The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien - This is a wonderful introductory work to the genre of childrens fantasy books. And it is also an engrossing novel for adults to read - with the added bonus of being able to move on to the Lord of the Rings books when done.

 

A Little About the History of the Genre of Childrens Fantasy books

Five Children and It (Puffin Classics - the Essential Collection) The genre of Child Fantasy is generally credited with being created by Edith Nesbit who wrote about forty books for children in the late 19th early 20th Century. She also collaborated on twenty more. Some of hier works have been adapted into movies and Television shows and some of her more popular works include Five Children and It where five children meet a sand fairy who is compelled to grant them one wish every day.

Some of her other Childrens Fantasy books include:

• The Story of the Treasure Seekers (1898)
• The Wouldbegoods (1899)
• The Phoenix and the Carpet (1904)
• The New Treasure Seekers (1904)
• The Story of the Amulet (1905)
• Edith Nesbit Books at Amazon.com

Many of her books are now in the public domain which means they can be had free. I have Five Children and It as a free download or as a free read in your web browser novel

• Download zip file of the novel in .txt format
• Read the novel right now in your web browser (Nothing to download)

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A Boy Wizard in Children's Fantasy

Ursula K. LeGuin Write a series of books entitled "The Earthsea Trilogy" about a boy with special powers who goes off to wizard school. This sounds very much like the theme of Harry Potter but these books are very different. They take place in another time and land called Earthsea and they are a spectaculary beautiful series of award winning books. If your child likes Harry Potter he or she will surely like these books. They were written in the 60's but are still fresh and wonderful. The First book in the series: A Wizard of Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 1)

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A Wrinkle in Time - A wonderful book that is a mix of fantasy, science fiction, about three children who must rescue their father. This is an award winning childrens book.

 

 

Where the Wild Things Are

Amazon.com Review
Where the Wild Things Are is one of those truly rare books that can be enjoyed equally by a child and a grown-up. If you disagree, then it's been too long since you've attended a wild rumpus. Max dons his wolf suit in pursuit of some mischief and gets sent to bed without supper. Fortuitously, a forest grows in his room, allowing his wild rampage to continue unimpaired. Sendak's color illustrations (perhaps his finest) are beautiful, and each turn of the page brings the discovery of a new wonder.

The wild things--with their mismatched parts and giant eyes--manage somehow to be scary-looking without ever really being scary; at times they're downright hilarious. Sendak's defiantly run-on sentences--one of his trademarks--lend the perfect touch of stream of consciousness to the tale, which floats between the land of dreams and a child's imagination.

Dragon Books for Children

Dealing with Dragons: The Enchanted Forest Chronicles, Book One

 

Dragonsong By Anne McCaffrey The First book in the Harper Hall Trilogy of books. McCaffrey is also the author of the very famous DragonRiders of Pern Series which is aimed at an older audience.

 

Another Very Popular series of Childrens Fantasy Books is the Redwall Series by Brian Jacques

Redwall (Redwall, Book 1) This is the first book in the series and there are many books!

Brian Jacques books At Amazon.com ------- Or
An Amazon Guide to Redwall, listed in recommended reading order

 

For a younger age, the Artemis Fowl Series is very good by Eoin Colfer.

The Pendragon Adventure by D.J.Machale are the adventures of Bobby Pendragon. Young adult series of books.

The Prydian Chronicles is a series of five books by Lloyd Alexander. These books are about a young hero named Taran. These books are considered classic children fantasy and The High King was awarded a Newbury Medal and The Black Cauldron a Newbury honor.

Of Course there is the Harry Potter phenomenon. You are no doubt familiar with Harry and there is too much material for me to list but there is a whole store devoted to Harry Potter at Amazon.com
The Harry Potter Store

The Children's Bookstore at Amazon.com