'Narnia' tale tops best kids' book list

London -- "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" was named the best children's book of all time in a poll of 4,000 people conducted by the London-based group Booktrust.

Booktrust is an independent organization created to promote reading.

C.S. Lewis' "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe," written in 1950, is part of the popular "Chronicles of Narnia" fantasy book series.

Eric Carle's picture book "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" came in at No. 2 on the survey, followed by Enid Blyton's "Famous Five" at No. 3, A.A. Milne's "Winnie the Pooh" at No. 4 and Roald Dahl's "The BFG" at No. 5.

Rounding out the top tier were "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling at No. 6, "The Faraway Tree" by Enid Blyton at No. 7, "The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Grahame at No. 8, "Alice in Wonderland" by Lewis Carroll at No. 9 and "The Gruffalo" by Julia Donaldson at No. 10.

"It's wonderful to see the enduring popularity of these books which are loved by generation after generation," Viv Bird, Booktrust's director, said in a statement, noting the results of the Top 50 survey included "a fascinating mix of classic and contemporary titles."

Copyright 2008 by United Press International.