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Children’s
The classic boys’ island adventure, Lord of
the Flies, by William Golding, has been made into two films;
one in the sixties and the other in the nineties. Critics have not
favored their adaptations: the challenge is yours. The adult version
is The Beach by Alex Garland: the film adaptation starred
Leonardo diCaprio, but this Hollywood version has a different ending
to the book.
The master of the classic children’s story is Roald Dahl.
Among his collection are The Twits, Matilda, and The BFG,
each of which is listed in the top 100 books. The majestic, mouth-watering
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is wrapped in gold.
A story that competes with the more contemporary children’s
narratives is Lewis Carroll’s fantastical tale, Alice’s
Adventure in Wonderland. From one land to another, Robert
Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island delivers the character
Long John Silver from folklore to folk legend. The adolescent classic
summer story by Arthur Ransome is Swallows and Amazons,
a story of river adventure. Anne of Green Gables, by L.M. Montgomery,
recounts the adventures of an adolescent girl and her peer group.
This is also seen in The Story of Tracy Beaker, Vicky Angel, and
Girls in Love, by Jacqueline Wilson, who recently became the libraries
‘most borrowed author’, replacing Catherine Cookson.
The first four books from the hugely popular Harry Potter series,
by J.K. Rowling, have made it into the top 25 books in the BBC
poll, the first two of which have been made into films. Although
the films are close to the text, they lack the full story because
of the novels’ complex and dense storylines.
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