List of best-selling books
List of best-selling book series -- Between 50 million and 100 million copies
Table:
Book series
Author(s)
Original language
No. of installments
First published
Approximate sales

A Song of Ice and Fire
George R. R. Martin
English
Currently 5; 7 Planned; 3 novellas + 1 guide
1996–present
90 million[203]

Discworld
Terry Pratchett
English
41
1983–2015
90 million[204]

Nijntje (Miffy)
Dick Bruna
Dutch
119
1955–present
85 million[205]

Alex Cross
James Patterson
English
21
1993–present
81 million[206]

Anpanman (アンパンマン)
Takashi Yanase
Japanese
150 picture books
1973–2013
80 million[207]

Captain Underpants
Dav Pilkey
English
12 plus spinoffs
1997–2015
80 million[208]

Fear Street
R. L. Stine
English
114
1989–present
80 million[209]

Pippi Långstrump (Pippi Longstocking)
Astrid Lindgren
Swedish
3 + 3 picture books
1945–2001
80 million[210]

The Vampire Chronicles
Anne Rice
English
13
1976–present
80 million[211]

The Wheel of Time
Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson
English
15
1990–2013
80 million[212]

OSS 117
Jean Bruce
French
265
1949–1992
75 million[213]

Winnie-the-Pooh
A. A. Milne; illustrated by E. H. Shepard
English
2
1926–1928
70 million[214]

Magic Tree House series
Mary Pope Osborne
English
56[215]
1992–present
70 million[216]

Left Behind
Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
English
16
1996–2007
65 million[217]

A Series of Unfortunate Events
Lemony Snicket aka Daniel Handler
English
13
1999–2006
65 million[218]

Little House on the Prairie
Laura Ingalls Wilder
English
12
1932–2006
60 million[219]

Jack Reacher
Lee Child
English
22 Novels + 11 Short Stories
1997–present
60 million[220]

The Magic School Bus
Joanna Cole, illustrated by Bruce Degen
English
131
1986–2010
58 million[221]

Where's Wally?[222]
Martin Handford
English
13
1987–present
55 million[223]

Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus
John Gray
English
15
1992–present
50 million[224]

Consulting the accompanying table as well as the textual context provided at the end.

Solve the question: What was the year of birth of the author of Anpanman ? Return your answer as JSON: {"answer": "YOUR ANSWER"}.

