Another World Book Day is nearly over and seeing endless streams of photographs of our friends’ kids dressed as their favourite book characters on social media has inspired us to reflect on some of our own much-loved books of our childhood. Warning - this amount of nostalgia may be overwhelming.
The Edge Chronicles by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
Not written in the usual linear way you’d expect of a series, The Edge Chronicles is made up of four trilogies and a number of other books related to the universe. It spans several centuries and is set in a world called The Edge; a huge bottomless cliff. All the book collections focus on different characters, and two short stories entitled Cloud Wolf and The Stone Pilot were released especially for World Book Day in 2001 and 2006 respectively.
Deltora Quest by Emily Rodda
Made up of fifteen books split into three separate series, the Deltora Quest collection is a high fantasy story following three companions on a quest to find seven gems stolen from the Belt of Deltora. They face a multitude of dangerous monsters along the way, not to mention the minions of the Shadow Lord. Granted, it’s not the most original fantasy series in the world, but they’re quick, easy reads and thoroughly capture the imagination.
Redwall by Brian Jacques
Brian Jacques wrote 22 novels in the Redwall series, culminating in the posthumously released The Rogue Crew, and while it is aimed at older children, it is unusual in that the characters are anthropomorphic mice, moles, shrews, otters, hares, badgers, rats, weasels and foxes. It’s hardly Wind in the Willows, however; it’s all bloody battles and brave warriors. It also seems to be set on some kind of alternative Earth rather than a fantasy world.
The Spiderwick Chronicles by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black
Holly Black is currently raved about in relation to her Folk of the Air series - the first of which being The Cruel Prince - but did you know that she was one of the brains behind one of the greatest children’s book series of the 2000s? The Spiderwick Chronicles is all about three siblings named Simon, Jared and Mallory Grace who uncover a land of fairies in their new home on the Spiderwick Estate. Brownies, goblins, ogres, trolls and redcaps all make their way into this enchanting tale for which there are eight books including Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles.
Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy
For those who are more into dark fantasy, Skulduggery Pleasant is two series of adventures starring detective Stephanie Edgley (aka Valkyrie Cain) and her partner Skulduggery Pleasant; a well-dressed skeletal force who helps her defeat the evil sorcerers that threaten to envelop the world in darkness. There are fourteen books in the series, the first of which was published in 2007 and the last of which was published in 2021.
MORE: Seven banned and brilliant LGBTQ+ children’s books
The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott
In 2007, the first of Irish author Michael Scott’s Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series, The Alchemyst, was released. Unlike most of the titles on this list, there were only six books in the series, but they are some of the most gripping children’s books ever released. It blends a number of different mythologies - Egyptian, Celtic, Norse - as well as real world history, such as the lives of John Dee and the famous alchemist Nicholas Flamel. For any child into witchcraft and mythology, this series is priceless.
