BBC 100 Greatest Children’s Books

The BBC Culture Platform showcases global trends in music, film, television, books, and style, and celebrates how the arts inspire and enrich our daily lives. Over the years, the platform has conducted polls of industry experts and critics to reveal “the greatest of all time” in various categories. This year, 177 book experts from 56 countries were engaged to determine “the 100 greatest children’s books of all time.” According to BBC Culture, despite the sheer variety available – and the untold joy of reading they produce – children’s books “are sorely undervalued compared to adult literature” and “not receiving the critical respect they should.” Certainly, the current swathe of book banning and modernizing of classics continues to make news headlines, but BBC Culture notes the time is right to “give children’s literature its due.” In the end, a total of 1050 different books were scored and ranked to produce the top 100 – and while not definitive, the resulting list reflects not only the vast scope of children’s books from different eras, countries, and languages but books that have shaped, inspired, enthralled and delighted children (and adults) of all ages. So, which of your favourites are considered among the “greatest of all time”?

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