Best children's books for Christmas - win over £200 worth of gorgeous gifts

We didn't have any money when we were little so my dad used to collect wood offcuts from the joiners and make our toys. We had a see-saw, desks, dolls prams, farmhouse and sweet shops. They were all painted blue which was leftover paint from our front door and me and my sisters adored them because our dad had made them for us

I don't remember any one that I know having extravagant presents at Christmas. Clothing was often involved - a new coat if needed, etc. Each year we would get an annual by our beds from 'Santa'. I loved waking up to it - a new book to read. It took me years to realised this meant we were occupied for a bit longer so Mum and Dad didn't get disturbed quite so early! As well as reading anything with print on it I loved to write plays - for my friends, for my dolls, whoever. One year my main present was a theatre my Dad had made for me. It had characters on sticks that you, and whoever you could force to do it with you, could move in from the side of the theatre. That meant so much to me.

A cuckoo clock - drove everyone else cuckoo, though!

A big cuddly ape - I named him Albert after my Grandad!

My aunt sent me a soft tiger ,which to me was so very large,it had a little zip in its tummy to put my pyjamas .but I kept all my precious things in there so my brother would not find them.

The best present I ever had was a hand made crib given to me by my nan's gentleman friend it was carved out if wood and had a wooden hood over years later it was put in the loft and I never saw it again I oftern wonder where it went

Spirograph I spent hours making the fantastic patterns and colouring them

A ginger kitten. I was told there was a surprise for me in the kitchen. I hurried downstairs but saw nothing! The kitten was hiding behind the Aga. He became my best friend.

Without a shadow of a doubt, some blue sparkly Cinderella shoes, when I was about five years old. I absolutely loved them and sixty years later, I still smile and feel a little frisson of delight when I see pretty shoes like this in toy shop windows. I never did find my Prince Charming ( I know, I know, there's still time...although I have to say that the prospect is less appealing these days ...lol!!) but oh those shoes...I felt like a real princess!

My favourite present is a teddy bear from my granny, when I was four. He is less fluffy and clean looking than he was then but is still very much loved.
Theodore has been with me for fifty years, has several changes of clothing and uniform and travels everywhere with me.
He has two passports because his first one has been filled with stamps from the different countries that we have been to.

When I was 6 my auntie bought me a post office set. It had a stamper in. I was so excited I stamped all the little envelopes, lots of pieces of paper....and then on the wallpaper. My Dad went bonkers and took it away from me for a month and I only got it back when I promised no more stamping on wallpaper.

I had no memorable gifts as a young child, but when I was fourteen I got a brand new (as opposed to second hand) brown, belted winter coat for Christmas. It was my first new coat and as a teen in the 60's I thought it was the best thing ever.

A lorry filled with sweets from grandparents! I was overjoyed at a packet of sweet cigarettes and ignored the expensive lorry much to my mother’s chagrin!

The Jacko chimps that hung up in Woolworth's. Some wore blue clothes some wore red. My brother and I asked for nothing else. Still had them as teenagers,minus an ear and a foot haha they were real to us.

I got a copy of the book "The Swiss Family Robinson" and just loved it.

I had a doll with what was known in the 50s as “real hair” i.e “rooted” rather just stick on with glue like my other dolls. It would normally have been out of my parents’ price range but my mum saved up all her cigarette coupons to get it for me! I was almost too old for dolls by then but I still loved her and called her Annette.

My favourite present was a pretty Music Box, the Ballerina would dance to the tune when I opened the lid. I thought it was wonderful. The only technology involved was winding it up. I had it for years and can remember being sad when it stopped working and looked so well loved that it was thrown away.

When I read the question above I immediately thought of my ten year old disappointment I felt at receiving a "toy" sewing machine. My father soon rectified this by buying me a "real" sewing machine, a converted treadle in heavy black and gold painted metal. I used this for years up until my first job and a bank loan for an electric model. That first toy sewing machine, frustrating though it was, opened the gateway to hours of absorption when making dolls clothes and doll bedding, problem solving on how to construct exactly what I wanted, and what to do with the numerous left over pieces of fabric my mother had from dressmaking. I still sew today and even had my grand daughter pressing the foot pedal of the machine when she was just out of toddlerhood!

My best gift was a stationery set in the shape of an old fashioned carousel. It was from a ‘fake’ auntie- one of my mums friends. It was a big surprise and I hadn’t seen anyone with something similar. It was beautiful and I wish I could find a similar one for my daughter!

My favourite present ever was a from my dad. It was a 'gold' bracelet with a pretty mother of pearl type panel which had a rose on it. He didn't usually buy anything but sweets and chocolates for us as my mother was in charge of presents. I think that they must have had an even more serious than usual falling out that year so dad had to do the buying! Didn't happen again, sadly.

my best present when i was about 12 was a second hand shopper bike, well apart from the basket, lol.

I remember getting a doll, it was a small black doll, I even remember the name that I gave it, it was Rosebud. I have never seen a doll like it ever since. I vaguely remember going to a market stall some weeks later with my mum and she bought me a dress and a cardigan for it. I spent hours putting the clothes on and off this doll.

My best present five years ago was having a small tea party after having made friends doing voluntary work. I realised for the first time since school I had kind and genuine friends and appreciated their texts, cards and friendship on the day and ever since.

I wasn't much into toys but loved getting book tokens as I could spend ages going round the local bookshop picking out Puffins.

I clearly remember the worst present ever - I had asked for oil paints but my parents couldn't afford a set so they bought me a tennis practice game instead. I don't know what they were thinking of - I hated ball games and was terrified of tennis because I thought my glasses would get broken (as in fact they later did) - I was virtually blind without them. I reluctantly tried it out with my brother, he hit the ball so hard the elastic broke and it went flying over the wall into a garden on the road parallel to ours - and that was it.

My favourite was a doll who came with her own wooden wardrobe including hangers clothes etc