the most overrated childrens books

[swottybetty]

two thomas tank books have somehow made their way into our house. pre-kids i really had no idea just how shite they are. even the bloody drawings are awful. why does my otherwise discerning dd love them so much?

and that feckin beatrix potter? were there no other kids books published at the time thus they achieved popularity simply by existing? seeing as there are loads and loads of kids books now, surely publishers can just write BP off as a unseemly blot on the otherwise wonderful world of childrens books

Nice to see I'm not the only one who can't stand Miffy and the New Baby.Is it an awful translation? It's dire - doesn't scan, terrible forced rhymes, torture to read.

Julia Donaldson good tho esp Room on the Broom and The Magic Paintbrush.

Elmer and the Obvious Moral Ending
Bloody Bear Hunt
hairy maclary
hamish the highland cow

Hairy MacLary? Surely not?? " Slinky Malinky was down in the reeds...."

We love Bear Hunt - we've had so much fun with it, and DS loves going on real bear hunts around the house and garden and out on dog walks. I don't like Bear in a Cave, though - can't get into the rhythm of it at all and DS only ever wants to look at the page with the train. Even the CD of Michael Rosen reading it sounds awkward and stilted.

I agree about the Thomas books - there are basically only two stories (train ignores sage advice and comes off rails/falls off bridge/hurtles to doom and/or train is horrible to another train and gets its comeuppance). The original ones are marginally better than the endless flood of dumbed-down new adaptations that are constantly being spewed out, though.

Slinky Malinki and Hairy McLairy are the all-time favourites around here. Scarface Claw is practically a deity in DS's eyes.

There are very few books that I actually enjoy reading to my 5 year old - but I do like Shirley Hughes (Dogger, Alfie gets in first), Hairy McClairy, Harry and the Dinosaurs books and Thomas. But it's not really about what I like - it's what he likes! I get annoyed when he forces me to read books to him at bedtime that aren't stories.

I agree 100% about the cutesy, Guess How much I love you type books - yuk! And we were given a Tweenies book years ago which is awful - but then it is my all-time favourite worst-ever Kids TV show.

My eldest is nearly 10 and we have done all the Harry Potters which I thought were great. We're now onto the Alex Riders - we read some to him a bedtime then he reads some himself.

We love Bear Hunt -- DS enjoys talking about all the things in the pictures and making the noises. And gasping at the bear.

Guess How Much I Love You is so dull and half-arsed, it beggars belief.

Also can't stand Mr Men and Little Miss (wtf?)!

Anything with a princess and/or fairies in it - especially bad if the cover is pink or is sparkly.
TV tie ins especially ITNG
Thats not my.. books we have to read them twice - once properly, second time to find the mouse
Really looking forward to the day that dd's can read by themselves - they can read the crap and I'll read the good stuff

Elmer books - I like the pictures, but the text reads so clunkily.

Anything without words, because I really can't be arsed to make up a story (bought Rosie's Walk while feeling nostalgic, then quietly stuck it in the charity shop bag six months later)

Anything with speech bubbles: I can't get into the flow of reading them. Meg and Mog are the worst offenders (though again, I like the pics).

I have always hated Owl Babies

Bugger the bedtime stories, we should read threads from Mumsnet out loud til the children either laugh or die of boredom. I've had the time of my life reading this thread, and have laughed til the tears have trickled down my face..

to add my 2p worth, I'm surprised at which books I loved as a child but find them like a custodial sentence to read:
Naughty Little Sister books - Dorothy Edwards (dd loves them)
Thomas the TE (banned)
Winnie the Pooh (haven't heard the Alan Bennett spin on it yet, may be converted)
Charlie and Lola (call the Social on that lot, not a parent in sight)
Dr Seuss (wtf)

I've found the only way round this lot is to buy audio books which are used on headphones. Gruffalo acceptable (just) - loved the Christmas animation. Hungry Caterpillar OK but I think it encourages greed.
Some I've loved just for the retro quality of them (when men were men etc) - The Tiger Who Came to Tea/Mog etc. I'm a child of the seventies!

Anything Thomas - boring and moralistic, gah
Mr Men - yaaawwwnn
Guess How Much I Love You - sweet I suppose, but meh, call that a punchline?

And No Matter What, it's lovely and I like the pics but the final starlight bit f*cking annoys me. Yes stars die and their light goes on after that, but not forever! Eventually the light from the dead star will also stop coming and then you will see the star go out. This is the kind of technical space science detail that matters to DS and it annoys me every time.

Dr Seuss varies - some of the longer ones get very tiresome, but Green Eggs and Ham and the Sneetches book (with the stories about the empty pants and Too Many Daves) are classics.

Oh and I'm amazed Angelina Ballerina hasn't appeared on this thread - luckily not something we have, but I've seen them elsewhere and read some and I was just appalled. Awful, depressing, antifeminist claptrap.

