Children’s books can inspire a lifelong love of reading – from bedtime stories to young adult novels, these books reflect real-life experiences, spark imaginations, and make young readers feel less alone. One author who knows that better than most is Dame Jacqueline Wilson.
To mark Penguin’s 90th birthday, the beloved author shares the impact of reading on her own life, and the children’s book that influenced her the most. Plus, we look through our archives to create a list of the 13 most significant Penguin books that shaped us into a nation of readers (you can jump to the list by clicking here).
Dame Jacqueline Wilson on the impact of children's books
I was eight years old when I bought my first Puffin with my own pocket money (one shilling and sixpence!). I was attracted to its price, its format, and the beautiful bright green cover showing three girls in white party frocks. It was Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild, and it’s remained my favourite children’s book ever since.
I went on to read many Puffin titles throughout my childhood: the groundbreaking The Family From One End Street and The Children Who Lived in a Barn, and lovely classics like Little Women, The Secret Garden, Five Children and It and The Railway Children. They turned me into a rapacious reader and have certainly influenced my own children’s books.
My adult academic daughter still has her own beloved collection of Puffins on her bookshelves, and I nearly always choose a Puffin title if I’m giving a child a little holiday present or needing to fill up a Christmas stocking. They give lasting pleasure to generations of children. They act as entertainment, instruction, inspire imaginary adventures, encourage empathy – and are still priced at pocket money level. You can’t say that about any electronic device!
Let’s use this cleverly chosen reading list of Puffins and Ladybirds and create keen readers of the future.
My top pick: Where the The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
I think the most important Penguin title for children is Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. It’s a picture book only 338 words long – but each chosen with extreme care. The magical watercolour illustrations add such depth and delight.
The cover alone initially intrigued me. It shows a benign blue monster peacefully dozing on a grassy island. He has horns, uneven teeth, claws on his paws and large pink human feet. It seemed unlike any other children’s book I’d ever seen.
It’s strange to think that the Wild Things once caused controversy, with adults worrying that they’d terrify little children. Children themselves adored the book right from its 1963 publication.
I must have read this book countless times to small children, and we roar our terrible roars and gnash our terrible teeth and roll our terrible eyes and show our terrible claws, and each child is always enchanted and begs me to read it again – and again – and again.
We want to hear from you!
We’ve gathered some of our favourite books from across 90 years of Penguin’s publishing and now we need your help to create the ultimate ‘Reader’s choice’ list selected from The Penguin books that shaped us series.
Cast your vote via the poll at the bottom of the page for a chance to WIN the final bundle.
13 more Penguin books that shaped young readers
The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter (1901)
A year after Beatrix Potter self-published her story about a naughty rabbit called Peter, publisher Frederick Warne & Co (part of Penguin since 1983) saw the book’s potential and brought it to a wider audience, complete with Potter’s colour illustrations. The Tale of Peter Rabbit has since been passed down through generations: it has sold over 45 million copies and never gone out of print.
War on Land by James Holland (1940)
Against the backdrop of the Second World War, where children were being evacuated from Britain’s major cities to safer locations, editor Noel Carrington approached Penguin founder Allen Lane with an idea: affordable children’s books, made using lithography rather than the more costly letterpress method. And so, Puffin Picture Books was born. The first series of four books, each costing just a sixpence, explained how the war was playing out on land, at sea, and in the air, as well as the situation in the countryside, to a younger audience, helping them make sense of the changing world around them. These books were so popular that they were soon followed by fiction titles, cementing Puffin as a well-loved brand for children.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl (1964)
Part of Roald Dahl’s legacy is the iconic characters he introduced into our childhood: Matilda, the BFG, the Witches, and, of course, Willy Wonka. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory has been a bestseller since it was published and is frequently ranked among the most popular children’s books. It has spawned multiple movie adaptations, video games and real-life Wonka bars. This book, along with Dahl’s other work, has also become synonymous with the illustrator Quentin Blake. “His work means children’s books somehow,” children’s author David Walliams told BBC Newsnight in 2012.
The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton (1967)
Written when she was just 16, S. E. Hinton’s story of two rival gangs in Oklahoma is widely credited as being the first young adult novel. Unlike its contemporaries, the story focuses on teenagers' real experiences (including language used by young people at the time) and complex feelings, proving teenagers could handle this grittier material. In the decades since, this coming-of-age story has not lost its power: it is still widely taught in US high schools, has sold 15 million copies, inspired a 1983 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola and a 1990 TV series and, as of last year, a Broadway musical.
You Can Do the Cube by Patrick Bossert (1981)
During the height of the Rubik’s Cube craze, Penguin heard about a 13-year-old schoolboy in Richmond who had figured out how to solve the Cube and was selling his step-by-step diagrams to his schoolmates. Editor Tony Lacey went to visit the boy, Patrick Bossert, and asked him to draw him a set of instructions; upon receiving them, Lacey immediately offered him a contract with a significant advance. The book sold a million copies between July and December the year it was published, and The New York Times reported that neighbourhood children – and even adults – were flocking to Bossert's home for help with their Cubes.