A Song of Ice and Fire is a series of epic fantasy novels by the American novelist and screenwriter George R. R. Martin . He began the first volume of the series , A Game of Thrones , in 1991 , and it was published in 1996 . Martin , who initially envisioned the series as a trilogy , has published five out of a planned seven volumes . The fifth and most recent volume of the series , A Dance with Dragons , was published in 2011 and took Martin six years to write . He is currently writing the sixth novel , The Winds of Winter . A Song of Ice and Fire takes place on the fictional continents Westeros and Essos . The point of view of each chapter in the story is a limited perspective of a range of characters growing from nine in the first novel , to 31 characters by the fifth novel . Three main stories interweave : a dynastic war among several families for control of Westeros , the rising threat of the supernatural Others in northernmost Westeros , and the ambition of Daenerys Targaryen , the deposed king 's exiled daughter , to assume the Iron Throne . Martin 's inspirations included the Wars of the Roses and the French historical novels The Accursed Kings by Maurice Druon . A Song of Ice and Fire received praise for its diverse portrayal of women and religion , as well as its realism . An assortment of disparate and subjective points of view confronts the reader , and the success or survival of point-of-view characters is never assured . Within the often morally ambiguous world of A Song of Ice and Fire , questions concerning loyalty , pride , human sexuality , piety , and the morality of violence frequently arise .
George Raymond Richard Martin ( born George Raymond Martin ; September 20 , 1948 ) , also known as GRRM , is an American novelist and short story writer in the fantasy , horror , and science fiction genres , screenwriter , and television producer . He wrote the series of epic fantasy novels , A Song of Ice and Fire , which was adapted into the HBO series Game of Thrones ( 2011-2019 ) . In 2005 , Lev Grossman of Time called Martin the American Tolkien , and in 2011 , he was included on the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world .
Discworld is a comic fantasy book series written by the English author Terry Pratchett , set on the Discworld , a flat planet balanced on the backs of four elephants which in turn stand on the back of a giant turtle . The series began in 1983 with The Colour of Magic and continued until the final novel The Shepherd 's Crown was published in 2015 , following Pratchett 's death . The books frequently parody or take inspiration from J. R. R. Tolkien , Robert E. Howard , H. P. Lovecraft , Charles Dickens and William Shakespeare , as well as mythology , folklore and fairy tales , often using them for satirical parallels with cultural , political and scientific issues . [ citation needed ] Forty-one Discworld novels have been published . The original British editions of the first 26 novels , up to Thief of Time ( 2001 ) , had cover art by Josh Kirby . The American editions , published by Harper Collins , used their own cover art . Since Kirby 's death in 2001 , the covers have been designed by Paul Kidby . Companion publications include eleven short stories ( some only loosely related to the Discworld ) , four popular science books , and a number of supplementary books and reference guides . The series has been adapted for graphic novels , theatre , computer and board games , and television . Newly released Discworld books regularly topped The Sunday Times best-sellers list , making Pratchett the UK 's best-selling author in the 1990s . Discworld novels have also won awards such as the Prometheus Award and the Carnegie Medal . In the BBC 's Big Read , four Discworld novels were in the top 100 , and a total of fourteen in the top 200 .
Sir Terence David John Pratchett OBE ( 28 April 1948 - 12 March 2015 ) was an English humorist , satirist , and author of fantasy novels , especially comical works . He is best known for his Discworld series of 41 novels . Pratchett 's first novel , The Carpet People , was published in 1971 . The first Discworld novel , The Colour of Magic , was published in 1983 , after which Pratchett wrote an average of two books a year . His 2011 Discworld novel Snuff became the third-fastest-selling hardback adult-readership novel since records began in the UK , selling 55,000 copies in the first three days . The final Discworld novel , The Shepherd 's Crown , was published in August 2015 , five months after his death . Pratchett , with more than 85 million books sold worldwide in 37 languages , was the UK 's best-selling author of the 1990s . He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire ( OBE ) in 1998 and was knighted for services to literature in the 2009 New Year Honours . In 2001 he won the annual Carnegie Medal for The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents , the first Discworld book marketed for children . He received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 2010 . In December 2007 , Pratchett announced that he had been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer 's disease . He later made a substantial public donation to the Alzheimer 's Research Trust ( now Alzheimer 's Research UK ) , filmed a television programme chronicling his experiences with the condition for the BBC , and became a patron for Alzheimer 's Research UK .
Miffy ( Dutch : Nijntje , pronounced [ ˈnɛiɲcə ] ) is a small female rabbit in a series of picture books drawn and written by Dutch artist Dick Bruna . The original Dutch name , Nijntje , is a shortening of the diminutive konijntje , little rabbit . The first Miffy book was produced in 1955 , and almost 30 others have followed . In total they have sold over 85 million copies , and led to two separate television series as well as items such as clothes and toys featuring the character . A feature-length film , Miffy the Movie , was released on 30 January 2013 . Four television series based on the character have been produced : Dick Bruna 's Miffy Storybook Classics : The Original Series , which ran from January 1 , 1984 until December 31 , 1992 on PBS in the United States , Miffy : Colors , Numbers , and Shapes , which ran January 1 , 1996 until December 31 , 1996 on Cartoon Network in the United States , Miffy and Friends , which ran from April 7 , 2002 until August 10 , 2008 on Noggin in the United States , and Miffy 's Adventures Big and Small , which premiered 2 October 2015 on PBS Kids in the United States . [ citation needed ]
