Price knew all the right buttons to press to excite a young reader - exotic locations, nasty villains, wild animals and lashings of peril

Willard Price makes the pulse-rate soar

Stevenson conveyed such a strong sense of place and time that I felt I was right there with the Jacobites, running through the heather, being chased by the Redcoats

A rollicking adventure story

So what makes these different to any other set of classics? In a moment of inspiration Random House had the bright idea of actually asking Key stage 2 children what extra ingredients they could add to make children want to read. And does it work? Well, put it this way...my 13-year-old daughter announced that she had to read a book over the summer holiday and, without any prompting, spotted The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas...and proceeded to read it! Now, if you knew my 13-year-old daughter, you would realise that this is quite remarkable. She reads texts, blogs and tags by the thousand - but this is the first book she has read since going to high school, so all hail Vintage Classics!

A fun and thought-provoking story of self-discovery, and the humour and gentleness with which Boyne delivers his message make it both unforgettable and delightful