guilty pleasures of reading kiddy novels/books

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i always thought morris gleitzmans titles were for kids, but ever since i first picked
up a copy of "Two Weeks with the Queen" i couldn't put it down for a second!

i'm starting to like reading his books, mainly because they're heaps fun to read and deal with more serious issues
like divorce, cancer and stuff.

sometimes i might even read beatrix potter books too...


so will anyone else here admit to reading childrens novels? don't be shy.

Tintin and Asterix books.

SA Wakefield's Bottersnikes and Gumbles books (I recently got the omnibus, which was hard to get). You've probably heard of these books before, FleaCircus, being an Aussie, though I doubt that anyone outside Australia (and maybe Britain) know about them.

The Horrible Histories books.

Yes. I frequently reread the 50 or so childrens books/novels that I have kept since childhood or recovered since from second hand bookshops.

Many of them mean as much or more to me than most "adult" novels.

Ursula le Guin's Earthsea trilogy, Frances Hodgson Burnett's "The Secret Garden" and "The Lost Prince", Penelope Farmer's "Charlotte Sometimes", Philippa Pearce's "Tom's Midnight Garden" and "A Dog so Small", Lilith Norman's "The Shape of Three", and Mollie Hunter's "The Sound of Chariots". "Heidi". "I am David" by Anne Holm. "The Borrowers" by Mary Norton, and "The Changes" trilogy ( the Devil's children, Heartsease, and the Weathermonger) by Peter Dickinson. "Freaky Friday", and "From the Mixed up files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler". Others I sadly don't have; "Redcap Runs Away" by Rhoda someone or other, and "The Weirdstone of Brisingamen" and "The Owl Service" by Alan Garner etc.

Also Tintin!

I read the Baby-Sitters Club books and the Baby Sitters Little Sister books whenever I can find the books in thrift stores or second hand stores.


I will also read other children books I can find if I think they be interesting to read.

Narnia the whole series by C. S. Lewis Yet I think it took me as an adult to understand most of the material and big words in the books.

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott My little neice has gotten me to read her the book and now, well.........it's a good book.

Mother Goose rhymes and illustrations. I also luv fairtales.

The Enchanted World, Life Time Books. Although I really think they're for all ages if you can understand the reading material. I'll never forget how excited I was when I first saw illustrations in those books. My mom used to read them to me...they focused on different aspects of mythology like.....Wizards and Witches, Dragons, Fairies and Elves, Water Spirits, Night Creatures, Giants and Ogres, Gods and Goddesses, Ghosts and so on.

It used to make me look at the world in a different way like maybe there were unicorns or fairies out there. I used to put out little empty acorns by trees with holes thinking the fairies would come out and drink from them.

I still look through them and am amazed of the different illustrations. I also think they have good stories which is weird since I'm not real into fantasy books. These stories seem to have a lot of depth into them like out of a movie.

Charlotte's Web by E. B. White Another book my neice has gotten me back into. What can I say but good children's book.

As of other kid's books, I'll usually go for any of them that catches my eye of good illustrating and good story lines.

I like gothic childrens books, the storylines are better and they aren't pretentious like adult gothic books. The Lemony Snicket series and Coraline are my favourites.

Has anyone encountered the Dr. Xargle books? They're a series for young kids based on an alien teacher telling his pupils about aspects of Earth life....there's his Book of Earthlets (about babies), Earth Tiggers (cats) and Earth Hounds (dogs). They are FUNNY.

ouinon - I was totally obsessed with A Dog So Small at the age of about nine! Haven't read it in years. (And I still want a chihuahua, but nowadays it's the cat who won't let me have one.)

I love "The Secret Garden". It was very inspiring to me during a rough time in my life. I had no idea it was a children's book until I read the Wikipedia article on it.

Pippi Longstocking, by Astrid Lindgren
Catwings, by Ursula LeGuin
The Summer of the Swans
The Grannyman

Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce (have my own copy)
Queen Bee, the teenage graphic novel by Chynna Clugston

I read everything. (Well nearly everything). Children's books included. Lots of the one's previously mentioned - Tintin, Asterix, The Secret Garden, Morris Gleiztman, Narnia, Charlotte's Web, etc.

Quatermass, I'm an Aussie too, but I've no idea what Bottersnikes and Gumbles books are. Are they of an older generation? Actually, I'll just go look it up...

I also love to go back and read stuff by Roald Dahl, Enid Blyton, the Harry Potter books, the lemony snickett books, Paul Jennings' books. Sometimes I'll come across those Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, or Trixie Belden books and read them too. Judy Blume books. Dr Seuss. Little Men and Little Miss books. heehee.

And there is NO guilt involved.

This was my favorite book as a child and I think it's still my favorite children's book today.

My personal favorite is still the Calvin and Hobbes comics (not really kiddy though), but there's also one great old picture book I remember that I hope some of you are familiar with....



Bad Day at Riverbend. It was like this black and white cowboy world that was styled like a coloring book. The sherrif kept finding people dead with what looked like scribbles of crayon all over them, as if a kid was coloring in the coloring book. XD And in the end they're all trying to face off against the coming COLOR THING that is killing people, and it kills them all, and then it zooms out of the world and shows a kid with a crayon drawing badly in a coloring book. The kid's painted in a realistic style instead of black and white coloring book style. The whole thing's hilarious.

I also loved the first two Dinotopia books...their artwork is so cool! It's too bad the TV miniseries was such trash!

Yes. I frequently reread the 50 or so childrens books/novels that I have kept since childhood or recovered since from second hand bookshops.

Many of them mean as much or more to me than most "adult" novels.

Ursula le Guin's Earthsea trilogy, Frances Hodgson Burnett's "The Secret Garden" and "The Lost Prince", Penelope Farmer's "Charlotte Sometimes", Philippa Pearce's "Tom's Midnight Garden" and "A Dog so Small", Lilith Norman's "The Shape of Three", and Mollie Hunter's "The Sound of Chariots". "Heidi". "I am David" by Anne Holm. "The Borrowers" by Mary Norton, and "The Changes" trilogy ( the Devil's children, Heartsease, and the Weathermonger) by Peter Dickinson. "Freaky Friday", and "From the Mixed up files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler". Others I sadly don't have; "Redcap Runs Away" by Rhoda someone or other, and "The Weirdstone of Brisingamen" and "The Owl Service" by Alan Garner etc.

Also Tintin!

I loved the Bunnicula books when I was a kid.