Dick Bruna ( 23 August 1927 - 16 February 2017 ) was a Dutch author , artist , illustrator and graphic designer . Bruna was best known for his children 's books which he authored and illustrated , numbering over 200 . His most notable creation was Miffy ( Nijntje in the original Dutch ) , a small rabbit drawn with heavy graphic lines , simple shapes and primary colors . Bruna also created stories for characters such as Lottie , Farmer John , and Hettie Hedgehog . Aside from his prolific catalog of children 's books , Bruna also illustrated and designed book covers , posters and promotional materials for his father 's publishing company A.W . Bruna & Zoon . His most popular designs graced the covers of the Zwarte Beertjes [ nl ] series of books . Well known among his designs are those for Simenon 's Maigret books , typified by graphic silhouettes of a pipe on various backgrounds .
Alex Cross is a crime , mystery , and thriller novel series written by James Patterson . The series focuses on Metropolitan Police Department detective and father Alex Cross as he faces threats to his family and the city of Washington , D.C . Supporting characters include two of Cross 's children , Damon , and Janelle , as well as his grandmother Nana Mama . The series is usually narrated in first-person perspective by Alex Cross , and occasionally from the villains ' point of view in third-person . The series has been running since the 1990s and is ongoing . Nearly all have made bestsellers lists and garnered favorable reviews , especially Double Cross ; Cross Fire ; I , Alex Cross ; and Alex Cross , Run . The series is published worldwide , with Little , Brown currently holding publication rights in the United States , in paperback , hardcover , and audiobook editions . The first book in the series , Along Came a Spider , was released in 1993 to positive reviews , spawning a series of over twenty subsequent novels . The series has led to three films , Kiss the Girls ( 1997 ) , Along Came a Spider ( 2001 ) , and Alex Cross ( 2012 ) .
James Brendan Patterson ( born March 22 , 1947 ) is an American author and philanthropist . Among his works are the Alex Cross , Michael Bennett , Women 's Murder Club , Maximum Ride , Daniel X , NYPD Red , Witch and Wizard , and Private series , as well as many stand-alone thrillers , non-fiction and romance novels . His books have sold more than 300 million copies and he was the first person to sell 1 million e-books . In 2016 , Patterson topped Forbes 's list of highest-paid authors for the third consecutive year , with an income of $ 95 million . His total income over a decade is estimated at $ 700 million . In November 2015 , Patterson received the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation , which cited him as a passionate campaigner to make books and reading a national priority . A generous supporter of universities , teachers colleges , independent bookstores , school libraries , and college students , Patterson has donated millions of dollars in grants and scholarships with the purpose of encouraging Americans of all ages to read more books .
Anpanman ( アンパンマン ) is a Japanese children 's superhero picture book series written by Takashi Yanase , running from 1973 until the author 's death in 2013 . The series has been adapted into an anime entitled Soreike ! Anpanman ( それいけ ! アンパンマン , Let 's Go ! Anpanman ) , which is one of the most popular anime series among young children in Japan . The series follows the adventures of Anpanman , a superhero with an anpan ( a bean-jam filled pastry ) for a head , who protects the world from an evil anthropomorphic germ named Baikinman . Heavily merchandised , the Anpanman characters appear on virtually every imaginable children 's product in Japan , ranging from clothes and video games to toys and snack foods . The series spawned a short-lived spin-off show featuring one of the popular recurring characters on the show , Omusubiman . Anpanman overtook Hello Kitty as Japan 's top-grossing character in 2002 , and has remained the country 's top-grossing character as of 2017 [ update ] . Anpanman has sold over 80 million books as of February 2019 , and the franchise generated ¥4.5 trillion ( $ 57 billion ) in total retail sales revenue by 2013 . [ a ] Works inspired by Anpanman include the manga and anime series One-Punch Man , and the K-pop song Anpanman by BTS .
Takashi Yanase ( February 6 , 1919 - October 13 , 2013 ) was a Japanese writer , poet , illustrator and lyricist . He was best known as the creator of the picture book and anime series Anpanman . Yanase was chairman of the Japan Cartoonists Association from May 2000 to 2012 .
Captain Underpants is an illustrated children 's novel series by American author and illustrator Dav Pilkey . The series revolves around two fourth-graders , George Beard and Harold Hutchins , living in Piqua , Ohio , and Captain Underpants , an aptly named superhero from one of the boys ' homemade comic books , who accidentally ( kinda on purpose ) becomes real when George and Harold hypnotize their ill-tempered principal , Mr. Krupp . Soon after , Mr. Krupp gains superpowers by drinking alien juices in the third book . Currently , the series includes 12 books , two activity books , 11 spin-offs , and won a Disney Adventures Kids ' Choice Award on April 4 , 2006 . As of 2014 , the series has been translated into more than 20 languages , with more than 80 million books sold worldwide , including over 50 million in the United States . DreamWorks Animation acquired rights to the series to make an animated feature film adaptation , which was released on June 2 , 2017 to positive reviews . After the main series concluded with the twelfth novel , Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot , in 2015 , a spin-off series titled Dog Man was released the following year . This spin-off series has eight books so far .
David Murray Dav Pilkey Jr. ( /ˈdeɪv/ ; born March 4 , 1966 ) is an American cartoonist , author and illustrator of children 's literature . Pilkey is best known as the author and illustrator of the children 's book series Captain Underpants and the children 's graphic novel series Dog Man .
