Early Years By childrens literature 1851 A Wonder Book for Boys and Girls First American book written for children. Period: 1871 to 1977 Alices Adventures in Wonderland/ Through the looking glass Purely written to give pleasure to children. There is no lesson or moral. Period: 1879 to 1880 Heidi By Johanna Spyri Period: 1906 to 1907 The Wonderful Adventures of Nils Published in Sweden with equal enthusiasm. By Selma Lagelof