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Children's quizzes

Quiz: Which classic children’s book should you read next?

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Children's reading lists

14 classic audiobooks you need to listen to

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Reading lists

8 books that took the stage by storm

The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus

An irresistible new collectible hardcover in the successful series of Penguin Christmas Classics: the story of Santa Claus, from boy to jolly old fellow, as imagined by the creator of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. 
 
A magical Christmas story by the author of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus answers the enigmatic Christmas questions: Why does Santa travel via Reindeer? How does he fit through the chimney, and how does he deliver all those toys in one wintry night? 
 
First published in 1902, the tale begins as a wood nymph discovers a baby abandoned in a forest. Raised among mythical forest creatures, the child learns to outwit evil as he grows towards adulthood and must discover how to re-enter the human world, which leaves him determined to share gifts and spread love to his fellow man. 
 
L. Frank Baum creates a world full of charm and whimsy, delightfully imagined with a cast of memorable and loveable characters.

Frank L. Baum (1856-1919) was born in New York. He enjoyed making up stories, particularly for his own children. The Wizard of Oz, based on their favourite bedtime story about a land of Oz, was published in 1900 and it immediately became a huge international success. He wrote several sequels and numerous other kinds of books under a pseudonym.

The Wizard of Oz

This enchanting tale has captivated generations of children and adults alike.

Like Robin Hood, Alice or Winnie the Pooh, Baum's inventions - the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, the Tin Woodman, the Wizard and the Wicked Witch of the West, as well as Dorothy and her dog Toto - have become the mythological furniture of our children's minds, and of our own and our parents... Funny and inventive

The tales of Aesop and other fabulists...will never pass entirely away, but a welcome place remains and will easily be found for such stories as The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Baum created a truly extraordinary world, a real world…and filled it with amazing things

[It] has worked its way into the national psyche as a fable of eternal hope in which things are not always as fearsome as they seem

Baum dared to offer delight without instruction

L. Frank Baum was born in New York in 1856. The Wizard of Oz was based on a story he used to tell his own children. It was published in 1900 and became an international bestseller. The Wizard of Oz was made into a stage play in 1902 and a film starring Judy Garland in 1939. Baum wrote 12 more Oz novels and six short stories. After his death in 1919, his publishers carried on producing Oz stories and didn't stop until 1963!

'The road to the City of Emeralds is paved with yellow brick' 
 
When a tornado crashes through Kansas City, Dorothy and her dog Toto are whisked far away, over the rainbow, to a strange land called Oz. How will they ever get home? And what is at the end of the yellow brick road? Plucky Dorothy and Toto embark on a magical adventure to search for the Wizard of Oz and along the way encounter new friends: the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion. 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can take the quiz and find out how much you really know about The Wizard of Oz! 
 
Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

The Wizard of Oz (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)

This is the complete and unabridged story of The Wizard of Oz, in which Dorothy, together with her companions the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow and the cowardly Lion, makes her journey along the Yellow Brick Road in search of the wonderful wizard. 
 
Bringing together traditional handicraft with cutting-edge book design, the Penguin Threads series has already created a huge buzz among the art and book-collecting communities. This latest set features cover art by painter and illustrator Rachell Sumpter, who brings a unique, whimsical sensibility to the Threads. With vivid colours and ambitiously intricate details, these additions to our innovative series commissioned by award-winning creative director Paul Buckley are rich works of art to be cherished and shared.

L. Frank Baum lived from 1856 to 1919. He was born in Chittenango, New York State and grew up to be a bit of an entrepreneur. He worked in the theatre, in newspapers and magazines, he manufactured a patent axle grease called 'Baum's Castorine' and managed a general store called 'Baum's Bazaar. For a while he was a poultry farmer and his first book was about raising chickens! 
His ideas didn't earn him much money and he had to think again. He had always loved telling his children bedtime stories, so he turned to writing for children. Even in his early books, retellings of traditional stories, he introduced a little girl called Dorothy! His children loved his stories about a land called Oz and in 1900 The Wizard of Oz was published. It was an overnight success and soon became a stage musical extravaganza for which Baum wrote the lyrics. The wonderful 1939 film, starring Judy Garland, gave the story an even higher profile and has become almost as famous as the book. Baum became so identified with Oz that his other books had to be published under pseudonyms.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Join Dorothy and friends on their wonderful journey through the strange and mysterious land of Oz in this much loved-classic.

L Frank Baum was an author, poet, playwright, actor and filmmaker. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was his most famous work.

When Dorothy and her little dog Toto are caught in a tornado, they and their Kansas 
farmhouse are suddenly transported to Oz, where Munchkins live, monkeys fly and Wicked Witches rule. Desperate to return home, and with the Wicked Witch of the West on their trail, Dorothy and Toto - together with new friends the Tin Woodsman, Scarecrow and cowardly Lion - embark on a fantastic quest along the Yellow Brick Road in search of the Emerald City. There they hope to meet the legendary, all-powerful Wizard of Oz, who alone may hold the power to grant their every wish. 
 
Just as captivating as it was a hundred years ago, this is a story that all ages will love.

L. Frank Baum (1856-1919) was born in New York. He enjoyed making up stories, particularly for his own children. The Wizard of Oz, based on their favourite bedtime story about a land of Oz, was published in 1900 and it immediately became a huge international success. He wrote several sequels and numerous other kinds of books under a number of pseudonyms.

Download L. Frank Baum's timeless classic The Wizard of Oz, unabridged and read by the actor Kerry Shale. 
 
Dorothy thinks she is lost forever when a terrifying tornado crashes through Kansas and whisks her and her dog, Toto, far away to the magical land of Oz. To get home Dorothy must follow the yellow brick road to Emerald City and find the wonderfully mysterious Wizard of Oz. Together with her companions the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion whom she meets on the way, Dorothy embarks on a strange and enchanting adventure.

The Wizard Of Oz

Maureen Lipman and Patrick Barlow star in a full-cast dramatisation of the classic children's tale.

Maureen Lipman and Patrick Barlow star in a full-cast dramatisation of the classic children's tale. When Dorothy and her dog, Toto, are whisked away from Kansas by a cyclone, they arrive in the strange land of the Munchkins. Setting off on a magical journey, they are befriended by the Tinman, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion, all of whom join Dorothy's quest to find the wonderful Wizard of Oz. Barbara Barnes, Philip Franks, Patrick Barlow, Bradley Lavelle and Kerry Shale also star in this BBC Radio 4 dramatisation. The wonder and excitement of L Frank Baum's unforgettable story live on in this full-cast dramatisation, complete with evocative music and sound effects.

L. Frank Baum

Cornelia Funke

Follow the yellow brick road! 
Dorothy thinks she is lost forever when a terrifying tornado crashes through Kansas and whisks her and her dog, Toto, far away to the magical land of Oz. To get home Dorothy must follow the yellow brick road to the Emerald City and find the wonderfully mysterious Wizard of Oz. Together with her companions the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion whom she meets on the way, Dorothy embarks on a strange and enchanting adventure.

L. Frank Baum

The Wizard of Oz

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