Many parents want to read what they consider to be “Classic Children’s Books.” In doing so, they turn to books from the nineteenth century. I’ve created a list of 10 books from that period which go beyond the more well-known names like Alice, Jo March or Tom Sawyer and Huck.
It’s possible that some children (and parents, too) will find the syntax and vocabulary of older books a little more challenging than their contemporary counterparts. If you find that to be the case here are a few tips to get you started:
- Start with an adventure book. You might notice that my list is heavy on adventure and fairy tales: Verne, Stevenson, Kipling, for example. That is because I think these books are especially suited to appeal to today’s children. The language, vocabulary and sentence structure may be unfamiliar to children used to contemporary children’s literature, but an exciting, suspenseful plot can help to overcome that hurdle.
- Don’t be afraid to start out with an abridged edition. Normally I am not pro-abridged books, but I also think abridged versions can whet the appetite of younger children, who will then be eager to pick up the full length book when they are older.
- Read aloud. All of these books are wonderful to read aloud together. Several of the books have chapters which can function as discreet stories so you can “test” the book out to see if it is age appropriate. Most of these should be fine as read alouds for ages 7 and up.
- Watch the movie. Many of these books have movie versions. I am not a person who thinks the book is always better than the movie, they’re just different forms, that’s all. I do think that it’s better to read the book first, but if your child has already seen the movie and liked it, it’s a great segue into the book!
- Address problematic ethnic representations head on. The sad truth is that many books we consider “Classics” contain racist elements. Several of the books I’ve listed have this problem. I recommend using the book as a springboard for discussion. A great article that addresses this is How to Really Read Racist Books to Your Kid.
The great news is that all these books have long outlived their copyrights and are available for free online; or you can find many inexpensive paperback copies for purchase. I have included a link to each book at Project Gutenberg, where you can find the book in various digital formats.
Have you read any of these books with your children? What are your favorites from the 19th century?
…and stay tuned because next week I’m traveling through the 20th century, but this time by decade. I hope you join us!
Visit my other posts in this series:
Classic Children’s Books: 19th Century
Classic Children’s Books: 1900s
Classic Children’s Books: 1910s
Classic Children’s Books: 1920s
Classic Children’s Books: 1930s
Classic Children’s Books: 1940s
Classic Children’s Books: 1950s
Classic Children’s Books: 1960s
Classic Children’s Books: 1970s
Classic Children’s Books: 1980s
Classic Children’s Books: 1990s
I read Treasure Island to my son (aged about nine when we read it) and he loved it. Some of the nautical terms are disorienting, so we looked up a ship's layout online. I also tried The Jungle Book later that summer, but with bored response. We never got beyond the first chapter.
I know what you mean about the nautical terms! Boats have never been a big vehicle interest around here. We are also reading Swallows and Amazons and the first three chapters are filled with unfamiliar boat part descriptions. We had to look almost all of them up!
We are reading 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea aloud right now and our 8-year-old loves it, but I am just dying reading the long latinate catalogs of sea creatures in just about every chapter. I'd have been happy with an abridgement, but our son loves it!
The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew is an all-time favorite of ours, and one of the first long chapter books we read (first we read an illustrated abridgement, then the real thing). But we never made it past the first couple chapters of the sequel.
We made it about halfway through Hans Brinker but stopped after getting bored with the didactic Dutch history lessons that dominate the middle of the book.
This is a great list, and I love Project Gutenberg texts! Smartphone or Ipad users can read Project Gutenberg texts easily from their devices with the MegaReader app, which I especially like for reading aloud on car trips after dark (before my night-owl child falls asleep).
I completely agree about Hans Brinker! I remember thinking I should add to my blurb: “Feel free to skip the boring parts.”
What a great list – reminds me of what I read during my own childhood and got me wondering whether my own kids would ever be exposed to this literature if I don't introduce it. Thanks for reminding me of these great books! And I am not pro-abridged versions either, but I do think it's helpful for the very little ones and the early readers so they can actually make it through the book.
Most of these books I read on my own as a kid (a few not until I was an adult). But I think a lot of other classic literature (Like Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn) is certainly still part of school curricula, so that's good.
The Mysterious Island was one of my absolute favorites when I was a child, but I was about 10. So far we read The Jungle Book and Around the World in 80 Days (abridged) from your list.
This is a great list! My oldest is only four, so we've been choosing simpler stories than these, but I'll reference this list in the future!
I hope you stay with us over the next few months because we'll be looking at books for each decade in the 20th C.
Also, check out our list of over 50 chapter books for preschoolers, you might find something there that's more age appropriate.
7 Little Australians by Ethel Turner was one of my favourite books when I was around 8-10, I'm not sure how well known it is outside of Australian though. I also absolutely loved Huckleberry Finn and read and re-read it for years until well into secondary school.
I think it's safe to say 7 little Australians is not very well known here. I checked and it's not in our library, but the good news is that I found it at Project Gutenberg. I love that you keep telling me about these Australian books.