Pippi Longstocking

Description: BBC Culture's 100 greatest children's books 2023

Pippi Longstocking is nine years old. She has just moved into Villa Villekulla where she lives all by herself with a horse, a monkey, and a big suitcase full of gold coins. The grown-ups in the village try to make Pippi behave in ways that they think a little girl should, but Pippi has other ideas! She would much rather spend her days arranging wild, exciting adventures to enjoy with her neighbours, Tommy and Annika, or entertaining everyone she meets with her outrageous stories. Pippi thinks nothing of wrestling a circus strongman, dancing a polka with burglars, or tugging a bull's tail. Generations of children have fallen in love with Pippi Longstocking. Just like Tommy and Annika, readers are instantly charmed by her warmth and sense of fun. Astrid Lindgren's children's classic first appeared in 1945. Astrid once commented, 'I write to amuse the child within me, and can only hope that other children may have some fun that way, too.' When she was growing up, Lauren Child loved Astrid Lindgren's books. She remembers: 'I discovered Pippi when I was about eight years old and found her completely inspiring.' Known and loved as the creator of some equally feisty little girls - notably Clarice Bean and Lola - Lauren has brought her own inimitable style to this beautifully-illustrated edition of Pippi Longstocking.

Review: Pippi is my favourite girl hero * Cressida Cowell, Express * Lauren Child . . . is the perfect choice to illustrate this handsome edition of Pippi . . . her unmistakable illustrative style helps to bring a modern feel to the book and will enable another generation of readers to enjoy the exploits of this extraordinary little girl. * Books for Keeps * There's no stopping Lauren Child as she brings her own inimitable style to illustrate Pippi Longstocking . . . Everyone will love this. * The Bookseller * Some word and picture partnerships are akin to a marriage made in heaven. First there was EH Shepard and AA Milne, then Quentin Blake and Roald Dahl - now Lauren Child and Astrid Lindgren. If ever there was an illustrator born to understand the psyche and well-loved quirkiness of Pippi Longstocking and infuse it with a 21st-century edge, then Child is that artist. * Junior * [Lauren Child's] an inspired choice to hook a new generation of children on Sweden's greatest literary export. * Susanna Forest, Telegraph Review * Lauren Child's . . . version of Astrid Lindgren's Pippi Longstocking is sublime. * Amanda Craig, The Times *

Author Biography: Astrid Lindgren was born in 1907. Pippi Longstocking was published in Sweden in 1945 and was an instant success with children. She died in 2002.Lauren Child was born in 1967 and grew up in Marlborough in Wiltshire. She now lives in London.