Amazon.com Inc said on Tuesday it agreed to acquire more than 450 children's book titles in the U.S. from publisher Marshall Cavendish.

The titles include The Night Before Christmas, illustrated by Gennady Spirin; Chalk by Bill Thomson; and My Name is Not Easy by Debby Dahl Edwardson, Amazon said.

The deal helps Amazon's publishing business expand further into picture books, chapter books and Young Adult novels, the company added. It did not disclose a purchase price.

Amazon will keep publishing the books in print form, but the company also said it will sell them as e-books which can be read on its Kindle e-readers and Kindle Fire tablet computer.

(Reporting by Alistair Barr)

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