What children's books are destined to become classics?
Twilight has reportedly sold more than 85 million copies worldwide but it's the smaller sellers the experts believe will become classic books for children aged under 14.
Jane Southward consults the booksellers and librarians interacting with young readers on a daily basis for their picks of the children's books released in the past decade.
An elf for boys and girls
An adventurous elf called Tashi will be in the hearts and minds of children of many future generations, says Leanne Hall, a children's specialist at Readings Bookshop in Carlton, Melbourne. Written by mother-daughter duo Barbara and Anna Fienberg, and illustrated by Kim Gamble, the Tashi series is “wonderful for children from six or seven and already has the feel of a classic”, she says.
“Tashi has wide appeal for both boys and girls and that's hard to achieve,” she says.
She also nominates the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series written by American Jeff Kinney, who Time magazine last year named as one of the world's 100 most influential people. There are four books and an activity book in the series.
"The humour doesn't depend on contemporary jokes or popular culture, so I think it is destined for a long run and could become a classic," she says. "A lot of parents worry about the title but their kids, particularly boys, love the books."
Series with a high scare-factor
Lily Merry, a youth services librarian at Melbourne's Stonnington Library, says the seven Harry Potter books are already classics and will remain so. She says two other series – Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events books and Emily Rodda's Deltora Quest – will join Harry Potter in the longevity stakes.
“Children love books that have a series and, like with Harry Potter, Deltora and Lemony Snicket took off after kids shared them the playground,” she says. “They would come in to the library and say they just had to read the next one, then the next.
“A classic has to be well written and these books are. I found the first few Lemony Snicket books a bit bleak but children just love them despite the doom and gloom.”
Mylle Joseph, a children's specialist at the NSW State Library, also nominates Harry Potter and Deltora as series that would become classics.
Another series on her list is Monster Blood Tattoo, a fantasy trilogy about monsters and surgically altered humans by D.M. Cornish, an Australian who studied illustration at the University of South Australia.
She also gives the Spiderwick Chronicles series by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi a nod. This is a fantasy series about three children who discover a secret library in a run-down house called Spiderwick Estate.
Shaun Tan's staying power
Mandy Clarke, children's buyer at Better Read than Dead in Sydney's Newtown, says anything by Melbourne author and illustrator Shaun Tan has staying power, particularly The Arrival, The Red Tree and The Lost Thing.
“It's the combination of the themes and the illustrations that make Tan's books set to be classics,” she says. “He deals with themes that most picture books don't, yet they are things young kids do think about. You also have to consider who is buying picture books and, as it is often adults, his gorgeous illustrations appeal to them as well.”
Another picture book she recommends is The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson which, she says, has wonderful illustrations and a clever use of rhyme.
For the tweens and teens
For children older than 12, Clarke recommends Philip Pullman's trilogy of fantasy novels Northern Lights (on which the movie The Golden Compass was based), The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass and, for children over eight, Audrey of the Outback by Christine Harris. There are three Audrey books in the series so far, which tell the story of a curious young girl.
"Audrey is a big thinker just like a lot of young children are," Clarke says. "Her adventures stay with you for a long time. The first book is the best."
However, Clarke's favourite 2009 book is The 10pm Question by New Zealander Kate De Goldi, which Clarke says will be read by girls over 13 for many generations. “The main character of Frankie Parsons is someone you just want to know more about,” she says. “It is an incredible book.”
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