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Adapted or Abridged

We don't encourage the reading of abridged editions. But, understanding that some parents want to expose their kids to great stories before they're old enough to read the real thing, there are a few collections we've agreed to offer used. All the titles below are massively abridged versions of classic novels and short stories, usually illustrated, and re-written to appeal to less advanced readers.

The problem with abridged books is that they aren't really the original books at all. Sure, the main plot points are there, but classics are more than just bare bones plots; part of what makes a book great is the quality of the author's expression, the wit and grace he or she uses to tell their tale. An abridged or heavily edited version always demolishes the poetry of the original and presents classic stories as simple bulletpoint collections of incidents.

That said, if you intend to have your kids read the original later on, these could provide a decent introduction to provide some familiarity before jumping into Great Expectations or The Iliad. Sometimes reading the classics can be confusing during the first few encounters, and having some knowledge of the general plot, characters, and theme beforehand can be useful (though remember that, in an abridgement, you're getting the editor's interpretation of the theme rather than the theme itself).

With all that said, the abridged classics we have in stock are listed below. Some of them are valuable for their illustrations alone (particularly the Little Unicorn books, with full-color pictures by the Brothers Hildebrandt) or their value as collector's items, but we've priced all of them affordably. We would caution, however, if any of your literature-loving friends come over, hide these volumes in the basement.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Adapted or Abridged
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Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
in Yesterday's Classics (Location: FIC-YC)
$8.96 $7.00 (1 in stock)
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Yesterday's Classics
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
in Yesterday's Classics (Location: FIC-YC)
$10.76
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Living Book Press
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
in Yesterday's Classics (Location: FIC-YC)
$13.46
Beowulf
by Robert Nye
from Laurel-Leaf Books
for 6th-10th grade
$5.09
Beowulf
by Michael Morpurgo
from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-8th grade
$5.94
Beowulf the Warrior
by Ian Serraillier
from Bethlehem Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.31
Beowulf: A Hero's Tale Retold
by James Rumford
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
Black Ships Before Troy
by Rosemary Sutcliff & Alan Lee
from Frances Lincoln
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$16.99
Black Ships Before Troy
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Laurel-Leaf Books
Greek Mythology for 4th-8th grade
$6.79 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Caesar's Gallic War
by Olivia Coolidge
from American Home-School Publishing
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$11.00 (1 in stock)
Caesar's Gallic War
by Olivia Coolidge
from Linnet Books
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Calvin's Institutes: A New Compend
by John Calvin
1st edition from Westminster John Knox Press
for 11th-Adult
$22.50
Canterbury Tales
by Barbara Cohen & Trina Schart Hyman
from William Morrow & Company
Medieval Literature for 3rd-6th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$22.94
Canterbury Tales
Puffin Classics
by Geoffrey Chaucer (retold by Geraldine McCaughrean)
from Puffin Books
Epic Poetry for 7th-9th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$5.94
Chaucer Story Book
by Geoffrey Chaucer
Ill from CreateSpace
for 5th-8th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.61
Children's Plutarch: Tales of the Greeks
by F. J. Gould
from Yesterday's Classics
Greek History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Yesterday's Classics (Location: FIC-YC)
$8.96
Children's Plutarch: Tales of the Romans
by F. J. Gould
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-8th grade
in Yesterday's Classics (Location: FIC-YC)
$8.96
Christmas in the Big Woods
My First Little House
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Classic Tales of Brer Rabbit
by Joel Chandler Harris & Don Daily
from Running Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.46
Count of Monte Cristo (abridged)
Signet Classics
by Alexandre Dumas
from Signet Classics
Realistic Fiction/Adventure for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$5.91
County Fair
My First Little House
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Reprint from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Dance at Grandpa's
My First Little House
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94
Dangerous Journey
by Oliver Hunkin (abridger)
from Eerdmans
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$21.25
Deer in the Wood
My First Little House
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Reprint from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
First Book of Tales of Ancient Araby
First Books
by Charles Mozley
from Franklin Watts
for 1st-4th grade
in Vintage & Collectible (Location: VINTAGE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Gilgamesh the Hero
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Eerdmans
for 4th-8th grade
$17.00
Gilgamesh the King
by Ludmila Zeman
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-4th grade
$7.61
Going to Town
My First Little House
by Laura Ingalls Wilder, Renee Graef
Reprint from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Going West
My First Little House
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94
Great Expectations (abridged)
Puffin Classics
by Charles Dickens
from Puffin Books
Realistic Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.24 $3.00 (1 in stock)
Green Tiger's Illustrated Stories from Shakespeare
by E. Nesbit
from Laughing Elephant
for 4th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
Grendel
by John Gardner
from Vintage Classics
for 11th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$12.95 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Iliad
by Rosemary Sutcliff & Alan Lee
from Frances Lincoln
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
Iliad (retold)
by Homer & Barbara Leonie Picard
from Oxford University
for 4th-8th grade
Iliad for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
for 5th-8th grade
in Yesterday's Classics (Location: FIC-YC)
$8.96
Illustrated Stories from Shakespeare
by Willam Shakespeare, Rosie Dickens
from Usborne
for 2nd-5th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
In Search of a Homeland
by Penelope Lively & Ian Andrew
from Frances Lincoln
Picture Book/Mythology for 4th-8th grade
Last Quest of Gilgamesh
by Ludmila Zeman
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-4th grade
$7.61
Little House Birthday
My First Little House
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Little Pilgrim's Progress
by Helen Taylor
from Moody Press
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 4th-6th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.34
Little Prairie House
My First Little House
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Lost Prince of Samavia (abridged)
by Frances Hodgson Burnett
from Bob Jones University Press
Action Adventure for 4th-8th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.50
Miguel de Cervantes's Don Quixote
by Marcia Williams
1st edition from Candlewick Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Moby-Dick
by Herman Melville
1st edition from Candlewick Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$18.69
Moby-Dick
by Herman Melville
1st edition from Candlewick Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$11.04
More Tales from Shakespeare
by Marcia Williams
from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-7th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$8.99
Much Ado About Nothing
by Lois Burdett
from Firefly Books
for 2nd-5th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Norse Mythology
by Neil Gaiman
for 8th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$13.56
Nutcracker
by E. T. A. Hoffmann
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Odyssey (retold)
Puffin Classics
by Geraldine McCaughrean retells Homer
Puffin Classics from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
$5.94 $4.00 (1 in stock)
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