Fear Street is a teenage horror fiction series written by American author R. L. Stine , starting in 1989 . In 1995 , a series of books inspired by the Fear Street series , called Ghosts of Fear Street , was created for younger readers , and were more like the Goosebumps books in that they featured paranormal adversaries ( ghosts , vampires , monsters , aliens , etc . ) and sometimes had twist endings . R. L. Stine stopped writing Fear Street after penning the Fear Street Seniors spin-off in 1999 . In summer 2005 , he brought Fear Street back with the three-part Fear Street Nights miniseries . As of 2010 [ update ] , over 80 million copies of Fear Street have been sold . R. L. Stine revived the book series in October 2014 . In October 2015 , it was reported a film based on the series was being developed .
Robert Lawrence Stine ( /staɪn/ ; born October 8 , 1943 ) , sometimes known as Jovial Bob Stine and Eric Affabee , is an American novelist , short story writer , television producer , screenwriter , and executive editor . Stine has been referred to as the Stephen King of children 's literature and is the author of hundreds of horror fiction novels , including the books in the Fear Street , Goosebumps , Rotten School , Mostly Ghostly , and The Nightmare Room series . Some of his other works include a Space Cadets trilogy , two Hark gamebooks , and dozens of joke books . As of 2008 , Stine 's books have sold over 400 million copies .
Pippi Longstocking is the fictional main character in an eponymous series of children 's books by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren . Pippi was named by Lindgren 's daughter Karin , who asked her mother for a get-well story when she was off school . Pippi is red-haired , freckled , unconventional and superhumanly strong - able to lift her horse one-handed . She is playful and unpredictable . She often makes fun of unreasonable adults , especially if they are pompous and condescending . Her anger comes out in extreme cases , such as when a man ill-treats his horse . Pippi , like Peter Pan , does not want to grow up . She is the daughter of a buccaneer captain and has adventure stories to tell about that , too . Her four best friends are her horse and monkey , and the neighbours ' children , Tommy and Annika . After being rejected by Bonnier Publishers in 1944 , Lindgren 's first manuscript was accepted by Rabén and Sjögren . The first three Pippi chapter books were published from 1945 to 1948 , followed by three short stories and a number of picture book adaptations . They have been translated into 76 languages as of 2018 [ update ] and made into several films and television series .
Astrid Anna Emilia Lindgren née Ericsson ; 14 November 1907 - 28 January 2002 ) was a Swedish writer of fiction and screenplays . She is best known for several children 's book series , featuring Pippi Longstocking , Emil i Lönneberga , Karlsson-on-the-Roof , and the Six Bullerby Children ( Children of Noisy Village in the US ) , and for the children 's fantasy novels Mio , My Son , Ronia the Robber 's Daughter , and The Brothers Lionheart . Lindgren worked on the Children 's Literature Editorial Board at the Rabén & Sjögren publishing house in Stockholm and wrote more than 30 books for children . In January 2017 , she was calculated to be the world 's 18th most translated author , and the fourth most translated children 's writer after Enid Blyton , Hans Christian Andersen and the Brothers Grimm . Lindgren has so far sold roughly 165 million books worldwide . In 1994 , she was awarded the Right Livelihood Award for her unique authorship dedicated to the rights of children and respect for their individuality .
The Vampire Chronicles is a series of novels and a media franchise created by American writer Anne Rice that revolves around the fictional character Lestat de Lioncourt , a French nobleman turned into a vampire in the 18th century . Rice said in a 2008 interview that her vampires were a metaphor for lost souls . The homoerotic overtones of The Vampire Chronicles are also well-documented . As of November 2008 , The Vampire Chronicles had sold 80 million copies worldwide . Interview with the Vampire ( 1976 ) was made into a 1994 film starring Tom Cruise , Brad Pitt , Antonio Banderas , Christian Slater and Kirsten Dunst . 1988 's The Queen of the Damned was adapted into a 2002 film of the same name , starring Stuart Townsend and Aaliyah and using some material from 1985 's The Vampire Lestat . In August 2014 , Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment acquired the motion picture rights to the entire series . In November 2016 , Rice announced that she had regained the theatrical rights to her book series . On July 17 , 2018 , it was announced that television series adaptation of the novels was in development by streaming service Hulu .
Anne Rice ( born Howard Allen Frances O'Brien , October 4 , 1941 ) is an American author of gothic fiction , Christian literature , and erotic literature . She is perhaps best known for her series of novels , The Vampire Chronicles , revolving around the central character of Lestat . Books from The Vampire Chronicles were the subject of two film adaptations , Interview with the Vampire in 1994 , and Queen of the Damned in 2002 . Born in New Orleans , Rice spent much of her early life there before moving to Texas , and later to San Francisco . She was raised in an observant Catholic family , but became an agnostic as a young adult . She began her professional writing career with the publication of Interview with the Vampire in 1976 , while living in California , and began writing sequels to the novel in the 1980s . In the mid-2000s , following a publicized return to Catholicism , Rice published the novels Christ the Lord : Out of Egypt and Christ the Lord : The Road to Cana , fictionalized accounts of certain incidents in the life of Jesus . Several years later she distanced herself from organized Christianity , citing disagreement with the Church 's stances on social issues but pledging that faith in God remained central to [ her ] life . However , she now considers herself a secular humanist . Rice 's books have sold nearly 100 million copies , placing her among the most popular authors in recent American history . While reaction to her early works was initially mixed , she became more popular with critics and readers in the 1980s . Her writing style and the literary content of her works have been analyzed by literary commentators .
