Julia Eccleshare

I guess this is more like a reference book that one delves into rather than something that one reads cover to cover. And, of course, I have not read this cover to cover. As an older reader, I have the advantage of having read books myself when I was young, then having read another generation of books to my children, and then reading books to my grandchildren. So A pretty wide spread of years to cover. I bought the book second hand and was amused to find that the previous owner had done exactly what I was going to do....that is, to count the books there that I have actually read. My totals were not that different from the previous owner. I found that for ages 0-3 years, I had read 14 of the books (out of 35). For ages 3+, I had read 31 of the books. For ages 5+, I had read 29 of the books. For ages 8+ I had read 52 of the books. And for ages 12+ I had read 25 of the books. In total I have read 150 of the 1001 that the authors think I should have read.
I always have some difficulties with books of this nature that simply reflect the experiences or prejudices of the contributors. I wonder if any of the 72 contributors have actually read all the books....or how many of them have they read. Certainly, the editors have tried to put together an international collection of contributors...but it's not really international. I can't complain too much.....my own country (Australia) is heavily represented. There is a clear preponderance of British contributors ...and rather a dearth of American....and very few from Asia (I counted about 3 from Japan) or the Middle East ....and rather few from continental Europe. So, I guess, we have a selection here that has a massive anglo saxon bias with a scattering of other tales. I visit Japan a lot and am very impressed with the wonderful range of illustrated books available there ....but hardly any appear in 1001 Children's books. (Except for Roald Dahl's interpretation of James and the giant peach....which I think probably has some sort of origins in the Japanese folk tale, Momontoro and two other's that I noticed). In some ways, I wanted to buy this book because of the great children's book illustrations and the collection of illustrators...and in this, I was not disappointed. There is a great collection of illustrations ...and many styles.
One issue that I had was that often I had read a version of the book that was different to that illustrated in 1001....for example, "The wide-mouthed frog" where we used to have a pop up version...which was wonderful. (I think I might still have it). So I was half wondering whether one had to read the version that was shown in 1001....and what one was missing if one had read a different version.
Each book has a description and often background information which is interesting and helpful. Will I go out and buy (or borrow) the books that I haven't read? Almost certainly not. They don't even have "The Poky Little Puppy" listed among the 1001. Now this was a favourite of mine and very popular with two later generations of kids.... And, of course.....Johnnie's Machines (a little Golden Book that seems to be out of print.....but I loved it as a chid). And of course......The Fairy Tales of Grimm and Anderson, Illustrated by Anne Anderson, Collins, 1925.
As the editor acknowledges "Any grouping of children's books inevitably raises as many questions as it answers". and this is no exception. It's obviously a great start for somebody who has to buy a present for a child or for a parent looking to educate their children. But it is just one perspective on the issue.
I quite like it and think I will keep it (as opposed to donating it to charity). I give it 4 stars.… (more)

maybe can get it from CLAN or used - I've looked over MORE's copy and it's lovely, crisp font, lots of images from the books... I just have to be careful not to get it until I actually have time to follow up on the suggestions (that is to say, there are too many rec.s here I've not read... )

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Ok, I bought it. I still haven't made time to examine it carefully, but I do wish it were more upfront & clear about the emphasis on English-language books. My GR friend Gundula points out that some books that it lists are from non-English speaking countries, and yet are not available in English translation... I guess my point is, a better title might possibly be 923 Children's Books available in English..." (or whatever number would be accurate). In any case, I look forward to seeing which I've missed that I still can catch up on!"… (more)