Here are some of the very best short stories written for children over the last 250 years. Compiled by the well-known children's writer and Carnegie Medalist, Jan Mark, this is the first anthology to trace how children's short stories evolved, ranging from the publication of Sarah Fielding's "The Governess" in 1749, to Nadia Wheatley's "Convict Box" in 1992.

Anyone who enjoys children's fiction, whether young or old, will find something to savor in The Oxford Book of Children's Stories. Fairy tales, ghost stories, adventures and escapades in and out of school, every genre is included here, peopled by good children and bad, strict parents and kindly aunts, kings and queens, giants and enchanters. Mark includes work by 44 different authors, including well-known figures such as Louisa May Alcott, Christina Rossetti, Rudyard Kipling, Max Beerbohm, and Carl Sandburg, leading modern writers such as Philippa Pearce, Richard Kennedy, Nadia Wheatley, and Jan Mark herself--plus many long-forgotten tales that are still highly entertaining today.

Chronologically arranged, the anthology also serves as an introduction to the historical development of the children's short story, providing insights into the way perceptions of childhood and contemporary attitudes have influenced writers of different periods. But as Jan Mark's discriminating selection demonstrates, the ingredients of a good children's story--as well as the fictional tastes of children themselves--have remained remarkably constant, despite changes in style and outlook. This is a collection to divert and surprise: an ideal survey of the children's short story for parents, professionals--and especially for the children themselves.