The Jolly Postman by Janet and Allan Ahlberg (1986)
Janet and Allan Ahlberg’s most famous creation was inspired by their two-year-old daughter’s fascination with pulling letters out of their envelopes. The Jolly Postman, which combined Allan’s writing with Janet’s illustrations, took interactive books to a whole new level, as it contained envelopes and letters that young readers could pull out and read. It took the couple years to create, as they searched for the right paper and printing. “I risk being pretentious but just because a book is tiny and its readers are little doesn’t mean it can’t be perfect,” Allan Ahlberg told The Guardian in 2006. Their attention to detail paid off, and the book sold more than 6 million copies.
The Story of Tracy Beaker by Jacqueline Wilson (1991)
Jacqueline Wilson’s story of a young, feisty girl growing up in care has resonated with young readers since it was first published. In fact, The Story of Tracy Beaker was the most-borrowed library book in the UK during the 2000s, amassing over 16 million public library loans between 1999 and 2009 (followed by the adventures of a certain boy wizard). Tracy's story was later brought to life on a beloved CBBC show that ran from 2002 until 2005 and inspired a spin-off series.
Noughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman (2001)
Noughts & Crosses remains a groundbreaking work for explaining racism to young readers, told within the unique and devastating framework of a doomed, Romeo and Juliet-esque love story. It was an instant hit when it was first published, but it has stayed with readers ever since – including the rapper Stormzy, who said, “The Noughts & Crosses series are still my favourite books of all time and showed me just how amazing storytelling could be.” In recent years, the book has been adapted into a stage show by the Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as a BBC One series. Author Malorie Blackman released End Game, the final book in the six-part series, 20 years after the first novel’s release.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (2007)
Jeff Kinney’s creation went viral before it was even published as a book: the story started out as an online blog that gained almost 20 million views. So, when it was first published as a book in 2007, it’s unsurprising that it gained such a cult following. The series is still going strong, with the 20th book out this year, as readers continue to enjoy stories about the luckless but hilarious protagonist and his excruciating school dramas. Its graphic novel format also sets it apart, with its lined pages, illustrations and child-like font making it feel like a real diary, and appeal to young people who might not consider themselves readers.
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (2012)
John Green’s 2012 coming-of-age novel quickly developed a devout fanbase and stayed on The New York Times’ bestseller list for 78 consecutive weeks, later being named one of TIME’s 100 most influential YA books. The Fault in Our Stars follows two teenagers living with cancer who fall in love, with a poetic style of writing and deadpan humour that touched young people. The novel, which sold 20 million copies and was adapted to the screen in a 2014 movie starring Ansel Elgort and Shailene Woodley, deservedly brought Green’s previous novels into the mainstream, and caused a resurgence in heartbreaking yet life-affirming YA fiction.
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon (2015)
Nicola Yoon’s romance about a teenager with a rare autoimmune disease who falls in love with her charming neighbour captured young readers’ hearts when it was first published – and again in 2017 when it was made into a film starring Amandla Stenberg. It was particularly important to author Nicola Yoon that her heroine Maddy be biracial, due to the lack of diversity in YA publishing. “Maddy looks the way she does because my little girl looks like that. I didn’t want her to have the same experience I did, not being able to see herself in the book when she grew up,” she told The Cut. The novel was included in Penguin’s flagship Lit in Colour program in 2021 – an ongoing project with The Runnymede Trust that aims to make the English syllabus more diverse by increasing students' access to books by writers of colour.
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli (2015)
Despite its serious subject matter – a 16-year-old gay teenager is blackmailed to keep his sexuality a secret – Becky Albertailli’s debut novel is full of heart and humour, with an uplifting message that encourages self-acceptance. Following on from the book’s commercial and critical success, the story was made into the 2018 film Love, Simon, and inspired a 2020 spin-off series, Love, Victor. More recently, however, the book has attracted controversy in the United States as one of the titles banned from certain schools and libraries in Michigan, Utah, Florida and Texas. Penguin is one of the big five publishers that has filed a joint lawsuit to challenge such book bans.
Look Up! by Nathan Bryon and Dapo Adeola (2019)
Published at a time when only 4% of British children’s books contained a main character of colour, this story of a young, science-obsessive, confident Black girl called Rocket “redefined” the “mould of traditional picture book storytelling,” according to Waterstones children’s buyer Florentyna Martin. The story, which won two Waterstones book prizes in 2020, particularly resonated with young readers. “A lot of them, the minute they see Rocket and her big brother Jamal, especially young Black kids, their eyes light up,” author Nathan Bryon told The Guardian. The book is the first in a series and cemented co-creator Dapo Adeola’s position as an award-winning illustrator who champions representation in the arts.