At my stores, my staff and I are often asked what kinds of Tintin books would be best for a young child (usually 10 and under). This is a trickier questions than many would assume since the subject matter is varied and some of it can be rather sophisticated for a young reader. With the news of the upcoming Tintin movie, questions about how to get a young child started with the books are becoming more common. To help, I have compiled a list of the best Tintin books for children.
The criteria:
- Action/humor – the book must be one with a lot of action and physical humor because the stories tend to be heavy on dialogue and young readers sometimes have a difficult time with many of the big words and odd font style used in the Herge books;
- Politically and culturally neutral – we steer customers toward books with plots and characters that can be understood out of their historical context. For example, The Blue Lotus was written specifically to criticize British and Japanese colonialism in China, and without being able to understand that message, the book losses much of its impact.
- Compelling illustrations – the stories must be supported with action-driven full-color illustrations that transport the reader into the narrative.
- Characters – the books, especially for new readers, should have as many of the Tintin characters as possible.
Based on the above, here are my choices for the Best Tintin books for children 10 and under:
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