Coming Of Age

Many of these are part of the best fantasy book series for beginners and can be enjoyed by all readers interested in getting into fantasy. Most, if not all, of these novels have received screen adaptations because of how vividly the stories are and how universally beloved they are. One of the most memorable parts of children’s fantasy literature is the brave and clever protagonists who young audiences relate to in their youth. By returning to these books in adulthood, readers can still identify with these characters but will empathize with them further, understanding the pain of coming of age.

Tuck Everlasting (1975) Written by Natalie Babbitt

Winnie Foster finds her life suddenly changed in Tuck Everlasting when she meets the Tucks, a family who accidentally became immortal after drinking from a spring in the woods by Winnie’s house. Though Winnie is young, she slowly understands that the immortality the Tucks possess is not a gift and that people would use them and the spring to make a profit. The pitfalls of immortality and the joy of being able to age and live a full life are topics well-trodden in adult literature, but Tuck Everlasting makes this topic accessible to younger readers.

From an adult perspective, it’s clear from the beginning that the cost of eternal youth and vigor is not worth the loneliness that accompanies it.

It’s a bittersweet story, made even more impactful by the doomed romance between Winnie and Jesse Tuck, the boy frozen in time at the age of seventeen. From an adult perspective, it’s clear from the beginning that the cost of eternal youth and vigor is not worth the loneliness that accompanies it. The film adaptation of Babbitt’s novel is one of the best live-action children’s fantasy movies and sees a young Alexis Bledel star as Winnie.

The Hobbit (1937) Written by J.R.R. Tolkien

Though J.R.R. Tolkien’s complex adult series The Lord of the Rings is the more famous installment of Tolkien’s tales of Middle-earth, The Hobbit is the story that started it all. Following Frodo’s older cousin Bilbo on his first adventure, The Hobbit has long been considered one of the best works of children’s fantasy literature of all time. Not quite as terrifying and high-stakes as Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit is still thrilling and unafraid to put Bilbo in dangerous situations.

Rereading The Hobbit with the knowledge and understanding of Middle-earth that audiences get from Lord of the Rings makes Bilbo’s first encounter with the One-Ring breathtaking. The Hobbit holds a lot of value for fans of the series and demonstrates why Tolkien’s work is so timeless, as Bilbo’s journeys only get more nostalgic and epic with time. Though there are many differences between The Hobbit book and the films, Peter Jackson maintained much of the heart of the original novel.

A Wrinkle In Time (1962) Written by Madeleine L’Engle

Madeleine L’Engle incorporated both fantasy and science fiction into her classic novel, A Wrinkle in Time. The book has been adapted for the screen several times, but the 2018 film came the closest to capturing the magic of the original story. However, part of the joy of A Wrinkle in Time is imagining Meg on her adventures and seeing the unbelievable worlds she visits in the mind’s eye. A Wrinkle in Time is the first in L’Engle’s series about Meg and her family, but the first book is the most famous installment.

Themes of feeling alienated and out of place in the world are significant in A Wrinkle in Time, and these feelings aren’t only relevant to younger audiences.

Themes of feeling alienated and out of place in the world are significant in A Wrinkle in Time, and these feelings aren’t only relevant to younger audiences. Meg struggles to fit into her changing environments, and she has to grapple with some of the most challenging aspects of life at a young age. When first reading A Wrinkle in Time, audiences might relate to Meg and see her struggles as their own, while older readers will see a younger version of themselves and feel empathy for who that person was.

Watership Down (1972) Written by Richard Adams

Following a group of rabbits in search of a new home, Watership Down is a terrifying and emotionally intense book, putting it on the same level as the iconic epics of children’s literature. Winner of the Carnegie Medal for Writing, among other accolades, Watership Down was immediately singled out for its contributions to children’s literature, but there’s still plenty for adults to glean from the story. The rabbits’ society is just as rich, complex, and difficult to navigate as human culture, and the conflicting beliefs of the characters play into their strengths and abilities.

A Wizard Of Earthsea (1968) Written by Ursula K. Le Guin

Ursula K. Le Guin is well known as one of the greatest fantasy and science fiction writers of all time, and her Earthsea novels have been instrumental in influencing the path of children’s high fantasy literature. The first book in the cycle, A Wizard of Earthsea, follows Ged, a young boy with incredible magical abilities who must undo a mistake he makes in the heat of adolescence. While A Wizard of Earthsea follows the classic beats of a coming-of-age novel, it also revolutionized the genre thanks to its incredible world-building and complex plotting.

5 Matilda (1988) Written by Roald Dahl

One of Roald Dahl’s best-remembered books, Matilda​​​​​​, has been adapted into a feature film, a stage musical, and a movie musical. It’s thanks to the timelessness of the story that writers and creatives keep returning to Dahl’s source material and finding more details and intricacies to bring to life onscreen. Full of the outlandish and fantastical elements that Dahl’s work is known for, the characters in Matilda have only become more vivid with time, and the story’s happy ending is one of the more uplifting conclusions to a work by Dahl.

In the most famous film iteration of Matilda, her telekinetic powers are portrayed as much stronger and more easily controlled, while in the book, they’re more unpredictable and eventually go away. However, no iteration has ever changed the heart of Matilda, which sees a young girl find the love and comfort she deserves after being abused and overlooked for so long. Dahl makes it easier to digest his serious topics through imaginative storytelling and magical characters, but reading Matilda as an adult allows the audience to see through to the larger themes.