Engaging with classic literature can be hard work for a child.

Not because they aren’t clever enough to understand it, or because the stories are too old, or so dated they don’t make any sense.

It’s often because the language gets in the way.

Old-fashioned references. Archaic vocabulary. Long, winding sentences that seem to go on forever. Dense descriptions that can turn a young reader off, before the story has even had a chance to begin.