Books you really enjoyed as a child and want to recommend to your kids but not sure if outdated

[wheresmysuntan]

Sorry for long-winded title. I am in a book group and often we chat about books we remember from our childhood and how we are looking forward to sharing with our own kids as they are now generally reaching the right ages. The ubiquitous Enid Blyton has come up with varying success. I had always looked forward to sharing the Lone Pine series by Malcolm Saville with my dd but am now not so sure. Does anyone have any experiences to share - good or bad.

Ive been reading a great poem book with my six year old -one I read with my Mum at a similar age. It's called "When We Were Young" by AA Milne (author of Winnie the Pooh). He loves the poems and has learned parts of some by heart. It has been great fun! I've also read some of the Dr Seuss books with him - "Horton Hatches the Egg" is one from my childhood - don't know if this is still in print....

my 11 year old dd just finished the mallory towers books. i had a bit of an 'erm' moment about enid blyton, but i loved them as a pre teen myself and she really enjoyed them too. I can't remember if they are classic blyton - as in sexist and too upper middle, and frankly i don't care either. she's been brought up well enough to question anything that might be a bit dubious. I'd rather she was reading those than the countless jacqueline wilson/books about boys and thongs she ploughs through.

we all loved the aa milne books madmazza - they're just beautifully classic

Narnia - read them recently and found them really dated. The Peter is so kingly stuff really grated. DS is only 15m so a long way away from them but will be disappointed if he doesn't read them.

I'd love to share the Chalet School series, but not sure if DS would appreciate them.

Well I failed with Malcolm Saville, all the ponyish ones and Lewis Caroll. The (qualified) successes have been Winnie the Pooh, the Narnia stories (particularly the Horse and His Boy) and also the Five Children and It.

DD1 (9) told me her favourite six books in the world yesterday. Two of them were old favourites of mine - Family from One End Street and Ballet Shoes. She also loves Malory Towers, Trebizon, Chalet School and even Angela Brazil. Not so keen yet on my historical old faves like Henry Treece and Rosemary Sutcliff and finds Narnia a bit dull. She quite liked The Hobbit.
What I tend to do if I think she might like book but doesn't pick it up spontaneously is read the first chapter out loud to her. She often goes on and reads the rest to herself, or we take turns reading chapters. I reckon if a modern child can find Angela Brazil amusing than anything goes.

The ogre downstairs..great.About a mother with 2 sons and a daughter who marries a man with 2 sons and they all have to get used to living together.Each set of kids is given a chemistry swt and they are MAGIC!I love the book even now.Also the Professor Brainstorm Books and Mrs Pepperpot!Ahhh the memories.

I was really excited when I found The Family from One End Street in a book-shop. I couldn't wait to read it to my DSs, but they said it was really boring, and we only read the first chapter. They like Pippi Longstocking and The Mrs Pepperpot stories, which are quite dated.

The Laura Ingalls Wilder books terrified them, so I will try again when they are older.

Well I loved:-

The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge
All Narnia
The Hobbit
The Jill pony books by Ruby Ferguson
The Romsey Marshes series of pony stories by (?)Monica Edwards
Suzannah and the Mounties by - cant remember
Teh Bobsey Twins
Ellery Queen
TBH quite a lot of Enid Blyton - all Secret Seven, all Famous Five, all The Island (etc) of Adventure series, The Faraway Tree
Chalet School
Jennings

I will try ot inflict them all on DCs (as well as contemporary stuff, am not completely stuck in the past). DCs are only 5 and 1 and a half so none of the above are likely to be read any time soon.

An enid blyton one. The enchated forest-i think it was forest-definatley enchated something.

There were books about a school aswell...ahh gosh, that is going to annoy me if i can't think of that before bed.....argh!

Judy Blume books...lol..bless, learnt lots from them...lol

Just seen it below...Malory Towers.Brings back memories..awww

Enchanted even!

fairies - twins at st clares..?

x post - you beat me to it!

The Wickedest Witch in the World (perhaps not sophisticated enough now?)

The Enchanted Wood, Idobelieveinfairies (love your name). My DS will definitely be getting that one.

I found My Naughty Little Sister on the Book people and bought the set to read to my DS1.

I hadn't realised it was so dated and that she wasn't really naughty at all - just a normal 4 year old or whatever she was supposed to be!

Also, have just finished reading Five Children and It to DS1 which is very old fashioned - I had to keep explaining bits to him but he enjoyed anyway

Quattro - not good old enid blyton then

My faves were..

Enid Blyton (famous 5, secret 7, naughtiest girl in the school, Enchanted Wood, Wishing chair etc)

Adventures of little wooden horse (unsure author)

Sweet Valley High

The little witch

All Roald Dahyl

Jellybeans,The little Wooden Horse. I adored that book and so would my DC. Does anyone else know the author?

Awen well y'know how it is ...

I am waiting for ds1 to be old enough for me to read the Water Babies to him - if he doesn't like it I shall probably jump off a bridge or something