The first book I ever read to Big, when she was just weeks old, was Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
I know, it’s an odd choice. But there I was with a baby who basically never stopped screaming. She liked to be talked to, and I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t have hundreds of baby books, I did have Harry Potter, and I’d heard good things about it, so it seemed like a reasonable decision.
Recently we were offered costumes from Sainsburys for review for world book day. There was a range of princesses, goldilocks, something from Frozen and Smallest took one look and chose:
I am so proud. It’s a great costume, comes with a wand with light up tip, an exercise book cover, tie and glasses, as well as the hooded robe. It’s griffyndor, obviously – and it triggered Big started reading book 1 to her. And so the cycle continues.
There was only one possible choice for Tigerboy. Given that there wasn’t a tiger 😉 Or a stick man. Ooh, wonder if I could make him a stick man costume sometime? That would go down well.
Isn’t that just too cool? He has very short legs, so the feet are slightly problematic – I think I’ll put a couple of elastic straps across to hold them in place. Otherwise it’s brilliant, and if your child is of more normal proportions, I think this would be fine.
I’m kind of surprised that while Harry Potter features (several times) on the 50 books every child should read list, there’s nothing by Julia Donaldson/ Axel Scheffler. So no Gruffalo.
Here’s the list, as compiled by Sainsbury’s as part of their Make Believe campaign, supporting children’s reading.
THE 50 BOOKS EVERY CHILD SHOULD READ BY AGE 16
1. Charlie and The Chocolate Factory- Roald Dahl
2. Alice in Wonderland- Lewis Carroll
3. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe- C.S. Lewis
4. Winnie The Pooh- A.A.Milne
5. Black Beauty- Anna Sewell
6. James and The Giant Peach- Roald Dahl
7. The BFG-Roald Dahl
8. A Bear Called Paddington- Michael Bond
9. Treasure Island- Robert Louis Stevenson
10. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn- Mark Twain
11. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – J.K. Rowling
12. Matilda- Roald Dahl
13. The Railway Children- E. Nesbit
14. Oliver Twist- Charles Dickens
15. Five on a Treasure Island- Enid Blyton
16. The Wind in the Willows- Kenneth Grahame
17. The Very Hungry Caterpillar- Eric Carle
18. The Jungle Book- Rudyard Kipling
19. Charlotte’s Web- EB White
20. The Tale of Peter Rabbit- Beatrix Potter
21. Watership Down- Richard Adams
22. The Hobbit -J.R.Tolken
23. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- J.K. Rowling
24. Lord of the Flies- William Golding
25. The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, aged 13 ¾ Sue Townsend
26. Great Expectations- Charles Dickens
27. The Cat in the Hat- Dr Seuss
28. The Secret Garden- Frances Hodgson-Burnett
29. The Diary of a Young Girl- Anne Frank
30. The Twits – Roald Dahl
31. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz- L. Frank Baum
32. The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas – John Boyne
33. Anne of Green Gables- L.M.Montgomery
34. The Tiger Who Came to Tea- Judith Kerr
35. Green Eggs and Ham-Dr Seuss
36. The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham
37. Bambi- Felix Selten
38. Tom’s Midnight Garden- Phillipa Pearce
39. Little House on the Prairie- Laura Ingalls Wilder
40. Funny Bones- Janet and Allan Ahlberg
41. Where The Wild Things Are- Maurice Sendak
42. Carrie’s War- Nina Bawden
43. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time – Mark Haddon
44. The Magician’s Nephew- C.S. Lewis
45. The Golden Compass – Philip Pullman
46. The Story of Doctor Dolittle- Hugh Lofting
47. The Story of Tracy Beaker – Jacqueline Wilson
48. The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
49. Curious George- H.A.Ray
50. Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
What strikes me about it is that there are a lot of pretty old books. I’d love to know who the experts were who compiled this list, and felt that The Secret Garden and The Story of Doctor Dolittle, for example, are more important than, I don’t know, something featuring different cultures, like Sita Brahmachari’s work. Or perhaps Malorie Blackman (although I confess I haven’t read Noughts and Crosses yet, it’s on my wishlist though 😉 )
I don’t really agree with *should* lists. I think it’s incredibly important for children to have access to a wide range of books, and the one they need at any given time to reach them might not be anything that anyone else thinks is important. (I’m remembering a child I taught for a little while who was a very proficient reader, but had no love for it, and it was at least in part because her previous school had focussed on worthy books. I had a range of stuff available, and what turned her on to reading was Dick King Smith, the hodgeheg, that I read out loud as a class story.)
I don’t think that old books are better than new books. Or harder books are better than easy books. I guess if pushed I’d try to come up with a list of 50 books that I’d start by offering my kids, an awful lot of those on the list above wouldn’t make it though. There’s a bit too much sameness to it all, and a lot too much worthiness.
How about you – what makes a book something you’re recommend to a child? Could you come up with a top 50?
Disclosure: we were supplied with the costumes free for review. Sainsbury’s has an extensive Make Believe range in store, but it no longer seems to be online.
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