Oh I love this so much! I shamefully own no Kate Greenaway! I love the inclusion of the Book of Common Prayer and the suggestions for poetry. I think the issue that the complexity of language in older books poses for many people could be avoided if they were just read poetry as children. Brilliant list!
You have a wonderful journey ahead of you! Greenaway is one of my grown-up discoveries. So true about the poetry. It's one of the places where language is at its most playful, even in serious poems, and to miss it (as with missing older books) is to miss a well of joy.
I agree! And even going younger, reading lots of and lots of Mother Goose and nursery collections prime the toddler and little child’s ear and imagination for the rhythm and mental landscape of poetry.
Yes indeed! My favorite Mother Goose books are those of Tasha Tudor, Greenaway, Ruth Sanderson, and Tomie dePaola (the unabridged edition has lots of rhymes that aren't included in most Mother Goose stories).
Very timely article, my daughter and I have been reading through several of the Anne Shirley series and we are moving on to Jane Austen next. These prerequisites will be helpful
Robin McKnight also uses fairytales and expands them into YA novels. Her “Beauty” retells the story if Beauty & the Beast while respecting the original. I suspect that someone at Disney read this version before writing the storyboards for the animated version, as both heroines are bookish and a bit feisty!
I love Jane Yolen! She wrote the text of The Sleeping Beauty that Ruth Sanderson illustrated, and an afterword to Sanderson's illustration of The Golden Key by George MacDonald. Do you perhaps mean Robin McKinley, not McKnight? A dear friend of mine really loves her book Sunshine. I'll have to look into Beauty!
Unsurprisingly, I love this. ❤️ The only ones I did not experience as a child were Kate Greenaway's illustrations (at least not more than tangentially) and the Book of Common Prayer. But I think all the others absolutely helped to shape me for enjoying Austen! I would add the Anne of Green Gables books because of their emphasis on good reading and imagination, and of course Anne's similarity to all Marianne Dashwood's best qualities.
I really wanted to include Anne but I couldn't make a strong enough connection on my own--your insight about Marianne is spot on! They would have been bosom friends. Greenaway and the BCP were adult discoveries for me too, and have deepened my appreciation for Austen.
Wonderful article, even if I'm late to the game in finding it. If I were preparing a child for Jane Austen, I would include The Secret Garden somewhere along the literary path. I don't have a strong reason for that beyond just a "feeling".
I realize they are different eras, but maybe there is a commonality in the high-spirited female lead and the complex initial interactions with their male counterparts?
I suppose one could argue that The Secret Garden is a better gateway to the moody moors of Wuthering Heights, but for me, I hold Jane and the Bronte sisters in the same revered space in my heart, and The Secret Garden was definitely where I developed my appetite for them all.
Thank you, Serena! Love that suggestion. I also wanted to include Frances Hodgson Burnett but lacked any connection beyond that feeling. Last time I read TSG I did feel like Burnett was nodding to Wuthering Heights...but I would place Austen as a gateway to the Brontes, whom she inspired!
I’m going to read the Alcott book soon so I was really glad to see it here. Also, thanks for the list of books at the end! I’m researching Jane Austen and they look like they’ll all be very helpful!
Oh my how delightful!! I love this idea in general and for Jane Austen in particular. And perfect for the 250th year of her birth! I love your sprinkling of quotes throughout and the connection to other British women writers whose fathers were also clergymen. I would never have thought of Streatfeild but you’re so right! I read every week with my friends’ 9 and 11yo daughters. They love the 1995 P&P. I’m definitely going to introduce them to Kate Greenaway to start.
That sounds like the most amazing time with your young friends! Robert Browning's Pied Piper that Greenaway illustrated is just right for that age. I was *this* close to adding Georgette Heyer to the list, but the way she writes--by the time young readers are up for that, I think they're ready for Austen.
Oh perfect, thank you! We’re reading aloud Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski. So fun! Georgette Heyer would be perfect for a teen version of this list. I think I would have loved Arabella and Frederica as a teen. I didn’t discover Heyer until after I read Austen.
Oh I love this so much! I shamefully own no Kate Greenaway! I love the inclusion of the Book of Common Prayer and the suggestions for poetry. I think the issue that the complexity of language in older books poses for many people could be avoided if they were just read poetry as children. Brilliant list!
You have a wonderful journey ahead of you! Greenaway is one of my grown-up discoveries. So true about the poetry. It's one of the places where language is at its most playful, even in serious poems, and to miss it (as with missing older books) is to miss a well of joy.
