I Re-Read 15 Of Robert Munsch's Most Popular Kids Books — Here's A Definitive Ranking

    Hopefully I'm not the only one who remembers Purple, Green and Yellow.

    Abby Zinman
    by Abby Zinman

    BuzzFeed Staff

    If you grew up in the 2000s, odds are you spent lots of time reading stories created by the absolute master of kids’ books, Robert Munsch. If you don’t know who that is, man, did you miss out on a fun-filled childhood.

    Individual in a suit flanked by two people in red ceremonial uniforms on a walk of fame
    Getty Images / Via gettyimages.ca

    You might remember him from writing iconic books like I Love You Forever and The Paper Bag Princess.

    So, you can imagine my excitement when I found my giant collection — The Munschworks Grand Treasury, which includes a whopping 15 books in it, including all your favourites: Purple, Green and Yellow; Something Good… I could go on.

    Book cover with various illustrated characters and title "The Munschworks Grand Treasury" by Robert Munsch and illustrators
    Abby Zinman

    Yes, that's a yellow paint stain on the cover, and no, I have no idea when I got paint on this book.

    Well, I spent my morning re-reading all 386 pages of this collection — so now I’m gonna do my absolute best to rank these 15 books, from least to most favourite. Here we go!

    Table of contents page from a book with chapter titles and illustrations along the margin
    Abby Zinman

    Although I love it very much, I won’t be ranking I Love You Forever for two reasons: one, it’s way too sad for me to reread, and two, I don’t have access to it (it’s not in the big book, and I spent an hour looking for it with no luck). But we all know it'd be a 10/10.

    15. Mortimer

    Illustration of a character, Mortimer, with a teddy bear, singing in bed from the book "Mortimer" by Robert Munsch
    Abby Zinman

    Mortimer is about a kid who won’t stop singing at bedtime and, even with the help of his parents, 17 siblings, and the police, he just keeps making noise. Truly, this story brought me back to my babysitting days. I ended up getting more annoyed at Mortimer than anything, which, not gonna lie, does make me feel a bit old. 

    Rating: 7.3 out of 10 tired parents

    14. The Fire Station

    Cover of "The Fire Station" book showing an illustration of a firefighter, a Dalmatian dog, and two children
    Abby Zinman

    This is the story of two kids who, long story short, sneak into a fire station and get burned, only for their parents to not recognize them. Although it was certainly amusing like all Robert Munsch books are, this one was more scary than anything for me. I did appreciate the ending, though, when Sheila takes Michael into a police station — so bonus points for the nice circular ending.

    Rating: 7.8 out of 10 bubble baths

    13. I Have To Go!

    Open book showing illustrated page with title "I Have to Go!" and text "illustrated by Michael Martchenko" with two children characters
    Abby Zinman

    A relatable story for anyone who's ever taken care of kids before, I Have To Go! is about a little boy who — how do I put this nicely — can’t seem to control his bladder. This one is probably the most accurate story of them all, because it’s just a fact that kids aren’t so great at knowing when they have to use the bathroom. It fell a bit short of the "wow" factor for me, but maybe that’s because this one isn’t as nostalgic as the others.

    Rating: 8 out of 10 near-accidents

    12. Show and Tell

    Abby Zinman

    To recap, this story is about a boy who brings his baby sister for show and tell, only for all the adults in the school to struggle to quiet the baby down. I know the doctor in this story is supposed to be the villain, but he seriously made me so angry, it inhibited my ability to give this book a super-high rating — trying to give a baby a massive needle just to silence it seriously deserves jail time.

    My favourite part of this book is at the end, when all the kids bring crazy items for the next show and tell — we can see Elizabeth from The Paper Bag Princess and her dragon (who I assume is her item for show and tell). So, bonus points for the Easter egg.

    Rating: 8.1 out of 10 distressed teachers

    11. Thomas' Snowsuit

    Illustration from "Thomas' Snowsuit" showing a child in a mismatched outfit and a smaller child looking on
    Abby Zinman

    This one is quite the story — Thomas, a little boy who refuses to put on his snowsuit, essentially ends up causing chaos between his teacher and principal at his school. I enjoyed this story — it’s lighthearted, cute, and fun, but it’s not the most memorable.

    Rating: 8.2 out of 10 teacher brawls

    10. Jonathan Cleaned Up — Then He Heard A Sound

    Book page from "Jonathan Cleaned Up—Then He Heard a Sound" showing an illustration of a startled boy in a messy room
    Abby Zinman

    I actually don’t remember this book at all, but it was a pleasant surprise — it’s about a boy who finds a subway station in his house. As someone who was practically raised on the TTC (the Toronto subway), this one hit close to home. This book is wholesome and entertaining above anything, and plus, I’m a sucker for a bit of magical realism in a story.

    Rating: 8.3 out of 10 busy subway stations

    9. Pigs

    Illustration from a children's book showing a child looking over a fence at a group of pigs
    Abby Zinman

    I forgot all about this story, and it’s actually quite hilarious — Pigs is about a girl who lets out a pack of pigs, only for them to ransack her house and school. This one had a great ending as well, when the story essentially teases Megan letting out an elephant at the zoo. Also, it’s worth mentioning that the illustrations in this story are on point, and worth giving a second look.

