And the Winner Is...

Charlotte's Web by E. B. White! That would be the best children's book of all time. Was there ever any doubt? Okay, I'll admit I put it at #2 myself, but I stand corrected: some 366 librarians, booksellers, writers, teachers, students, and parents can't be wrong!

I am referring, of course, to Betsy Bird's marvelous poll over at her blog, Fuse #8 (School Library Journal). In case you missed it, Betsy has been posting a countdown of the Top 100 middle grade novels for lo, these many weeks. Each post is charming, intelligent, and full of fun facts and links. Here's the link to the full list, which is handily linked to the individual book posts. All I can say is that I'm going to be going into poll withdrawal over my breakfast cereal for the next week or so... But you can still catch up on the whole thing!

Update: I was asked in the Comments which book was my Number 1, so here are the ten books I submitted, with their ranking in the final poll results at Fuse #8 in parentheses afterwards: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (19), Charlotte's Web (1), Maniac Magee (17), The King of Attolia (N/A), Harriet the Spy (16), Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (3), The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (4), A Wrinkle in Time (2), The Secret Garden (8), and Little House in the Big Woods (23). Not too bad!

And the ones I missed? From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (5), Holes (6), The Giver (7), Anne of Green Gables (9), and The Phantom Tollbooth (10). The one on my own list that I knew might not make it (and didn't) is The King of Attolia. I will mention that I tend to think of The Giver as a YA book. My reasoning for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory outranking Charlotte's Web was influenced in part by my fourth grade student who said, "This is boring," of Charlotte's Web, but was entranced by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Much as I love the books in the Top 100, I suspect today's kids, left to their own devices, would make a slightly different list. For example, it would include Diary of a Wimpy Kid. However, the final list is a great resource and represents some very good taste in kidlit!

For my own list of 50 great books from the last century and my annotated Top 10 for the new millenium, see this post.

Update #2: Okay, here's something fun to ask yourself--how many of the books on this Top 100 list have you read? (I got this idea from MotherReader.) I tallied them up today and discovered that I have read 89 for sure. There are 7 I know I haven't read and 4 I think I might have read years ago, but can't quite remember. What about you? Let us know in the comments!

And So It Begins!

I woke up grumpy this morning and was saved by the realization that Betsy Bird of Fuse #8 has started her countdown of the Top 100 Children's Novels, the results of her poll regarding the best middle grade fiction. Bliss, bliss, joy!

I should point out that Bird gives quotes, commentary, history, and links for each title, so it's fascinating stuff, like opening a mysterious box of treasures (or a portal, or a time capsule: pick your adventurous MG analogy!). Please visit Betsy's blog and follow the evolution as she counts up to #1. It's better than breakfast cereal, trust me.

And even though the following is about a picture book, this seems like a good time for me to share a children's book moment. Yesterday I went to the home of a 6-year-old Latina child being treated for cancer and offered her a choice of picture book readalouds by way of starting class. When her eyes fell on Esphyr Slobodkina's Caps for Sale, her whole face lit up. She insisted on showing her mother that I had brought the book. "Te acuerdas, Mami?" Remember, Mom? Then she informed me, "There are monkeys!" A key fact, to be sure.

As I read her the book, she leaned forward, glowing with anticipation. When the peddler sat down beneath the tree to rest, she said again, "There are monkeys in the tree." (Like I said, key!). Of course, her joy brimmed over when the monkeys actually made their appearance.

She was a little less sure about joining me in acting out the fist shaking and foot stomping, but she loved making the monkey sound.

When the book ended, she sat back, her day made complete by the addition of monkeys. My efforts to teach her to count by tens seemed paltry at best after the glory that was Caps for Sale.

And that, my friends, is what children's books are all about.