Fables and Fairy Tales Books

I enjoyed reading this book and I found the artwork to be most interesting. This book explains two of our strangest creatures, the flying squirrel and the bat, who can fly although they are not birds. The excitement builds up as the birds find a way to make wings for the little animals, no bigger than mice, to prepare for the ball game. The action of the game itself is quick and intense, as the animals and birds battle it out. Can you guess who wins? You'll find yourself cheering for Bat as he dips and dives for the ball, but watch out! Bluejay drops the ball just at the crucial moment. I give this one an A+ for enjoyment.

I am happy to find a book that describes the game of stickball the way it was originally played here in the southeast. We Cherokees called the game "the little brother of war" in the old days. Even now our villages near the Cherokee Reservation in North Carolina play against each other in the traditional was, by setting up goal posts at both ends of the ball field. You will hear the teams taunting each other just as described in this book. Thanks to the writer and the artist for helping to keep our culture alive.

What more could you ask from a picture book? The Great Ball Game of the Birds and Animals is a wonderful tale that explains how the bat and the flying squirrel came to be. Duvall's version of this story sticks closely to the original Cherokee legend with expanded imagery and character development. Like all great stories, this one teaches a lesson for human beings. Jacob's beautifully detailed drawings will hold the imagination spellbound as the story unfolds in crisp black and white. This book won the 2003 Oklahoma Book Award for Design and Illustration. I am proud to own a signed first edition that I obtained while visiting Tahlequah, Oklahoma during the Cherokee National Holiday. I highly recommend this book to art collectors and readers alike.

An hilarious folk tale told in the vernacular. "Oh law!" Must be read it out loud for maximum hilarity and it'll "witch ye sure." My 4 year old loves it so much she has learned to read it, hillbilly slang and all. There aren't many children's books this delightful. I just wonder why it was allowed to go out of print, and why it hasn't won any awards.

The Green Gourd is hilarious. I enjoyed reading it because the dialect was fun to do. The kids adored the silliness of a "witchy green gourd" chasing the old lady and "fumping" everything on the way. We both loved the illustrations. I love this book so much that I'm going to see if I can locate a used copy (it's out of print). Someday I'd like to read it to my grandchildren.

This children's book is so funny, that it is hard to read out loud. My children loved the story, of an old country woman who needs a gourd and picks one before it's ripe. It is bewitched and proceeds to "fump" her and anyone & everything else in its path.Each time the fumping episode occurred, I laughed out loud and my kids asked me to read it to them each night ("one more time, one more time!!!" Expect to be delighted as the illustrations are beautiful, too.

I remember this book from my childhood. I had my parents read each story to me over and over. When I learned how to read I read this book until the pages fell out. In short it is a great book that encourages youthful imaginations. And, it makes for great bedtime stories. A real classic. I bought it for my children.

As a child I didn't have the books of Oscar Wilde but rather the records. My imagination soared with his descriptions of life, and my eyes overflowed with tears at each story. The record of the Happy Prince was read by Bing Crosby and Orson Wells and each year at Christmas we still play that old scratched thing, just to hear it's wonderous love story and that of The Selfish Giant. Now I have to get the book so my nieces and nephews will share in my treasures of love!!!! What is this world if it isn't all about Love?

In these tales, most of them being sad and even very sad, Oscar Wilde looks for a way to save one's soul in front of the misery of the world. Anyone in society who lives in the upper classes does not necessarily see the ugliness and suffering of the world when one looks at the lower classes. But in these tales the Happy Prince, or the Selfish Giant, or any other character will manage to get salvation out of their upper class blindness, by opening their eyes to misery and suffering and by doing what they can to repair these pains and evils because they will realise they have to feel responsible for the world, because they are more powerful and could easily impose their selfish rule. But the giant will discover nature, if not God, punishes him for his selfishness. The nightingale will try to redeem a young student by giving him a red rose in a season when read roses do not bloom. And yet the student will not get the love he wants because he is nothing but a non-entity for the girl he would like to be loved by. There is also a very sad note in A Devoted Friend and how friendship can become a mask for selfishness, a nice appearance for an ugly and egoistic attitude. Those tales are sad and at the same time they convey a moral full of hope. All is not lost if the Happy Prince can give away his happiness for those who suffer, even if later the powerful of his society will reject him when he does not look happy and beautiful any more

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University of Perpignan

THIS BOOK CONTAINS MANY STORIES BUT THE BEST IS THE HAPPY PRINCE.ILIKED IT BECAUSE IT'S OF A PRINCE WHO SACRIFICES EVERYTHING TO THE POOR PEOPLE. I THING EVERY CHILD SHOULD READ AND ENJOY THIS BOOK! THANKS

THIS BOOK CONTAINS MANY STORIES BUT THE BEST IS THE HAPPY PRINCE.ILIKED IT BECAUSE IT'S OF A PRINCE WHO SACRIFICES EVERYTHING TO THE POOR PEOPLE. I THING EVERY CHILD SHOULD READ AND ENJOY THIS BOOK! THANKS

