Kiwi Authors Romp Into Whitcoulls Kids’ Top 50

20 September 2010
News release

Kiwi Authors Romp Into Whitcoulls Kids’ Top 50

Kiwi authors have romped into the latest Whitcoulls Kids’ Top 50 list - revealed today at Avondale Primary School in Auckland.

New entrant Craig Smith’s Wonky Donkey galloped straight in at No 2 while Stacy Gregg’s Pony Club Secrets series also cantered in from nowhere to take the No 7 spot.

But they couldn’t quite see off the magic of J K Rowling’s Harry Potter series, which moved up a place to take the Number One spot.

Nevertheless, Smith’s No 2 ranking makes him the highest placed Kiwi author on any of the Whitcoulls’ Lists since they began 12 years ago. “I want to give a huge thank you to all the kids who voted for The Wonky Donkey,” Smith said today. “And to let them know Wonky is well and still smells!"

Whitcoulls marketing manager Catherine Collins said thousands of children throughout New Zealand had voted for their favourite books and schools had really got behind the Kids’ Top 50 list too.

“It’s great to see so many Kiwi kids developing their love of reading. It’s a habit that will stay with them forever and you never get bored if you’d got a good book to read.”

Avondale Primary was one of five schools whose pupils submitted the most votes in the Whitcoulls Kid’s Top 50, with each winning $500 to spend on books for their libraries. The others were Mosston School in Wanganui, Kahutara School in South Wairarapa, Northcote Intermediate School on the North Shore and Ellerslie School in Auckland.

Pony Club author Stacy Gregg, who visited Avondale Primary today for the announcement, said: “It’s such a thrill to be included on the new Whitcoulls Kids’ Top 50. When I was a 10-year-old with my first pony I never dreamed that I would make a career out of the two things I loved the most - writing and riding horses. I'm delighted the Pony Club Secrets series has found such a devoted audience.”

About a quarter of the books on the Kids’ Top 50 are new, including Jeff Kinney’s Diary Of A Wimpy Kid (No 18) and Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games (No 24) but classics like Lynley Dodd’s Hairy Maclary (No 23), Enid Blyton’s Famous Five (No 43) and Dr Seuss’ Green Eggs And Ham (No 44) are still on the list.

Roald Dahl is the most popular author on the Kids’ Top 50 with nine books, including four in the top 10 - Matilda (No 5), The BFG (No 6), The Twits (No 8) and Charlie And The Chocolate Factory (No 10).

The 2010 Whitcoulls Kids’ Top 50 is:
1. Harry Potter Series, J K Rowling
2. The Wonky Donkey, Craig Smith & Katz Cowley
3. Cherub Series, Robert Muchamore
4. Geronimo Stilton Series, Geronimo Stilton
5. Matilda, Roald Dahl
6. The BFG, Roald Dahl
7. Pony Club Secrets Series, Stacy Gregg
8. The Twits, Roald Dahl
9. Zac Power Series, H I Larry
10. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
11. The Gruffalo, Julia Donaldson
12. Perky The Pukeko, Michelle Osment
13. Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak
14. Eragon, Christopher Paolini
15. Deltora Quest Series, Emily Rodda
16. The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle
17. Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, Rick Riordan
18. Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney
19. Adventures of Captain Underpants, Dav Pilkey
20. Cookie, Jacqueline Wilson
21. Skulduggery Pleasant Series, Derek Landy
22. Fantastic Mr Fox, Roald Dahl
23. Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy, Lynley Dodd
24. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins
25. The Witches, Roald Dahl
26. 39 Clues series, Rick Riordan
27. Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
28. Holes, Louis Sachar
29. Percy Jackson and the Battle of the Labyrinth, Rick Riordan
30. Tomorrow When the War Began Series, John Marsden
31. Chronicles of Narnia (the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe), C S Lewis
32. Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Cassandra Clare
33. James and the Giant Peach, Roald Dahl
34. Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment, James Patterson
35. A Series of Unfortunate Events, Lemony Snicket
36. Alex Rider: Stormbreaker, Anthony Horowitz
37. Best Friends, Jacqueline Wilson
38. Danny, the Champion of the world, Roald Dahl
39. Vampire Academy, Richelle Mead
40. Angus Thongs and Full Frontal Snogging, Louise Rennison
41. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
42. Candyfloss, Jacqueline Wilson
43. Famous Five Series, Enid Blyton
44. Green Eggs and Ham, Dr Seuss
45. Lola Rose, Jacqueline Wilson
46. My Sister Jodie, Jacqueline Wilson
47. George's Marvellous Medicine, Roald Dahl
48. Utterly Me, Clarice Bean, Lauren Child
49. The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, John Boyne
50. The Cat in the Hat, Dr Seuss
ends

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