I agree! And even going younger, reading lots of and lots of Mother Goose and nursery collections prime the toddler and little child’s ear and imagination for the rhythm and mental landscape of poetry.
Yes indeed! My favorite Mother Goose books are those of Tasha Tudor, Greenaway, Ruth Sanderson, and Tomie dePaola (the unabridged edition has lots of rhymes that aren't included in most Mother Goose stories).
Very timely article, my daughter and I have been reading through several of the Anne Shirley series and we are moving on to Jane Austen next. These prerequisites will be helpful
Thanks Von! Godspeed on your reading, there's no going wrong with Anne Shirley!
Jane Yolen is an author and a poet whose works are either new editions of classic fairytales or are based on them.
Robin McKnight also uses fairytales and expands them into YA novels. Her “Beauty” retells the story if Beauty & the Beast while respecting the original. I suspect that someone at Disney read this version before writing the storyboards for the animated version, as both heroines are bookish and a bit feisty!
I love Jane Yolen! She wrote the text of The Sleeping Beauty that Ruth Sanderson illustrated, and an afterword to Sanderson's illustration of The Golden Key by George MacDonald. Do you perhaps mean Robin McKinley, not McKnight? A dear friend of mine really loves her book Sunshine. I'll have to look into Beauty!
Oops, my bad. I did mean Robin McKinley. Jane Yolen’s “Sleeping Beauty” was my “gateway drug” into her work. 😁
Love it! She has written SO many books, so many good things to explore!
Unsurprisingly, I love this. ❤️ The only ones I did not experience as a child were Kate Greenaway's illustrations (at least not more than tangentially) and the Book of Common Prayer. But I think all the others absolutely helped to shape me for enjoying Austen! I would add the Anne of Green Gables books because of their emphasis on good reading and imagination, and of course Anne's similarity to all Marianne Dashwood's best qualities.
I really wanted to include Anne but I couldn't make a strong enough connection on my own--your insight about Marianne is spot on! They would have been bosom friends. Greenaway and the BCP were adult discoveries for me too, and have deepened my appreciation for Austen.
Thanks for this great post! I am looking forward to reading more of Austen's works in the evenings. :)
A very sensible decision; I am glad to have persuaded you. ;)
Wonderful article, even if I'm late to the game in finding it. If I were preparing a child for Jane Austen, I would include The Secret Garden somewhere along the literary path. I don't have a strong reason for that beyond just a "feeling".
I realize they are different eras, but maybe there is a commonality in the high-spirited female lead and the complex initial interactions with their male counterparts?
I suppose one could argue that The Secret Garden is a better gateway to the moody moors of Wuthering Heights, but for me, I hold Jane and the Bronte sisters in the same revered space in my heart, and The Secret Garden was definitely where I developed my appetite for them all.
Thank you, Serena! Love that suggestion. I also wanted to include Frances Hodgson Burnett but lacked any connection beyond that feeling. Last time I read TSG I did feel like Burnett was nodding to Wuthering Heights...but I would place Austen as a gateway to the Brontes, whom she inspired!
Delightful article/post. Kate Greenaway is adorable.
Thank you! I heartily agree. Love her work.
What a lovely resource!!
Thank you! It was such fun to put together.
This was lovely. Thank you!
Great overview with good suggestions on how to get a running start on the classics. Thank you!
Thanks, Craig!
I’m going to read the Alcott book soon so I was really glad to see it here. Also, thanks for the list of books at the end! I’m researching Jane Austen and they look like they’ll all be very helpful!
Glad to help! I hope you enjoy An Old-Fashioned Girl, it's been one of my favorites since I started reading Alcott as a pre-teen!
Oh my how delightful!! I love this idea in general and for Jane Austen in particular. And perfect for the 250th year of her birth! I love your sprinkling of quotes throughout and the connection to other British women writers whose fathers were also clergymen. I would never have thought of Streatfeild but you’re so right! I read every week with my friends’ 9 and 11yo daughters. They love the 1995 P&P. I’m definitely going to introduce them to Kate Greenaway to start.
That sounds like the most amazing time with your young friends! Robert Browning's Pied Piper that Greenaway illustrated is just right for that age. I was *this* close to adding Georgette Heyer to the list, but the way she writes--by the time young readers are up for that, I think they're ready for Austen.
Oh perfect, thank you! We’re reading aloud Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski. So fun! Georgette Heyer would be perfect for a teen version of this list. I think I would have loved Arabella and Frederica as a teen. I didn’t discover Heyer until after I read Austen.
Oh, I love that one! And same here, I read Heyer after Austen, but I had friends who read Heyer in high school.