The Wheel of Time is a series of high fantasy novels written by American author James Oliver Rigney Jr. , under his pen name of Robert Jordan . Originally planned as a six-book series , The Wheel of Time spanned fourteen volumes , in addition to a prequel novel and two companion books . Jordan began writing the first volume , The Eye of the World , in 1984 , and it was published in January 1990 . Jordan died in 2007 while working on what was planned to be the twelfth and final volume in the series . He prepared extensive notes so another author could complete the book according to his wishes . Fellow fantasy author and long-time Wheel of Time fan Brandon Sanderson was brought in to complete the final book , but during the writing process , it was decided that the book would be far too large to be published in one volume and would instead be published as three volumes : The Gathering Storm ( 2009 ) , Towers of Midnight ( 2010 ) , and A Memory of Light ( 2013 ) . The series draws on numerous elements of both European and Asian mythology , most notably the cyclical nature of time found in Buddhism and Hinduism , the metaphysical concepts of balance and duality , and a respect for nature found in Taoism . Additionally , its creation story has similarities to Christianity 's Creator ( Light ) and Shai'tan , The Dark One ( Shaitan is an Arabic word that , in Islamic contexts , is used as a name for the Devil ) . It was also partly inspired by Leo Tolstoy 's War and Peace ( 1869 ) . The Wheel of Time is notable for its length , detailed imaginary world , well-developed magic system , and large cast of characters . The eighth through fourteenth books each reached number one on the New York Times Best Seller list . After its completion , the series was nominated for a Hugo Award .
James Oliver Rigney Jr. ( October 17 , 1948 - September 16 , 2007 ) , better known by his pen name Robert Jordan , was an American author of epic fantasy . He is best known for the Wheel of Time series , which was finished by Brandon Sanderson upon Jordan 's death , which comprises 14 books and a prequel novel . He is one of several writers to have written original Conan the Barbarian novels ; his are highly acclaimed to this day . Rigney also wrote historical fiction under his pseudonym Reagan O'Neal , a western as Jackson O'Reilly , and dance criticism as Chang Lung . Additionally , he ghostwrote an international thriller that is still believed to have been written by someone else .
Brandon Sanderson ( born December 19 , 1975 ) is an American fantasy and science fiction writer . He is best known for the Cosmere universe , in which most of his fantasy novels ( most notably the Mistborn series and The Stormlight Archive ) are set . He is also known for finishing Robert Jordan 's high fantasy series The Wheel of Time . He created Sanderson 's Laws of Magic and popularized the terms hard magic and soft magic systems . In 2008 Sanderson started a podcast with author Dan Wells and cartoonist Howard Tayler called Writing Excuses , involving topics about creating genre writing and webcomics . In 2016 , the American media company DMG Entertainment licensed the movie rights to Sanderson 's entire Cosmere universe .
OSS 117 is the codename for Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath , a fictional secret agent initially from the pen of the prolific Jean Bruce . Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath is described as being an American Colonel from Louisiana of French descent . After service in the Office of Strategic Services ( OSS ) , de La Bath worked for the Central Intelligence Agency ( CIA ) , then the National Security Council ( NSC ) . In Michel Hazanavicius 's films of the 2000s , the character is a French citizen working for the Service de Documentation Extérieure et de Contre-Espionnage , the French intelligence agency from 1944 to 1982 ( now DGSE ) . In real-life OSS , code number 117 was allocated to William L. Langer , who was chief of the Research and Analysis Branch of the OSS .
Jean Bruce ( 22 March 1921 - 26 March 1963 ) , born Jean Brochet , was a prolific French popular writer . He also wrote under the pseudonyms of Jean Alexandre , Jean Alexandre Brochet , Jean-Martin Rouan , and Joyce Lindsay . He died in a car accident in 1963 at the age of 42 . He is particularly known for the adventures of secret agent Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath , aka OSS 117 , of which many novels were adapted for the screen in the 1960s . Bruce 's first OSS 117 novel appeared in 1949 . He wrote prolifically with 91 OSS 117 novels and many others before his death in a Jaguar sports car crash . Though the first OSS 117 Is Not Dead film with Ivan Desny in the lead was already made in 1957 , a popular series of several OSS 117 films started no earlier than in 1963 , following the French release of Dr. No with Kerwin Mathews in two , director André Hunebelle 's discovery Frederick Stafford in two more , John Gavin in one ( replacing Stafford who was starring in Alfred Hitchcock 's Topaz , then with Luc Merenda and Alan Scott in two in the 1970s that were French made for TV films . In 2006 the action spoof OSS 117 : Cairo , Nest of Spies starring Jean Dujardin as OSS 117 became a surprise international hit . After his death , his wife Josette Bruce ( who died in 1996 ) continued to write 143 new titles for the OSS 117 character beginning in 1966 until her death . After her death their son and daughter François and Martine Bruce wrote 24 books up until 1992 . Films of some of Bruce 's other books such as Le vicomte règle ses comptes ( The Viscount ) with Kerwin Mathews and Cinq Gars pour Singapour ( Five Ashore in Singapore ) with Sean Flynn were made . Jean-Paul Belmondo played both a Jean Bruce type writer and his OSS 117 type creation in Philippe de Broca 's Le Magnifique .
