Darcy Moore, deputy principal of Dapto High School, was a voracious reader as a child, inspired by a poster in his primary school that said, ‘kids who read succeed’.

Many years later, Mr Moore is a world-respected expert on author George Orwell and lists four classics he says no young person should leave childhood without reading:

• Animal Farm by George Orwell

• Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White

• The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

• Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach

“These books suit all ages and really work well when read aloud. They are great books to re-read and as children mature, they will see much more in the stories than what they originally perceived,” Mr Moore said.

"The four books between them gave students a fantastic critical platform to understand some of the key challenges in life and society.

“One reason for reading is the never-ending quest for wisdom. These books explore the joys of friendship, loyalty, creativity and imagination. They do not shy away from the challenges of our mortality and of the way power can be abused. All of them are timeless and have not dated.”

Darcy Moore spoke to ABC broadcaster Dom Knight about the four classics and how one good book leads to the next. Here is an edited transcript of the interview:

Animal Farm

"George Orwell's most perfect novel is Animal Farm. It's a satire that critiques political corruption and tyranny. The plot is deceptively simply - the animals drive their alcoholic farmer Mr Jones off Manor Farm, renaming it Animal Farm in order to create an egalitarian society.

"But power corrupts the pigs who become indistinguishable from the humans that they've replaced.

"The most famous epigram from the novel is, 'All animlas are equal, but some animals are more equal than others'.

"The novella is just 120 pages long; it's a fable and an allegory. It can be read on such a simple level, but it can be studied endlessly."

Charlotte’s Web

"Charlotte's Web is a companion piece to Animal Farm. It was written in 1952, so six or seven years after Animal Farm.

"It's just so beautiful and affecting. It's the story of Wilbur, a pig, and Charlotte, a wise spider who saves him from being slaughtered by weaving her web into words to praise him.

"Once again you can come to Charlotte's Web very young as I did. But then I found out more about (author) E.B. White and read his essay on New York, 'Here is New York' and one good book just leads to the next, doesn't it?"

The Little Prince

“On one level The Little Prince is an illustrated children’s story about a young intergalactic prince from an impossibly tiny asteroid who travels from planet to planet.

"It opens with the pilot (the narrator) showing a drawing of a hat to adults and he says, ‘What’s this?’ But it’s not a picture of a hat, it’s a boa constrictor so it’s very much about imagination.

"The life outside of the text of the book is really interesting. When I first read it, I had no idea about the French author’s (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry) life story – how he crashed in the desert and was lost for four days until he was rescued by Bedouin people.

"The book couldn’t be published in France. His work was banned in 1943 by the Vichy French Government, so it was published in the United States.”

Jonathan Livingston Seagull

“Jonathan Livingston Seagull was a bit of a sleeper. It was published in 1970 without fanfare. No one reviewed it for a couple of years, but by word of mouth it became this incredible bestseller.

"Jonathan is a seagull who needs more in life than the mundane life of the flock and he’s obsessed with flying faster than any seagull who has lived.

"This passion for excellence doesn’t go down well with the elders of the flock. Richard Bach, the author, was deeply influenced by Buddhism. And you can see that when you read the story.

"It’s an absolutely charming novella and I still can’t see a seagull without thinking which one of them is Jonathan.

“Another interesting thing about Jonathan Livingston Seagull is the book that I read as a kid is not the book that you buy now, there’s a fourth section.

"Bach left the fourth section out at the time, and I won’t say anything about it. But if you read Johnathan Livingston as a kid, get an edition that’s published after about 2014.”

• Darcy Moore received the Peter Davison Award presented by The Orwell Society in London in November 2024 to reward outstanding achievements in uncovering new information about the life of George Orwell, whose real name was Eric Blair.