Dark novels imagined as children's books

Post-apocalyptic cannibalism; middle class families bordering on the dysfunctional; terrorist attacks; brutal scalping parties massacring natives across 19th century America.

It doesn’t take a school librarian to work out why these synopses are rarely preceded with “Once Upon A Time” - adult themes, quite wisely, are restricted to adult books.

Nonetheless, it's not stopped one artist from raffishly whipping up a series of book cover designs that brilliantly turn some of the most contentious and critically-heralded novels of our time into kiddie-friendly fodder.

Assembled for his Tumblr Misguided Paeans, designer Jerry Puryear utilised works from classic authors such as Cormac McCarthy, translating the nerve-tinged terror of Blood Meridian into a fun looking cowboy read, while ignoring the post-apocalyptic wastelands of The Road and focusing on the father-son 'adventure'.

Other unlikely treats include Jonathan Franzen’s The Corrections, Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch, and Michael Chabon’s Wonder Boys; some even boasting inset images to further hammer home the absurd accessibility of children's book art.

And they all lived happily ever after. Okay, we're lying.

(Images: Jerry Puryear)