the reason this was a much-beloved tale for me was that in every version I read, she was an active character, not merely a passive excuse for everybody else to Do Things. While there are some tales out there where a male main character is pretty much being carried along (Puss’n’Boots comes to mind), female protagonists who actually Do Things are as rare as hen’s teeth in children’s literature (yes, including nowadays, when too many children’s books have the Token Girl like they have the Token Asian/African-American/Hispanic - the TG may even be a twofer). ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328/67 "2011-09-06T04:11:24Z")
Watership Down, for one. Also The Hobbit and later in life Lord of the Rings. Never read TKAM never really intend to, so can’t recommend them to my mythical children. ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328/68 "2011-09-06T05:49:10Z")
The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood would be a good one, I think. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-what-one-book-or-short-story-do-you-want-your-children-to-know-above-all-others/587328.md?page=3)