Winnie-the-Pooh , also called Pooh Bear and Pooh , is a fictional anthropomorphic teddy bear created by English author A . A. Milne . The first collection of stories about the character was the book Winnie-the-Pooh ( 1926 ) , and this was followed by The House at Pooh Corner ( 1928 ) . Milne also included a poem about the bear in the children 's verse book When We Were Very Young ( 1924 ) and many more in Now We Are Six ( 1927 ) . All four volumes were illustrated by E. H. Shepard . The Pooh stories have been translated into many languages , including Alexander Lenard 's Latin translation , Winnie ille Pu , which was first published in 1958 , and , in 1960 , became the only Latin book ever to have been featured on The New York Times Best Seller list . In 1961 , Walt Disney Productions licensed certain film and other rights of Milne 's Winnie-the-Pooh stories from the estate of A . A. Milne and the licensing agent Stephen Slesinger.Inc . and adapted the Pooh stories , using the unhyphenated name Winnie the Pooh , into a series of features that would eventually become one of its most successful franchises . In popular film adaptations , Pooh has been voiced by actors Sterling Holloway , Hal Smith , and Jim Cummings in English , and Yevgeny Leonov in Russian .
Alan Alexander Milne ( /mɪln/ ; 18 January 1882 - 31 January 1956 ) was an English author , best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various poems . Milne was a noted writer , primarily as a playwright , before the huge success of Pooh overshadowed all his previous work . Milne served in both World Wars , joining the British Army in World War I , and was a captain of the British Home Guard in World War II .
Ernest Howard Shepard OBE , MC ( 10 December 1879 - 24 March 1976 ) was an English artist and book illustrator . He is known especially for illustrations of the anthropomorphic animal and soft toy characters in The Wind in the Willows and Winnie-the-Pooh .
The Magic Tree House is an American series of children 's books written by American author Mary Pope Osborne . The original American series is illustrated by Salvatore Murdocca , although other illustrators have been used for foreign-language editions . The series consists of two groups . The first group consists of books 1-28 , in which Morgan Le Fay sends Jack and Annie Smith , two normal children who are siblings from the fictional small town of Frog Creek , Pennsylvania , on numerous adventures and missions with a magical tree house . The second group , referred to as the Magic Tree House Merlin Missions , begins with book 29 , Christmas in Camelot . In the Merlin Missions , Jack and Annie are given quests by the ancient wizard Merlin the Magician . These books are longer than the previous 28 , and some take place in fantasy realms like Camelot . Kathleen and Teddy are two apprentices who befriend Jack and Annie during their adventures , with one of these adventures being to free Teddy from a spell . The two occasionally join Jack and Annie , and , when they do n't , provide them support instead . During Super Edition # 1 , Teddy sends them on a mission instead of Morgan or Merlin . The companion Magic Tree House Fact Trackers are co-written by Mary Pope Osborne with her husband Will Osborne or her sister Natalie Pope Boyce . In the beginning , Mary Pope Osborne wrote the books with Morgan sending the children on missions .
Mary Pope Osborne ( born May 20 , 1949 ) is an American author of children 's books . She is best known as the author of the Magic Tree House series , which as of 2017 [ update ] sold more than 134 million copies worldwide . Both the series and Osborne have won awards , sometimes for Osborne 's charitable efforts at promoting children 's literacy . One of four children , Osborne moved around in her childhood before attending the University of North Carolina . Following college , Osborne traveled before moving to New York City . She somewhat spontaneously began to write , with her first book being published in 1982 . She would go on to write a variety of other kinds of children 's and young adult books before starting the Magic Tree House series in 1992 . Osborne 's sister Natalie Pope Boyce has written several compendium books to the Magic Tree House series , sometimes with Osborne 's husband Will .
Left Behind is a series of 16 best-selling religious novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins , dealing with Christian dispensationalist End Times : the pretribulation , premillennial , Christian eschatological interpretation of the Biblical apocalypse . The primary conflict of the series is the members of the Tribulation Force , an underground network of converts , against the NWO-esque organization Global Community and its leader , Nicolae Carpathia , who is also the Antichrist . The series has been adapted into four films to date . The original series of three films are Left Behind : The Movie ( 2000 ) , Left Behind II : Tribulation Force ( 2002 ) , and Left Behind : World at War ( 2005 ) . A reboot starring Nicolas Cage , entitled simply Left Behind , was released in 2014 through Cloud Ten Pictures . The series inspired an audio drama as well as the PC game Left Behind : Eternal Forces ( 2006 ) and its several sequels .
Tim Francis LaHaye ( April 27 , 1926 - July 25 , 2016 ) was an American evangelical Protestant minister who wrote more than 85 books , both fiction and non-fiction , including the Left Behind series of apocalyptic fiction , which he co-authored with Jerry B. Jenkins .
Jerry Bruce Jenkins ( born September 23 , 1949 in Kalamazoo , Michigan ) is an American novelist and biographer . He is best known as writer of the Left Behind series of books with Tim LaHaye . Jenkins has written over 190 books , including romance novels , mysteries , and children 's adventures , as well as non-fiction , including biographies and marriage & family titles . His fiction usually features evangelical Christians as protagonists . In 2005 , Jenkins and LaHaye ranked 9th in Amazon.com 's 10th Anniversary Hall of Fame authors ranked according to the largest numbers of books sold at Amazon.com in the 10 years since it opened on July 16 , 1995 . In 2018 , Left Behind was listed as one of the 100 favorite novels in America by PBS . Jenkins and his wife Dianna have three sons , several grandchildren , and reside in Black Forest , Colorado .
