The Puffin Book of Classic Stories for Girls

The anthology celebrates the power, curiosity, and resilience of young girls throughout history. It serves as a single-volume literary gateway, transporting readers from secret gardens and deep mountains to magical fantasy worlds, all while exploring themes of deep friendship, family bonds, and adventure.

Manjula Padmanabhan is an acclaimed Indian playwright, journalist, comic strip artist, and children's book author. She won the prestigious Onassis International Cultural Competitions Prize for her futuristic play Harvest. Highly regarded for her sharp wit and creative illustrations, she continues to be a powerful voice in contemporary Indian literature, helping bridge classic global themes for modern Indian children.

• • This book compiles celebrated stories and excerpts written by the world's greatest masters of literature, including Lewis Carroll, Jane Austen, Roald Dahl, Ruskin Bond, and Rabindranath Tagore.
    Readers can skip around a secret garden, watch a little pig escape a dreadful fate, follow the mischievous school scrapbooks of Katy, and experience the extraordinary tricks of Matilda. It features beloved cultural milestones such as the miraculous optimism of Pollyanna, Dorothy's journey in The Wizard of Oz, and the warm sisterly love of Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy in Little Women.