5 Fantasy Books for Children That Adult Readers Will Love

Fantasy books aimed at children often feature lighthearted adventure, endearing friendships and powerful themes. As such, many adult readers find these stories a delight as well!

So, which of these books also won their hearts?

Here are five fantasy books for children that adult readers will love:

Eragon by Christopher Paolini
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle
The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

Here’s a comparison chart of all five of these novels. Moreover, if you’re searching for more great fantasy books for children, the five immersive fantasy books here and these fantasy books for kids with dragons are reader favorites as well.

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

Description

One boy…
One dragon…
A world of adventure.

When Eragon finds a polished blue stone in the forest, he thinks it is the lucky discovery of a poor farm boy; perhaps it will buy his family meat for the winter.

But when the stone brings a dragon hatchling, Eragon soon realizes he has stumbled upon a legacy nearly as old as the Empire itself.

Overnight his simple life is shattered, and he is thrust into a perilous new world of destiny, magic, and power.

With only an ancient sword and the advice of an old storyteller for guidance, Eragon and the fledgling dragon must navigate the dangerous terrain and dark enemies of an Empire ruled by a king whose evil knows no bounds.

Can Eragon take up the mantle of the legendary Dragon Riders?

The fate of the Empire may rest in his hands.

What Do Readers Say?

Goodreads Rating: 3.89

Most Common Rating: 5

Positive Comments

First up is Eragon, a fantasy book for children, teens and adults. This epic story is known for taking beloved fantasy elements and mixing them into a swashbuckling, dragon-filled adventure.

Readers appreciated that much of what they loved seeing in fantasy books featured in this epic: supernatural abilities, sword-fighting, dragon riders, prophecies, elves, hidden realms and of course, the hero pitted against a seemingly invincible empire.

Readers said that Eragon swept them away into the world of Alagaësia and its many interesting characters. They often commented that fans of Lord of the Rings would find elements to this story that they’d enjoy.

Negative Comments

Unfortunately, the same reason that fans loved this fantasy book was the same reason that critics didn’t: the familiar tropes.

Its similarities to Lord of the Rings and Star Wars frustrated critics. Whereas ‘Lord of the Rings meets Star Wars with dragons’ delighted fans, these readers thought that Eragon was too predictable for their taste.

Because of this, several commented that the book might be better suited for first-time fantasy readers.

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle

Description

It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger.

“Wild nights are my glory,” the unearthly stranger told them. “I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me sit down for a moment, and then I’ll be on my way. Speaking of ways, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesseract.”

A tesseract is a wrinkle in time. To tell more would rob the reader of the enjoyment of Miss L’Engle’s unusual book.

A Wrinkle in Time, winner of the Newberry Medal in 1963, is the story of the adventures in space and time of Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin O’Keefe (athlete, student, and one of the most popular boys in high school). They are in search of Meg’s father, a scientist who disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government on the tesseract problem.

What Do Readers Say?

Goodreads Rating: 4.01

Most Common Rating: 5

Positive Comments

A Wrinkle in Time is another fantasy book for children that adults loved as well. This story has surged in popularity thanks to a recent movie (2018) and a slew of graphic novels.

Fans cited its atmospheric prose and authentic characterization as major pluses. The main character, Meg, struck them as particularly well-developed when compared to other childrens’ or Young Adult novels. Readers often said she came across as brave, but also reacted realistically to what felt like encounters with true evil.

Negative Comments

Some adults readers, however, weren’t so enthusiastic. They mentioned that while A Wrinkle in Time was a great coming-of-age story, particularly for young girls, it felt too simple for them.

These readers often also mentioned that while Meg is initially sympathetic, she’s later prone to too many overreactions.

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

Description

The Last Unicorn is one of the true classics of fantasy, ranking with Tolkien’s The Hobbit, Le Guin’s Earthsea Trilogy, and Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland.

Beagle writes a shimmering prose-poetry, the voice of fairy tales and childhood:

The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone. She was very old, though she did not know it, and she was no longer the careless color of sea foam but rather the color of snow falling on a moonlit night.

But her eyes were still clear and unwearied, and she still moved like a shadow on the sea.

The unicorn discovers that she is the last unicorn in the world, and sets off to find the others.

She meets Schmendrick the Magician – whose magic seldom works, and never as he intended – when he rescues her from Mommy Fortuna’s Midnight Carnival, where only some of the mythical beasts displayed are illusions.

They are joined by Molly Grue, who believes in legends despite her experiences with a Robin Hood wannabe and his unmerry men.

Ahead wait King Haggard and his Red Bull, who banished unicorns from the land.

What Do Readers Say?

Goodreads Rating: 4.18

Most Common Rating: 5

Positive Comments

Third on our list of fantasy books for children that adults will love is The Last Unicorn. Readers who raved about this cherished classic said that it was imaginative, magical and unexpectedly profound. Beagle’s poetic prose wove a spell over these readers, who said the novel immersed them in its world and characters.

Others mentioned how much they appreciated the story’s message. Brimming with themes of hope even in despairing circumstances, the story touched and inspired them.

Negative Comments

Readers who didn’t think The Last Unicorn was their cup of tea said the book was slow-paced and didn’t grip them. Moreover, several readers mentioned that the plot itself seemed episodic and disjointed.

The story didn’t seem to build up toward anything, while the individual events came across more as a happening rather than a step along a larger narrative journey.

The Neverending Story by Michael Ende

Description

The story begins with a lonely boy named Bastian and the strange book that draws him into the beautiful but doomed world of Fantastica.

Only a human can save this enchanted place by giving its ruler, the Childlike Empress, a new name.

But the journey to her tower leads through lands of dragons, giants, monsters, and magic and once Bastian begins his quest, he may never return.

As he is drawn deeper into Fantastica, he must find the courage to face unspeakable foes and the mysteries of his own heart.

What Do Readers Say?

Goodreads Rating: 4.18

Most Common Rating: 5

Positive Comments

Next on our list of fantasy books for children that adults will love is The Neverending Story. This famous classic delighted readers – both children and adults – with how imaginative and engrossing it was.

The Neverending Story, fans said, transported them into its world as completely as Bastian was pulled into Fantastica. It was fast-paced, filled with intriguing mythology and led by a protagonist they enjoyed following.

Negative Comments

Almost half of The Neverending Story‘s readers rated it five stars on Goodreads. However, those who didn’t enjoy this fantasy novel cited its second part as why. They said that while most of the story bristled with suspense, the middle lost momentum.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S Lewis

Description

Four adventurous siblings — Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie — step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch.

But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change. . .and a great sacrifice.

What Do Readers Say?

Goodreads Rating: 4.26

Most Common Rating: 5

Positive Comments

Last on our list of fantasy books for children that adult readers will love is The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first book in C.S Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia series.

Readers who adored the story enthused that The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was a swashbuckling tale brimming with adventure, a truly wondrous world and a fantastic conclusion.

Several of these readers had read the story as children and found that, when rereading the book as an adult, it still enchanted them.

Negative Comments

Several readers didn’t find The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for them, however. Lewis originally published the book more than 50 years ago, and unfortunately, several of the terms of phrase rubbed readers the wrong way.

Other readers were sensitive to the allegorical connections to the Christian faith. While several readers cited this as giving the story more dimension and depth, some felt that it came across too strongly.