10 of the Most Valuable Children’s Books

Condition is king when it comes to selling rare books. Torn pages, cracked spines, and annotations (unless made by the author themselves!) all dramatically lower the price that a book stands to fetch. This means that highly prized children’s books—which often aren’t handled as carefully as adult’s books—can be worth a fortune if they’re in pristine condition.

The most expensive children’s book ever sold is J.K. Rowling’s The Tales of Beedle the Bard—a book of fairy tales within the world of Harry Potter. In 2007, one of the seven limited-edition copies—which were handwritten by Rowling and decorated with semiprecious stones and silver—was bought at auction by Amazon for $3.97 million. The proceeds went to The Children’s Voice charity.

In second place is Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, with author Lewis Carroll’s own first edition copy selling for $1.54 million in 1998. First published in 1865, the initial print run was withdrawn before it hit shelves because illustrator John Tenniel was “entirely dissatisfied with the printing of the pictures.” Just 23 copies are known to exist today. A copy of the first printing that was actually available for sale will set buyers back by around $30,000. There’s also the limited-edition 1969 version illustrated in surrealist style by Salvador Dalí, a copy of which sold on AbeBooks for $20,000 in 2014.

Carroll also has a link to another valuable book: J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit (1937). Similarities between the two authors are pointed out on the first print run’s dust jacket (which was illustrated by Tolkien himself!): Both were Oxford academics who wrote children’s fantasy novels that they initially didn’t plan to publish. However, Carroll’s birth name—Charles Dodgson—is misspelled “Dodgeson” and the errant e had to be crossed out by hand before the books were put on sale. In 2015, one of these editions sold for $210,500. Check out some of the other most valuable children’s books below.

10 of the Most Expensive Children’s Books Sold at Auction

1. The Tales of Beedle the Bard, J.K. Rowling // $3.97 million
2. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll // $1.54 million
3. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, J.K. Rowling // $471,000
4. The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien // $210,500
5. Grimms’ Fairy Tales, The Brothers Grimm // $138,600
6. The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry // $125,000
7. The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Beatrix Potter // $95,600
8. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame // $92,000
9. Robinson Crusoe, Daniel Defoe // $81,250
10. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum // $81,250

10 of the Most Valuable Children’s Books on the Secondary Market, According to AbeBooks

1. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, J.K. Rowling // $85,620
2. The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien // $65,000
3. Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak // $25,000
4. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl // $25,000
5. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll // $20,000
6. The Velveteen Rabbit, Margery Williams // $15,950
7. Winnie-the-Pooh, A.A. Milne // $11,851
8. A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle // $11,000
9. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum // $8800
10. Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens, J.M. Barrie // $6500

Read More Stories About Children’s Books: