Abstract
The aim of the paper is to present a discussion on the issue of classicality in relation to children’s literature and in the context of ideology, as well as to formulate a definition of literary classics for young readers based on socio-cultural and not aesthetic criteria. The author refers to representative examples of Polish and English reflection on the issue and, at the end of the article, proposes to define classical works as literary texts that, after many years from their creation, are still subjected to professional and non-professional rereading and various transformations.