Fascinating trivia about classic children’s books and their authors
Below we’ve compiled some of our favourite facts about classic children’s literature. For more fascinating insight into the history of children’s books, we recommend the excellent A History of Children’s Books in 100 Books (British Library).
Hans Christian Andersen once stayed at Dickens’s house for five weeks; when he eventually left, Dickens wrote on the mirror in the guestroom: ‘Hans Andersen slept in this room for five weeks — which seemed to the family AGES!’
Contrary to popular belief, the girls’ name Wendy existed before J. M. Barrie wrote Peter Pan.
In 2006, the writer of the Babar the Elephant books released a book called Babar’s Yoga for Elephants. It has sold 100,000 copies.