Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

When Elizabeth Bennet first meets eligible bachelor Fitzwilliam Darcy, she thinks him arrogant and conceited; he is indifferent to her good looks and lively mind. As the story develops, both are forced to re-evaluate their first impressions as they learn more about each other.

Themes: love, friendship, 1800s society and social norms

Animal Farm by George Orwell

When the downtrodden animals of Manor Farm overthrow their master Mr Jones and take over the farm themselves, they imagine it is the beginning of a life of freedom and equality. But gradually a cunning, ruthless elite among them, masterminded by the pigs Napoleon and Snowball, starts to take control.

Themes: politics, class, communism, animals

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

A plane crashes on a desert island. The only survivors are a group of schoolboys. By day, they discover fantastic wildlife and dazzling beaches, learning to survive; at night, they are haunted by nightmares of a primitive beast. Their situation rapidly devolves into a savage, murderous hunt.

Themes: dystopia, morality, social order

A plane crashes on a desert island. The only survivors are a group of schoolboys. By day, they discover fantastic wildlife and dazzling beaches, learning to survive; at night, they are haunted by nightmares of a primitive beast. Their situation rapidly devolves into a savage, murderous hunt.

Themes: dystopia, morality, social order

Tom’s Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce

When Tom is sent to stay at his aunt and uncle's home for the summer, he resigns himself to endless weeks of boredom. However, one night he hears the clock chime thirteen, and when he goes to investigate, he finds a mysterious garden has appeared behind the house...

Themes: magic, supernatural, time-slip, family

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

Cassandra Mortmain lives with her eccentric family in a crumbling castle in the middle of nowhere. Their lives are turned upside down when the American heirs to the castle arrive and Cassandra finds herself falling in love for the first time - but the object of her affection seems more interested in her sister...

Themes: coming of age, love, family, relationships

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery

A pilot stranded in the desert awakes one morning to see the most extraordinary little fellow standing before him. "Please," asks the stranger, "draw me a sheep." And the pilot realises that when life's events are too difficult to understand, there is no choice but to succumb to their mysteries.

Themes: magic, loneliness, friendship, love, space

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

Four adventurous siblings – Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie – step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the White Witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change... and a great sacrifice.

Themes: family, magic, loss, adventure, good vs. evil

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Mary is pale, spoilt and quite contrary. But she is also horribly lonely. One day she hears about a garden in the grounds of her uncle’s Manor that has been kept locked and hidden for years. And when a friendly robin helps Mary find the key, she discovers the most magical place anyone could imagine.

Themes: friendship, nature, disability, social issues

Mary is pale, spoilt and quite contrary. But she is also horribly lonely. One day she hears about a garden in the grounds of her uncle’s Manor that has been kept locked and hidden for years. And when a friendly robin helps Mary find the key, she discovers the most magical place anyone could imagine.

Themes: friendship, nature, disability, social issues

Mary Poppins by P. L. Travers

When the East Wind blows Mary Poppins into the home of the Banks children, their lives go topsy-turvy and are changed forever. The children soon learn that their nanny, though stern, vain and usually cross, has a magical touch that makes her wonderful.

Themes: adventure, magic, family, 1910s London

Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome

The Walker children set sail on the Swallow and head for Wild Cat Island. There they camp under open skies, swim in clear water and go fishing for their dinner. But their days are disturbed by the Blackett sisters, the fierce Amazon pirates. The Swallows and Amazons decide to battle it out...

Themes: adventure, family, friendship, nature, sailing