Robert Dunbar read mainly Hotspur and Wizard tales when he was a young child. Novelist and publisher Dermot Bolger recently celebrated the continuing magic of the much-criticised Enid Blyton in the centenary of her birth. And Siobhan Parkinson, winner of this year's Bisto Children's Book Award, discovered Alice in Wonderland at the age of six - but was also hooked on Blyton, all the same. All of which goes to show that it doesn't do to be a children's book snob. Parents sometimes complain to Robert Dunbar that "my son only reads Point Horror"; he'll reply, "well, lucky you. At least he reads."

Indeed, even in the television age, many children are avid readers, frequently of hugely-popular series like Goosebumps, Babysitters, Sweet Valley, and Point Horror, about which parents get sniffy.

A major difference between childhood then and now is not just television, but the explosion of excellent children's literature for all age groups - with Irish publishers producing some of the best. And this is probably the main problem facing any adult, whether parent, doting relative or friend who'd like to buy their favourite children a book for Christmas. How to choose?

Well, you could ask the child for a list, says Valerie Coghlan of Children's Books Ireland. This provides an opportunity to discuss what they like to read, and the experience of having their reading tastes taken seriously. You could buy a book voucher: they'll enjoy the prospect of an outing to buy books they've chosen themselves.

And although you should never, never sneer or put down the books children like to read, you might use Christmas as an opportunity to introduce them to a few non-series books - children can get very rigid ideas about what they will and won't read (just like adults, yes). Look out for well-illustrated books for all ages - too many adults take the attitude that picture books are something to grow out of. But nearly all the pundits and children's authors I talked to point out that pictures often make a good book great (See Alice, Wind in the Willows etc)

Be open to the dazzling array of pop-up, pull-the-tab "toy" books, but ask yourself - is this really a clever-clever book that adults will love more than kids? Will it stand up to vigorous play? Be cautious about treasuries - some are excellent, others a triumph of packaging over content. Ask booksellers for advice.

The Guide to Children's Books, published by Children's Books Ireland, is still available free in bookshops and libraries, and provides a useful by-age guide. Below are some suggestions from children's authors and booksellers. And judging by how universally it is recommended by just about everyone in the world of children's books, it seems certain that you should consider buying The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey by Susan Wojciechowski, illustrated by P.J. Lynch, out in paperback this year (Poolbeg, £5.99) - even if you haven't got a child.

Check out this Saturday's

Weekend supplement of The Irish Times for lots more on kids' books.