A Series of Unfortunate Events is a series of thirteen novels written by American author Daniel Handler under the pen name Lemony Snicket . Although they are classified children 's novels , the books often have a dark , mysterious feeling to them . The books follow the turbulent lives of Violet , Klaus , and Sunny Baudelaire . After their parents ' death in a fire , the children are placed in the custody of a murderous relative , Count Olaf , who attempts to steal their inheritance and , later , orchestrates numerous disasters with the help of his accomplices as the children attempt to flee . As the plot progresses , the Baudelaires gradually confront further mysteries surrounding their family and deep conspiracies involving a secret society known as V.F.D. , with connections to Olaf , their parents , and many other relatives . The series is narrated by Lemony Snicket , who dedicates each of his works to his deceased love interest , Beatrice , and often attempts to dissuade the reader from reading the Baudelaires ' story . Characterized by Victorian Gothic tones and absurdist textuality , the books are noted for their dark humor , sarcastic storytelling , and anachronistic elements , as well as frequent cultural and literary allusions . They have been classified as postmodern and metafictional writing , with the plot evolution throughout the later novels being cited as an exploration of the psychological process of transition from the idyllic innocence of childhood to the moral complexity of maturity . Likewise , the final installments of the series are also acknowledged for their escalatingly intricate ethical ambiguity toward philosophical ambivalence , as the nature of some of the Baudelaires ' actions becomes increasingly harder to discern from those of their antagonist counterparts and more characters are revealed to be responsible for permanent wrongdoing , despite their identification with the self-proclaimed good side of the tale . Since the release of the first novel , The Bad Beginning , in September 1999 , the books have gained significant popularity , critical acclaim , and commercial success worldwide , spawning a film , a video game , assorted merchandise and a television series on Netflix . The main thirteen books in the series have collectively sold more than 60 million copies and have been translated into 41 languages . Several companion books set in the same universe of the series have also been released , including Lemony Snicket : The Unauthorized Autobiography , The Beatrice Letters and the noir prequel tetralogy All the Wrong Questions , which chronicles Snicket 's childhood .
Lemony Snicket is the pen name of American novelist Daniel Handler ( born February 28 , 1970 ) . Snicket is the author of several children 's books , also serving as the narrator of A Series of Unfortunate Events ( his best known work ) and a character within it and All the Wrong Questions . Thus , Lemony Snicket may refer to either the fictional character or Handler . As a character , Snicket is a harried , troubled writer and photographer who is falsely accused of various felonies and continuously hunted by the police and his enemies , the fire-starting side of the secret organization VFD ( Volunteer Fire Department ) . As a child , he was kidnapped and inducted as a neophyte into VFD , where he was trained in rhetoric and sent on seemingly pointless missions , while all connections were severed from his former life , apart from his siblings Jacques and Kit ( who were also kidnapped and inducted ) . In the organization , he met and fell in love with a peer named Beatrice , to whom he got engaged . He was falsely accused of murder and arson ; eventually , the fallacies grew so much that The Daily Punctilio reported his death . Beatrice later moved on and married Bertrand Baudelaire , becoming the mother of Violet , Klaus , and Sunny Baudelaire , the protagonists of A Series of Unfortunate Events . Fourteen years thereafter , Beatrice and Bertrand were supposedly murdered in a house fire , leaving the Baudelaire children orphaned and then pursued by Snicket 's former associate , Count Olaf . Snicket feels indebted to his former fiancée and embarks on a quest to chronicle the lives of the Baudelaire children until they become old enough to face the troubles of the world on their own . Snicket is the subject of a fictional autobiography entitled Lemony Snicket : The Unauthorized Autobiography which contains an introduction from a fictionalized version of Daniel Handler . A pamphlet called 13 Shocking Secrets You 'll Wish You Never Knew About Lemony Snicket was released in promotion of The End .
Daniel Handler ( born February 28 , 1970 ) is an American writer and musician . He is best known for his children 's series A Series of Unfortunate Events and All the Wrong Questions , published under the pseudonym Lemony Snicket . The former was adapted into a Nickelodeon film in 2004 as well as a Netflix series from 2017 to 2019 . Handler has also published adult novels and a stage play under his real name , along with other children 's books under the Snicket pseudonym . His first book , a satirical fiction piece titled The Basic Eight was rejected by many publishers for its dark subject matter . Handler has also played the accordion in several bands .
The Little House Books is a series of American children 's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder , based on her childhood and adolescence in the American Midwest ( Wisconsin , Kansas , Minnesota , South Dakota , and Missouri ) between 1870 and 1894 . Eight of the novels were completed by Wilder , and published by Harper & Brothers . The appellation Little House books comes from the first and third novels in the series of eight published in her lifetime . The second novel was about her husband 's childhood . The first draft of a ninth novel was published posthumously in 1971 and is commonly included in the series . The Little House books have been adapted for stage or screen more than once , most successfully as the American television series Little House on the Prairie , which ran from 1974 to 1983 . As well as an anime and many spin-off books , there are cookbooks and various other licensed products representative of the books . A tenth book , the non-fiction On the Way Home , is Laura Ingalls Wilder 's diary of the years after 1894 , when she , her husband and their infant daughter moved from De Smet , South Dakota to Mansfield , Missouri , where they settled permanently . It was published in 1962 and includes commentary by Rose Wilder Lane .
Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder ( February 7 , 1867 - February 10 , 1957 ) was an American writer known for the Little House on the Prairie series of children 's books , published between 1932 and 1943 , which were based on her childhood in a settler and pioneer family . During the 1970s and early 1980s , the television series Little House on the Prairie was loosely based on the Little House books , and starred Melissa Gilbert as Laura and Michael Landon as her father , Charles Ingalls .
