South Africa’s most popular children’s books revealed in new study
Cape Town – Baby brand My 1st Years has conducted a study to determine the world’s most popular children’s bedtime stories.
Researchers analysed Google data to reveal the number of searches for over 370 children’s books in 181 countries over the past year in order to discover every country’s most popular stories, as well as the most loved children’s books globally.
The study found that Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland was the world’s most popular bedtime story, topping the list in 57 countries. The story was first published in 1865 and has remained popular ever since, now having been translated into 174 languages. The story details the adventures of a young girl who falls through a rabbit hole where she meets many strange characters including the White Rabbit, the Hatter and the Queen of Hearts. Alice is a likeable character who is seen as loving and gentle and courteous to all.
In second place globally was Neil Gaiman’s dark fantasy children’s novella Coraline, which was published in 2002. Coraline Jones is a curious, intelligent and courageous young girl who moves – with her parents – into an old house that is divided into flats. Her new neighbours are interesting old people, one of whom is Mr Bobo. Mr Bobo warns Coraline against going through a door that leads to an uninhabited flat, but Coraline goes through anyway and finds herself in the “Other World” which is a duplicate of her own.
Coraline was the most popular story in 28 countries including Australia, New Zealand, Peru, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Canada and the US.
Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory came in as the world’s third most popular bedtime story. It is also the number one most popular bedtime story in South Africa. The story features Charlie Bucket, an 11-year-old boy from a poverty-stricken family who wins a tour to a world-famous chocolate factory in his town owned by the eccentric chocolatier Willy Wonka.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is one of 21 children’s books written by Dahl, who is one of the most popular authors in the world. Matilda, also written by Dahl, is South Africa’s second most popular bedtime story, with Alice in Wonderland coming in at third place.
South Africa’s fourth and fifth most popular bedtime stories are Winnie the Pooh by AA Milne and The Big Friendly Giant by Roald Dahl.
“For children of all ages, bedtime stories are often a prominent part of their bedtime routine,” said Gareth Chadwick, head of marketing at My 1st Years.
“Not only does the association of bedtime reading help to trigger relaxation that helps with sleep, but bedtime stories are also shown to aid language development, imagination, create conversation and strengthen the bond between parent and child.”
Other popular books that featured on the global list of most popular bedtime stories included the Artemis Fowl series, the Horrid Henry series, The Cat in the Hat, Mary Poppins, The Gruffalo, and all seven of JK Rowling’s Harry Potter novels.
Giveaway: Stand a chance to win a 5-book hamper from Wordsworth Books. What is your favourite bedtime story? Send an email with WABOOKS in the subject line, with your name and answer to jellybeanclub@inl.co.za. The competition closes on Wednesday, September 21. Terms and conditions apply.
Go to https://www.wordsworth.co.za/ to shop online for your favourite books.