A Child’s Delight

Any parent dismayed by the rows of Goosebumps books dominating the children’s sections of most bookstores, any grandparent concerned about the Nintendo induced glaze over a grandchild’s eyes, and any loving adult wishing a child to know good books will celebrate Noel Perrin’s latest collection of essays. His earlier guide to neglected adult literature, A Reader’s Delight, achieved the status of a classic, and now he has written a companion volume dedicated to children’s fiction. Perrin’s wit and engaging prose are, as always, in constant evidence, but it is his intuitive grasp of what makes a story work for children that renders this new book an essential resource for any home where books are valued.

Limiting his scope to those works already overlooked or in danger of slipping from view, Perrin leads us through a wide spectrum of fiction, ranging from stories for the very youngest listeners to nuanced novels for the adolescent reader. There is something here for every child: dolls and their houses; animals of varied talents and personalities; travels through time and space; romances promised, sometimes failed, sometimes realized; castles and battling warriors; magic of familiar as well as alien worlds; historical bits woven into textured stories. Richard Adams, Leslie Brooke, Arthur Conan Doyle, Wanda Gag, Rumer Godden, Anne Lindbergh, Hugh Lofting, Jean Merrill, Ernest Thompson Seton, Margery Sharp, Dodie Smith, and others know what it feels like to be a kid in an adult world. As does Noel Perrin – and so will the readers of A Child’s Delight.