Jack Reacher is a fictional character and the protagonist of a series of crime thriller novels by British author Lee Child . After leaving the US Army as a major in its military police at age 36 , Reacher roams the United States taking odd jobs and investigating suspicious and frequently dangerous situations . As of 29 October 2019 [ update ] , 24 novels have been published , the most recent being Blue Moon . The character has also appeared in short stories , and two of the novels have been adapted into successful action thriller films , starring Tom Cruise as Reacher .
James Dover Grant CBE ( born 29 October 1954 ) , primarily known by his pen name Lee Child , is a British author who writes thriller novels , and is best known for his Jack Reacher novel series . The books follow the adventures of a former American military policeman , Jack Reacher , who wanders the United States . His first novel , Killing Floor ( 1997 ) , won both the Anthony Award , and the Barry Award for Best First Novel .
The Magic School Bus is a series of children 's books about science , written by Joanna Cole and illustrated by Bruce Degen . They feature the antics of Ms. Valerie Frizzle and her class , who board a sentient anthropomorphic Type A school bus which takes them on field trips to impossible locations , including the solar system , clouds , the past , and the human body . The books are written in the first person from the point of view of an unnamed student in the Friz 's class . The class has a pet lizard named Liz , who accompanies the class on their field trips . Since the Magic School Bus books present scientific facts in the form of stories in which fantastic things happen ( for example , the bus turns into a spaceship , or children shrink to the size of blood cells ) , each book has a page at the end detailing in a humorous manner which parts of the book represented scientific fact and which were fanciful storytelling .
Joanna Cole ( born August 11 , 1944 ) , is an American writer of childrens books . She is most famous as the author of The Magic School Bus series . She has written over 250 books ranging from her first book Cockroaches to her famous series Magic School Bus , which is illustrated by Bruce Degen .
Bruce Degen ( born June 14 , 1945 ) is an American illustrator and writer with over forty children 's books to his credit . He may be known best for illustrating the series The Magic School Bus written by Joanna Cole . He has collaborated with writers Nancy White Carlstrom , on the Jesse Bear books , and Jane Yolen , on the Commander Toad series . Degen has authored Jamberry , Daddy Is a Doodlebug , and Shirley 's Wonderful Baby . He was encouraged by an elementary school teacher to become an illustrator , and pursue his primary love for art found in childrens books . Humor is one of his key values , as expressed by a quote comparing children 's illustration to traditional fine arts : You do n't see many people walking around a gallery are chuckling . And I realized that I wanted a chuckle . His career has included such diverse activities as advertising design , teaching art to students , teaching children 's book illustration to adults , painting scenery for opera productions , and running a lithography studio in Israel . Degen lives in Connecticut .
Where 's Wally ? ( called Where 's Waldo ? in North America ) is a British series of children 's puzzle books created by English illustrator Martin Handford . The books consist of a series of detailed double-page spread illustrations depicting dozens or more people doing a variety of amusing things at a given location . Readers are challenged to find a character named Wally hidden in the group . Wally is identified by his red-and-white-striped shirt , bobble hat , and glasses , but many illustrations contain red herrings involving deceptive use of red-and-white striped objects . Later entries in the long-running book series added other targets for readers to find in each illustration . The books have also inspired a television program ( Where 's Wally ? the 1991 animated series ) , comic strip and a series of video games .
Martin Handford ( born 27 September 1956 ) is an English children 's author and illustrator who gained worldwide fame in the mid-1980s with his Where 's Wally ? creation ( known as Where 's Waldo ? in North America ) .
Men Are from Mars , Women Are from Venus ( 1992 ) is a book written by American author and relationship counselor John Gray , after he had earned degrees in meditation and taken a correspondence course in psychology . The book states that most common relationship problems between men and women are a result of fundamental psychological differences between the sexes , which the author exemplifies by means of its eponymous metaphor : that men and women are from distinct planets - men from Mars and women from Venus - and that each sex is acclimated to its own planet 's society and customs , but not to those of the other . One example is men 's complaint that if they offer solutions to problems that women bring up in conversation , the women are not necessarily interested in solving those problems , but mainly want to talk about them . The book asserts each sex can be understood in terms of distinct ways they respond to stress and stressful situations . The book has sold more than 15 million copies and , according to a CNN report , it was the highest ranked work of non-fiction of the 1990s , spending 121 weeks on the bestseller list . The book and its central metaphor have become a part of popular culture and the foundation for the author 's subsequent books , recordings , seminars , theme vacations , one-man Broadway show , TV sitcom , workout videos , a podcast , men 's and ladies ' apparel lines , fragrances , travel guides and his-and-hers salad dressings .
John Gray ( born December 28 , 1951 ) is an American relationship counselor , lecturer and author . In 1969 , he began a nine-year association with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi before beginning his career as an author and personal relationship counselor . In 1992 he published the book Men Are from Mars , Women Are from Venus , which became a long term best seller and formed the central theme of all his subsequent books and career activities . His books have sold millions of copies .