    Rating: 8.5 out of 10 wild pigs

    8. Angela's Airplane

    Book page showing title "Angela's Airplane" by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Martchenko, with artwork of a plane
    Abby Zinman

    Another one that was seriously scary, even as an adult! This story is about five-year-old Angela who ends up accidentally flying a plane. All I have to say is, this child is brilliant, because even me as an adult wouldn’t know how to follow instructions if I took control of a plane.

    Robert Munsch hits the nail on the head with these endings — this might be my favourite conclusion to any of his books (spoiler alert: even after all that chaos, Angela ends up becoming an airplane pilot when she gets older). How adorable is that?!

    Rating: 8.8 out of 10 airplane buttons

    7. A Promise is a Promise

    Book page titled "A Promise is a Promise" showing an illustration of a child in winter clothing against a snowy backdrop
    Abby Zinman

    This book is a double-whammy, because it’s not only written by Robert Munsch, but also Michael Kusugak, who is a Canadian author and Inuit storyteller. 

    A Promise is a Promise is longer than the others — it’s about a girl named Allashua who lives by a frozen ocean and ends up getting tricked by fabled Inuit creatures named Qallupilluit. This story was definitely one I remember reading when I was a slightly older child, but to this day, it’s probably the most interesting out of this bunch of stories.

    Rating: 9 out of 10 cracks in sea ice

    6. David's Father

    Book cover with the title "David's Father" showing a child facing a giant illustrated elephant. Written by Robert Munsch and illustrated by Michael Martchenko
    Abby Zinman

    I completely forgot about this book, and it actually made me laugh out loud. This one is about a girl who makes a new friend, only to find out that his father is a giant. I especially love how David’s father eats chocolate-covered bricks for dessert. Albeit a bit crazy toward the end, I truly enjoyed this story, and it accomplished the goal of bringing back memories.

    Rating: 9.2 out of 10 mini milkshakes

    5. Murmel, Murmel, Murmel

    Illustration from "Murmel, Murmel" showing a girl sitting on the ground next to a baby who is holding a sand pail
    Abby Zinman

    This book is so wholesome; I didn’t remember the story at all, and I had the best time reading it! Murmel, Murmel, Murmel is about a girl who — this is gonna sound weird, but just go with it — finds a baby in her backyard, and tries to find a home for him. Although it might not be right to randomly give away a baby, nor to give the responsibility of finding that baby a home to a five-year-old, this one is surprisingly amazing.

    Rating: 9.3 out of 10 lonely truck drivers

    4. Something Good

    Illustration of a chaotic grocery scene from "Something Good" by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Martchenko
    Abby Zinman

    Something Good is about a girl who stands so still, she gets mistaken for a doll at the store after getting in a fight with her dad. More than anything, it’s really about family — the father-daughter relationship in this story is really adorable. I will say, though, looking back, Tyya’s dad makes some questionable choices — but I’m choosing to ignore it for cuteness’ sake.

    Rating: 9.8 out of 10 price tags

    3. Stephanie's Ponytail

    Illustration of a book cover titled "Stephanie's Ponytail" with author names Robert Munsch and Michael Martchenko. Shows a girl with a ponytail facing a mirror held by an adult
    Abby Zinman

    This one is probably my personal favourite, and the most iconic to me. Basically, it’s about a girl named Stephanie whose classmates keep copying her hairstyles, and let’s just say she gets fed up. There are some classic lines in this book — to this day, my family constantly quotes, “It’s my ponytail, and I like it.” I’m also not joking when I tell you I actually dressed as Stephanie for costume day at my elementary school.

    With an amazing moral of the value in individuality and an actually hilarious and unexpected ending, there’s literally nothing I could criticise about this story.

    Rating: 10 out of 10 shaved heads

    2. Purple, Green and Yellow

    Cover of "Purple, Green, and Yellow" by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Hélène Desputeaux, showing a child surrounded by markers
    Abby Zinman

    Guys, this book is truly so entertaining, I genuinely love it — not just for nostalgia purposes, but just because it’s an amazing story with such cool pictures. In case you don’t remember, the main character is Brigid, who convinces her mom to buy her “super-indelible-never-come-off-till-you’re-dead-and-maybe-even-later colouring markers” (the greatest product name of all time, if you ask me). 

    I love how creative this story is — I can say with certainty that nothing has ever been written like it since. I seriously had a blast reading this.

    Rating: 10 out of 10 smelly markers

    1. The Paper Bag Princess

    Illustration of a green dragon and a small girl from the book "The Paper Bag Princess" by Robert Munsch
    Abby Zinman

    A classic if I've ever seen one, this story is about a princess and a dragon who burns down her castle. She tries to get past said dragon to meet her prince, and when she finally does this, she realizes her so-called prince is shallow and selfish, and turns him down. 

    This one is tried and true, and it’s a real feminist story if I’ve ever seen one! Countless adult books and movies force characters into romance because it’s assumed as the "happy ending," but this book was ahead of its time by flipping this overused trend on its head. Elizabeth pulls an Elle Woods and shoots the man down, after proving her wits against all odds. She demonstrates that the real quality of a princess isn’t what she wears — it’s her confidence, intelligence, and true heart.

    Besides, The Paper Bag Princess is an iconic character and story for a reason.

    Rating: 10 out of 10 fiery dragons

    What's your favourite Robert Munsch book? Let us know in the comments below, and follow BuzzFeed Canada's Instagram and TikTok for your daily dose of Canadian nostalgia.