My childhood favorite was Pinocchio! I remember I had a record of the story that I played on repeat all the time. The novel (The Adventures of Pinocchio) was written by Carlo Collodi. Remember Jiminy Cricket? He was a main character in the Disney movie but was a relatively minor character in the novel and was unnamed (The Talking Cricket).
The old wood-carver Geppetto decides to make a wonderful puppet which can dance and turn somersaults, but by chance he chooses an unusual piece of wood - and the finished puppet can talk and misbehave like the liveliest child. But Pinocchio is brave and inquisitive as well as naughty, and after some hair-raising adventures, he earns his heart's desire. 
