This is an anthology to delight and amuse, covering many of the best short stories written for children over the last 250 years. Jan Mark, herself an accomplished children's author, traces the evolution of the short story from 1749 to the 1990s. Her collection includes the work of familiar figures like Rudyard Kipling and Christina Rossetti, Walter de la Mare, and Philippa Pearce, in addition to long-forgotten tales which still have the power to enchant. The anthology shows that despite the long and varied history of children's writing, the ingredients of a good children's story - the magic, mystery, and enchantment - have remained remarkably constant, and can still captivate the imagination of child and parent alike.