# What are your favorite children's books? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** middle-earth\ **Created:** [January 22, 2024, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509 "2024-01-22T19:07:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/41 "2024-01-23T17:25:00Z")
I grew up reading Encyclopedia Brown but it was too dated by the time my kids came along. I then moved into science fiction most of which I probably wasn’t really understanding but still enjoyed? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/42 "2024-01-23T18:37:36Z")
I should probably add _ **The Wonderful Wizard of Oz** _ by L Frank Baum to my list. Anybody remember Betty MacDonald’s _ **Mrs Piggle-Wiggle** _ books? ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/43 "2024-01-23T18:44:51Z")
I always dug the Dorrie books by Patricia Coombs, about a little witch’s adventures. I also checked [Ghosts and More Ghosts](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3211085-ghosts-and-more-ghosts) out of the public library over and over again. It’s by Robert Arthur, who also wrote the Three Investigators series. Plus the John Bellairs books, especially the Lewis Barnavelt books, as mentioned by @kitap. I always gravitated toward the spooky stuff. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/44 "2024-01-23T18:48:47Z")
I was going to mention the _ **Bunnicula** _ books by James and Deborah Howe, but they came long after my childhood. I have read some, though, and they’re quite funny. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/45 "2024-01-23T19:06:44Z")
I do. The first one especially was wonderful. I liked the ones with magical cures somewhat less. But that may have been just me. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/46 "2024-01-23T19:20:49Z")
More picture books: [Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus](https://www.amazon.com/Dont-Pigeon-Drive-20th-Anniversary/dp/1368090230/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2CMY9RL83Q3GR&keywords=dont+let+the+pigeon+drive+the+bus+book&qid=1706037453&sprefix=dont+let+the%2Caps%2C111&sr=8-1) by Mo Willems. All the Pigeon books are funny and my kids have loved them. Also, the book I buy for all children. You can read it to them one time, and they’ll turn around and be ready to “read” it right back to you. [Go Away, Big Green Monster](https://www.amazon.com/Go-Away-Big-Green-Monster/dp/0316236535/ref=sr_1_13?crid=14DUR2LBOWKPO&keywords=ed+emberley+books&qid=1706037600&sprefix=ed+em%2Caps%2C106&sr=8-13), by Ed Emberly. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/47 "2024-01-23T19:32:57Z")
My grandson and I have spent a lot of time lately with the Pigeon, both him reading to me and me reading to him at bedtime. We both enjoy them very much. Willems is able to convey a great deal of emotion with his drawings, and it’s fun for both of us to speak in an appropriate pigeon voice when reading the dialogue. “_ **Fine** _.” @DSeid, he just now finished reading _Stellaluna_ to me and I can see why it appealed to you. We adopted my daughter (his mom) and found the same sort of value in _Horton Hatches the Egg_ by Dr. Seuss for her. It’s about adoption and yet not about adoption, and it absolutely spoke to her when she was young. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/48 "2024-01-23T19:36:10Z")
Are you familiar with the (not-kids’) book _The Twyford Code_ by Janice Hallett? I’m making my way through it right now and enjoying it. It’s sort of based on the works of a fictional British author named Edith Twyford, who is a _very_ thinly disguised version of Enid Blyton. I would probably enjoy it more if I were familiar with the original books, but I don’t believe they were popular in the US, so I wasn’t. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/49 "2024-01-23T19:45:34Z")
Not generally a fan of puzzle books, and also epistolary novels, so I doubt I’d be into it from what I’ve read about it. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/50 "2024-01-23T19:46:18Z")
Fair enough, just thought I’d suggest it given the Blyton connection. ---
**Author:** ![tofor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tofor/32/13727_2.png) [@tofor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tofor)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/51 "2024-01-23T19:50:12Z")
Ten in the Bed by Penny Dale. The classic “Roll Over, Roll Over” rhyme, but with some of the cutest illustrations I know. Somebody said LoTR is for adults, but my under-10 kids are enjoying it just fine. They insisted we read them after we read The Hobbit. It’s elegantly written, but they rarely have to ask me to define anything. I’m certainly enjoying them too, never having read them before, so definitely a story with broad appeal. ---
