Children's Literature Texts
Primary and Secondary Resources for all your Children's Literature Needs
Primary Resources
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A book written exclusively for the entertainment of children? That's new. John Newbery was the first to do it.
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The Brothers Grimm finally published all of those fairytales they'd been collecting. And Disney movies were never the same.
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The Robinsons are shipwrecked on an island, and adventure awaits. We might think of this book as old-school…because it is. But it sure has staying power.
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Hans gives his spin on our now-classic fairytales.
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Alice was the first person to go down the rabbit hole…and millions of Internet users have followed in her footsteps.
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More wonderful tales of distant islands and hidden treasures—it never gets old.
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Heard of it? Bet you didn't know it was originally written in Italian.
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The little boy who grows up in the jungle in India has all kinds of wild animals for friends. Classic kids' stuff right there.
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Follow the yellow brick road all the way to the original.
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One of the best-selling children's books of all time—and for good reason.
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Do those names sound familiar? That's because this is the story of the O.G. Peter Pan.
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Another gem with staying power.
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That bear just can't get enough of honey, can he?
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Before there was a Disney movie, there was a book. Who knew? (We did.)
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Bilbo Baggins is one goofy guy—er, hobbit.
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This little monkey is too curious for his own good.
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When you enter through the wardrobe into the magical land of Narnia, you'll come across a whole series of books, starting with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.
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The mischievous Cat in the Hat and its companions, Thing One and Thing Two, cause all kinds of havoc. Want more Dr. Seuss? We've got loads of it.
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In order not to overwhelm you with Dahl, we're just listing one book, but check out some of his other classics like The Witches, Matilda, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
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We all want to go where the Wild Things are.
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Carle's colorful illustrations are appealing to young children and his narrative style is straightforward and easy to comprehend. But those collage illustrations are engaging for even the oldest readers.
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The height of what's known as post-modern children's literature—this one's highly referential and parodic. Yep, that's a lot to digest for a kids' book.
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Say hello to one of the richest women on earth. And it all started with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
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Neil Gaiman's tone is dark and spooky—you might call him Roald Dahl-esque.
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This one's a wordless retelling of the famous Aesop tale.
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Mo Willems is the Stephen King of children's literature—this guy just can't stop publishing.
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Newbery Award-winning and pretty awesome to boot.
Secondary Resources
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This collection of essays explores children's literature as a literary form.
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How does children's literature shape the development of children? Read this book to find out.
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Look no further than this comprehensive book for a full history of the genre.
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How has society shaped children's literature? How does children's literature reflect society? These are some of the big questions this book tries to answer.