DD was given a BBC compliation with Thomas, Postman Pat, Bob Builder etc. It is the worst pile of shit I have ever encountered. BBC should truly be embarassed for publishing it or allowing it to be published. It is sSo poorly written I can't bear to read it let alone aloud - DD is always dragging it out but now I have hidden it. Feels wrong to throw away a book, but I couldn't expect anyone else to read it so will recycle it this weekend.

Mr/Miss Men - boo hoo - I don't like them much either. Just horrible to read aloud.

Little Princess - we have one called "I want My Mummy" - read this to encourage your daughter to act like a spoilt brat. dreadful stuff.

LOVE LOVE LOVE Dr Seuss, Julia Donaldson, the Mr Pusskins books, Nick Sharratt is usually OK. Rhymes are interesting to read & keep you focused.

We do a great family reading of ROOM ON THE BROOM, where Papa narrates & DD & I do all the voices (by heart). "Maybe this once I'll have witch without chips" - how can you not enjoy that rolling off your tounge?

We have a good home library but love our trips to local library too - where DD gets out Mr Men books (amound others) & I hide them enroute to desk.

DD is really into Goldilocks at the moment so might be time to investigate some more of the old traditional stories.

other horrors - I agree Miffy is yukky (I feel physically uncomfortable being near the book & rhymes are ddreadful), Guess How Much I love you seems to be pointless & too short & not interesting at all, agree with comment on Elmer being clunky to read.

I try to avoid TV ties-ins though we have been given a few Dora books which DD loves & they are bearable.

Fifi Flowertots book also very poorly written. I say written but I think they simply take random lines from script and don't bother to even try & get a flow or sense into the story (as per Thomas/Pat/Bob books).

I once rewarded DS for good behaviour (aged 2 or so) by letting him choose a book in M&S - he set his heart on a big Thomas one that also made noises. It was the bane of our lives - we were always trying to hide the bloody thing. Soooooo boring and preachy and the sounds were maddening - the worst was the (American???) fat controller saying "Being useful can be fun - and it doesn't hurt a bit!" Arrrrggghhh! (why would it hurt anyway?)

I think it may have finally, erm, failed to make it through our house move. Yippppeeee!

I love most of the books on here! Julia Donaldson books are such fun to read, and how can anyone not like it when Tigger has haycorns for breakfast?? DD2 tends to love anything with poo in it, so I'm fed up with The Little Mole who knew etc etc etc. Have just discovered the Roddy Doyle kids books - was actually laughing out loud at the giggler treatment

Only ones I hate are the princess fairy books - boke!

Rainbow bloody fairies. Have read the whole series to dd three times since Christmas and am facing the prospect of starting again tonight. Mind you, not sure they could be described as "over-rated", that would suggest someone rated them in the first place.

Hate Mr Men, tedious beyond belief.

Am amazed how many people don't like Dr Seuss. I think they are wonderful.

Like GOABH, Peace at Last, Dr Suess and Julia Donaldson books ...

However, I think there is a special place in hell for the 'author' of the bloody Princess Poppy books ... they are just dire!! Not to mention the excretable Maisy tripe ...

Anyone else enjoy those great books by Giles Andreas (I think) - Rumble in the Jungle, Giraffes Can't Dance, Commotion in the Ocean - they are my 2.5 yo DS's favourite books ..

I really loathe Mr Men - SO tedious to read

Also loathe those dreadful "Thats not my..." bad enough the first time, but how many times will they rehash the same er...'plot' for want of a better word!?

I liked the original 'Duck in Truck' but find the sequels a bit cringe-worthy as duck is so blundery and irritating.

I think the "Hairy McClary" illistrations are overrated, but the poems are great so that makes up for it.

Also dislike 'The Rainbow Fish' and 'Elmer' as they are so trite (yet both nicely illustrated -what a waste).

Someone said that 'My Naughty little sister" is hard to read. I haven't tried reading it but we have a gorgeous Audio book of one of the them which we all love, so maybe try that? Its on bookdepository.

Hate, hate, HATE any Disney book featuring stills from the folm and a terrible retelling of the story. We were once given one and it was quickly banished from the house. They are so long and so badly writen. What a way to ruin a good movie!

Also hate books that make noises.

Definitely Thomas the Tank Engine books. Deadly dull.

I'm a huge book fan - both kids and adults - but there are some VERY over-rated kids books in my opinion:

Beatrix Potter - I gave these to charity, I found them boring as a child and worse as an adult.

Thomas the Tank - rubbish, how did it ever get the status it has

Mr Men - stories not so bad but the language style, grammar etc is appalling.

Most things given in your bookstart packs are rubbish quality & dull.

I'm sure there are far more but those are my main hates.

I'm going to stick up for Bear Hunt though - it took me a while to like it but my 3yr old absolutely adores it and we now go on park hunts/school hunts/shop hunts/home hunts etc etc which keep him occupied on walks!

I can tolerate almost anything (even Mr Men) but I'm already sick of Thomas books.

We love bear hunt and Dr Suess.