**Author:** ![Dogginit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dogginit/32/16920_2.png) [@Dogginit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogginit)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/52 "2024-01-23T20:50:22Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > Also _The Great Brain_ series by John D. Fitzgerald Came in here to put this one up - remember it dearly from grade school 45+ years ago. ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/53 "2024-01-23T21:33:44Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > My grandson and I have spent a lot of time lately with the Pigeon, both him reading to me and me reading to him at bedtime. We both enjoy them very much. Willems is able to convey a great deal of emotion with his drawings, and it’s fun for both of us to speak in an appropriate pigeon voice when reading the dialogue. “_ **Fine** _.” I don’t know why I forgot the Pigeon books. My older students still like to revisit them. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/54 "2024-01-23T21:48:30Z")
> [@tofor](#): > > Somebody said LoTR is for adults, but my under-10 kids are enjoying it just fine. They insisted we read them after we read The Hobbit. I read the Hobbit when I was somewhere around 8, and Shelob freaked me the hell out. I wouldn’t come near that book again until I read LOTR, which was when I was in my mid-teens. After finishing LOTR I went back to Hobbit and didn’t find it nearly as scary at about twice the age. Kids vary a lot. And what suits a 3 year old, a 7 year old, and a 12 year old may be three very different sorts of things. But I’ll turn it around: Most or maybe all really good childrens’ books are also worth reading by adults. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/55 "2024-01-23T21:49:29Z")
Unfortunately, I remember only two stories: the one with the kid who wouldn’t wash, and the one with the kid who wouldn’t clean his room. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/56 "2024-01-23T21:51:01Z")
We had a lot of Little Golden books. _The Little Red Hen_ and _The Poky Little Puppy_ come immediately to mind. There was also a cute little book called _Socks for Supper_ that I loved. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/57 "2024-01-23T21:59:19Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > Most or maybe all really good childrens’ books are also worth reading by adults. I would happily re-read all of the books I’ve listed, and I just turned 69. I hope to get a complete set of _ **The Mad Scientists’ Club** _ books before I finally croak. I read _ **When the Legends Die** _ when I was in high school and loved it. I don’t know if younger kids would like it. I think the first book I ever read was _ **The Little Mailman of Bayberry Lane** _. I would give anything to have a copy I could pass down to my future grandchildren. I also wish I could get a copy of _ **Cinnabar, the One O’Clock Fox** _ so I could at least play the sheet music of the song inside it. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/58 "2024-01-23T22:05:34Z")
> [@pjd](#): > > I also enjoyed The Hobbit and Farmer Giles of Ham by Tolkien. Yes, and altho I think the LotR is fantastic, is it really a children’s book? > [@SCAdian](#): > > The Swallows & Amazons series, by Arthur Ransome. The first book, _Swallows and Amazons_, is one of my favourite books, period. My wife loves that series. > [@DSeid](#): > > I didn’t click other but yes to Phantom Tollbooth. The film is also very good. > [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I don’t really think of Little Women as a children’s book. Same here. > [@Chronos](#): > > A Wrinkle in Time (and maybe the first sequel, The Wind in the Door) > The Chronicles of Prydain series Yes to the second, and altho _A Wrinkle in Time_ is great, the sequels kinda sucked. > [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > Susan Cooper’s _The Dark Is Rising_ really struck me when I was a young teen. Years later, grown to adulthood, I found out there were three subsequent novels in the series. They were also very good. Great series- there are five altogether. Still good as an adult. > [@kitap](#): > > I also loved **The House With a Clock in Its Walls** by John Bellairs. Yes! And he wrote quite a few sequels and several other similar books. A little scary, but the “good guys” win in the end. Still readable for adults. The film is very decent. Why they couldn’t have chosen a chubby kid for Louis annoyed me, tho. > [@MrDibble](#): > > _The Wind in the Willows_. Fantastic! > [@MrDibble](#): > > Terry Pratchett’s kids books- The Nomes Trilogy, the Johnny Maxwell series, _Carpet People_ The Tiffany Aching series also, along with _The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents_ - all great for adults. > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > I read the Hobbit when I was somewhere around 8, and Shelob freaked me the hell out. Shelob isnt in the Hobbit, she is in LotR- perhaps you mean the spiders in the forest? I need to add- _Half Magic_ and other books by Edgar Eager. The Borrowers. (I like to go back and re-read much loved series from when I was a kid, but these didnt hold up for my adult self) The Phoenix and the Carpet and others by Edith Nesbit. ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/59 "2024-01-23T22:06:08Z")
I mean, you know this board’s demographics. But alas not even a mention of Ezra Jack Keats for the “old” folks. ---
**Author:** ![aurora\_maire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aurora_maire/32/328_2.png) [@aurora\_maire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurora_maire)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509/60 "2024-01-23T22:08:22Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Anybody remember Betty MacDonald’s _ **Mrs Piggle-Wiggle** _ books? See post #24. 😄 There’s a link to the series there. I’m glad I’m not the only one who remembers them. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-childrens-books/996509.md?page=4)