1900 – 1930
This annotated list of classics and favorites was compiled by Sally Epp, former children’s librarian at the Belle Isle Library (part of the Metropolitan Library System).
Every book listed is still in print and available for check out through Interlibrary Loan at your local library.
Some books are available in free electronic text on the internet.
Please choose books for your children thoughtfully, as books for a wide range of ages, interests, and developmental levels have been included.
Key— E=Easy Reader | T=Tween | JF=Juvenile Fiction | YA=Young Adult | TNF=Tween Nonfiction | JNF=Juvenile Nonfiction
JF
by Baum, L. Frank
Dorothy, Toto, the Tin Woodman, the Cowardly Lion and the Scarecrow set off for the capitol city of the magical land of Oz to ask the wonderful Wizard for their hearts’ desires.
JF
by Kipling, Rudyard
The stories in this light-hearted collection of original fables explain how the different animals came to be the way they are.
JF
by Nesbit, Edith
Five children find a grumpy and odd-looking Sand-Fairy who will grant them wishes, but his answers to their wishes tend to be quite different than what they expect.
JF
by London, Jack
This survival story tells of a family’s pet dog that is stolen from his California home and made to work as a sled dog during the Alaskan gold rush.
JF
by Wiggin, Kate Douglas Smith
Life is turned upside down for Aunt Miranda, Aunt Jane and the entire town when spirited and mischievous, but completely loveable, Rebecca arrives at Sunnybrooke Farm.
E
by Potter, Beatrix
Naughty Peter Rabbit disobeys his mother and finds himself in a dangerous adventure in Mr. McGregor’s garden.
JNF
by Field, Eugene
The glorious paintings of Maxfield Parrish illustrate this collection of poetry for children.
E
by Potter, Beatrix
Lucie’s search for her lost handkerchiefs takes her to the laundry of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, a hedgehog.
JF
by London, Jack
White Fang, part wolf and part dog, goes from sled dog to fighting dog at the hands of a cruel man, and then is rescued by a kind owner who tries to teach him the meaning of love.
JF
by Nesbit, Edith
Reality and fantasy intertwine in this tale of four children who discover an enchanted castle, a magic ring and a sleeping princess who is really just a girl pretending to be a princess.
JF
by Montgomery, L. M.
Anne Shirley, a spirited, talkative, redheaded orphan, is a surprising addition to a small Canadian town when the elderly siblings, Marilla and Matthew, agree to adopt her.
JF
by Grahame, Kenneth
Adventures abound when cautious, agreeable Mole meets the boat-loving Water Rat, the boastfully wild Toad of Toad Hall, and the reclusive, curmudgeonly Badger.
JF
by Burnett, Francis Hodgeson
Sullen Mary and Sickly Colin are transformed by their secret efforts to restore to life a neglected English garden with the help of the spirited Dickon and his family.
E
by Ivimey, John
John Ivimey relates the events leading up to the Mice’s terrible encounter with the farmer’s wife, and what happens afterwards.
JF
by Barrie, J. M.
The Darling Children, Wendy, John and Michael travel to Neverland with Peter Pan and the fairy Tinkerbell where they encounter the Lost Boys, Captain Hook and Mr. Smee.
E
by Potter, Beatrix
Peter Rabbit rescues the family of Flopsy and Benjamin Bunny, and starts a battle between two disagreeable characters, Mr. Tod, a fox, and Tommy Brock, a badger.
TNF
by Le Mair, H. Willebeek
H. Willebeek Le Mair illustrated and gathered together this collection of nursery rhymes, which includes well known favorites and some that may be unfamiliar to children today.
JF
by Porter, Eleanor Hodgson
Pollyanna brings sunshine and love to her Aunt Polly, a strict and sour spinster, by seeing the good in all situations.
T
by Burgess, Thornton
Join Old Mother West Wind and her gentle breezes in these imaginative and gentle stories of nature and animals.
JF
by Gruelle, Johnny
When the doll Raggedy Ann arrives at Marcella’s nursery she leads the other dolls in many adventures, while always trying to become “good”.
JF
by Terhune, Albert Payson
This is a collection of popular magazine stories about Lad, a courageous and dignified collie, who heroically saves the day each time there is trouble.
JF
by Lofting, Hugh
Having mastered the animal language with the help of his parrot Polynesia, Doctor Dolittle, the world’s greatest animal doctor, heads off to Africa to cure a terrible monkey epidemic.
T
by Bianco, Margery Williams
The Velveteen Rabbit learns that toys become real only when a child loves them.
JF
by Sandburg, Carl
These fanciful stories told by famed poet Carl Sandburg are set in an imaginary land that resembles the American Midwest and are influenced by nonsense verse and folktales.
JF
by Salten, Felix
Bambi, a deer born in a woodland thicket, learns about nature’s way, survival, and the joys and sorrows of life as he grows from fawn to prince of the forest.
JF
by Hawes, Charles Boardman
Philip is forced to become a pirate when buccaneers seize the dark frigate on which he is sailing in this seafaring adventure filled with bloody battles and rousing action.
TNF
by Milne, A.A.
Classic children’s poems written by A.A. Milne for his young son Christopher Robin.
JF
by Chrisman, Arthur Bowie
Shen is one character in this collection of original stories that are modeled after Chinese folklore and rich with wisdom and humor.
JF
by James, Will
Smoky is a wild horse running free on the plains, but then he is captured by humans, becomes a famous rodeo star, works on the range as a cowhorse, and finally retires.
JF
by Milne, A.A.
Eyore, Piglet, Owl, Tigger, Kanga and Roo and Winnie the Pooh, that silly old bear, first appear in these gentle stories for young children set in the Hundred Acre Woods.
JF
by Dixon, Franklin W.
Frank and Joe Hardy make an amazing discovery after a dying criminal reveals that his loot is in “the tower” in this first ever Hardy Boys mystery.
E
by Gag, Wanda
An old man and his wife decide to get a cat, but when the old man must choose between “hundreds, thousands, millions and billions and trillions of cats,” he takes all of them home.
JF
by Field, Rachel
Hitty is a very special doll who has experienced one hundred years of history as she travels over land and sea in the arms of one little girl after another.
JF
by Keene, Carolyn
Nancy Drew is challenged by a mystery surrounding a missing will and an old clock in the first Nancy Drew book ever written.
E
by Piper, Watty
The phrase “I think I can, I think I can” was coined in this story of a little train engine whose positive thinking made the impossible possible.