From its first publication in 1719, 'Robinson Crusoe' has been printed in over 700 editions. It has inspired almost every conceivable kind of imitation and variation, and been the subject of plays, opera, cartoons, and computer games. The character of Crusoe has entered the consciousness of each suceeding generation as readers add their own interpretation to the adventures so thrillingly 'recorded' by Defoe. Praised by iminent figures such as Coleridge, Rousseau and Wordsworth, this perennially popular book was cited by Karl Marx in 'Das Kapital' to illustrate economic theory. However, it is readers of all ages over the last 280 years who have given 'Robinson Crusoe' its abiding position as a classic tale of adventure. 272pp. Paperback.

The Brothers Grimm rediscovered a host of fairy tales, telling of princes and princesses in their castles, witches in their towers and forests, of giants and dwarfs, of fabulous animals and dark deeds. This selection of their folk tales was made and translated by Lucy Crane, and includes firm favourites such as 'Rapunzel', 'The Goose Girl', 'Sleeping Beauty', 'Hansel and Gretel' and 'Snow White'. With Walter Crane's charming line drawings. 288pp. Paperback.

When Jerry, Jimmy and Cathy discover a tunnel that leads to a castle, they pretend that it is enchanted. But when they discover a Sleeping Princess at the centre of a maze, astonishing things begin to happen. Amongst a horde of jewels they discover a ring that grants wishes. But wishes granted are not always wishes wanted, so the children find themselves grappling with invisibility, dinosaurs, a ghost and the fearsome Ugli-Wuglies before it is all resolved. 240pp. Paperback with illus.

These witty stories were originally told by Rudyard Kipling to his own children. In them he gives fanciful accounts of how and why things came to be as they are. Generations of children have delighted to learn how the Leopard got his spots, how the Elephant's Child on the banks of the great grey-green Limpopo acquired his trunk with the help of the Crocodile, and the beginning of the Armadillos. 144pp. Paperback.

Traditional rhymes and stories have been collected under the wing of Mother Goose for centuries and this collection of favourite nursery rhymes has been put together by the famous illustrator Arthur Rackham. It is a wonderful collection of old favourites from "Jack and Jill, Baa, Baa, Black Sheep and Who Killed Cock Robin? to comic alphabets and the fearful fate of Anthony Rowley. 128pp. Paperback.

In this selection of plays by the master folklorist Andrew Lang, the reader is taken into the romantic world of the gallant Knights of the Round Table and their courageous and chivalrous deeds, fair maidens, castles steeped in history, the quest for the Holy Grail, and the tragic love of King Arthur and Sir Lancelot for Guinevere, and Tristan for Iseult. 144pp. Paperback.

When 15 year-old orphan John Trenchard is banished by his Aunt Jane, he goes to live at the local inn with the mysterious Elzevir Block, whose son has been killed by Customs Officers. Unofficially adopted by Block, John comes to learn the reasons for the noises in the graveyard at night, of ‘Blackbeard’ Mohune’s lost treasure and Elzevir Block’s secret. This dashing tale of eighteenth-century Dorset smugglers will be enjoyed by all who love stories of derring-do written in the tradition of Treasure Island. 240pp. Paperback.

Set in Scotland in 1751, Kidnapped remains one of the most exciting adventure stories ever written. It tells of how young David Balfour, orphaned, and betrayed by his uncle Ebenezer who should have been his guardian, falls in with Alan Breck, the unscrupulous but heroic champion of the Jacobite Cause. Shipwreck, murder and escape through the Highlands are only a few of the ingredients of this wonderful book. 240pp. Paperback.

Continues the story of the high-spirited and rebellious American girl, Katy Carr, and her family, who first appeared in What Katy Did. What Katy Did at School is a compelling tale of the intrigues of life at the New England girls' boarding school which Katy attends. Her trials, adventures and scrapes are all interwoven with a sense of fun and gently ironic good humour. What Katy Did Next describes a tour by Katy in Europe as she evolves from the child of earlier books into a spirited young woman, and brings to a satisfying close this delightful trilogy. 352pp. Paperback.

When Princess Irene and her nursemaid stay out too late one night and are chased home by goblins, a young miner boy called Curdie comes to their rescue. So begins a fantastic adventure in which Irene and Curdie must try to stop a goblin invasion, helped by Irene's mysterious great-great-grandmother. This much-loved tale was a personal favourite of C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien. This edition includes the sequel, The Princess and Curdie. B/w illus. Wordsworth paperback, 331pp.