Usborne Illustrated Story Collections books in order

Reading order

Rob Lloyd Jones built the Usborne Illustrated Story Collections into one of the publisher’s most recognisable ranges, with 38 titles produced between 2003 and 2023. Each book gathers multiple stories or adapted texts under a theme, illustrated throughout in Usborne’s distinctive style. The range covers fairy tales, myths, Shakespeare, Dickens, Aesop, the Bible, Arabian Nights, and many other traditions.

The collection grew steadily through the 2010s, adding more specific cultural focuses alongside the core fairy tale and classics titles. Illustrated Stories From India (2015), Illustrated Myths From Around The World (2017), and Tales of Brave and Brilliant Girls From Around The World (2020) reflect a broadening of the range to include non-European storytelling traditions. The “Forgotten Fairy Tales” strand, which began in 2019, focuses specifically on tales that feature capable female protagonists and have been less widely anthologised than the mainstream canon.

Complete Jane Austen (2018) and TheComplete Dickens (2018) took the format in a different direction, compiling illustrated abridgements of entire literary canons into single volumes. The 10 Ten-minute series, including Ten-minute Fairy Tales (2017) and Ten-minute Bedtime Stories (2018), adapted the anthology format for short bedtime reading sessions. Across all 38 titles, the series has become a go-to resource for illustrated children’s fiction.