When I was quite small (I'm now 64) the 33 1/3 records were introduced. One of the first that we got was a recording of "The Happy Prince". It featured Bing Crosby. I listened to it over and over until I went off to college. Years later I was in England, and I discovered that there was a whole book of stories. Over the years I have re-read this book so much that it is now in tatters. Each story is a gem unto itself. Each story will become another jewel in your treasure chest of lenses, which help you to see the world more clearly. Now that I have discovered that this book is still in print, I expect to buy multiple copies to give as Christmas Gifts this year. Do yourself a favor and don't miss these delightful additions to your life. (Psst : I like this book !)

I was looking for a book for my soon to be 9 yr old son who is interested in dwarves, fairies, etc. This book fit the bill perfectly. It has many stories that he has found to be very interesting and entertaining. I would highly recommend this book.

This book is so good that I wish I had enough space here to include most of it. Oh I wish I'd had this book when my daughter was tiny. (She's six feet tall now and engaged and won't let me read to her any more.)

Let me just quote a few sentences: "Flower fairies love flowers so much that some of them find their way into our gardens. In fact, the more flowers you plant, the more likely it is that the fairies will find you. Their favorite is the tulip because in the spring, when their babies are born, they can lay them down inside the petals and rock them to sleep."

And then there is how the fairies invented parsley.

And the selkie, who ... No, you need to read it.

Perhaps my daughter will bring some grandkids into the family. Then I'd have an excuse.

No, I don't need an excuse, tonight I'm going to put on a Harry Potter movie, and when it's over I'm going to bed and read this little book just to myself.

If you've had enough of plasticized, mass marketed, "Disney'd" fairytales, get this book.

Illustrations are cute, and whether legitimate classics or variations thereof (I don't know...), the stories are wonderful.

My two sons (6 and 5) and I have read all of Hiccup's adventures (several times each) and were eagerly awaiting this latest book. We were not disappointed in the least.
Cowell's writing style draws in the reader immediately. The tales she weaves, with a great understanding of a little boy's mind, are infused with humor, danger, and intelligence. As a mom, I found that I couldn't put the books down after putting my kids to bed! All parents will appreciate that there is more depth to these stories than the upfront adventure: the underlying messages of friendship, kindness, and looking beyond appearances, are so subtly put forth, that my children, who are totally enraptured, don't even know they've been infused with quality life lessons.
I couldn't recommend this and the whole series enough. I can't wait to find out what happens in the (hopefully) continuing saga.

I just finished reading this with my 5-year-old son, who, of course, LOVES dragons. We had a great time reading this together and I think I looked forward to story time almost as much as he did every night! It stayed interesting from the first page to the last, with lots of edge-of-your-seat excitement and wondering what was going to happen next. Toothless the hunting dragon is the comic relief and my son absolutely loved to hear about him and his antics. I highly recommend this book!

I am a HUGE fan of Cressida Cowell's dragon series, and have read all of the books she has "translated" for Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third. This latest book definitely lives up to the others, and is well worth the wait from Amazon (I believe they are shipping it from the U.K. at the time I am writing this). If you have read the dragon books before, you will be happy to see your old familiar characters return in this tale, and even learn a little more about Hiccup's mom (since she has yet to be a major character in any of the other books). The setting this time around is perfect, too- Berk is threatened by a neighboring island of rumbling volcanoes.

If you have never read any of Cressida's books, I highly recommend them, starting with "How to Train Your Dragon." They make great read-alouds, and are fun for both kids and adults. The characters are entertaining and silly, and the dragons are both cute and scary.

Wonderfully written, wonderful artwork, funny, engaging -- it has it all.
My 9 y/o and I have been reading the whole series. We just wish there were more. The language can be a bit coarse for those of a tender bent (various fart references) -- but what do you think 9 y/o talk about anyway?

The artwork really is pretty special and is in keeping with the author's premise of this being the reminiscences of a Viking hero.

My only quibble is that the earlier books were by a different publisher and were hardbound -- which I prefer.

Along with Jim Trelease's Read-Aloud Handbook, this is a book no parent should be without. It contains short, to the point versions of every story you half-remember hearing when you were a kid (sure, the ugly duckling turns out to be a swan at the end, but do you remember what happens in between?), nursery rhymes and the lyrics to children's songs, and Aesop's fables ý all essential for parents to share with children. When it comes time to tell a bedtime story, I'd be lost without this book.

A must have book for any parent. It inspires me to be a storyteller and fun mom. Great reference for songs and rhymes you just can't remember.

Like the author, I've always loved singing to my kids, but there were many songs to which I didn't know all of the words. I happened upon this book when I used to work in a bookstore and now send copies to anyone I know who is expecting. It covers it all, songs, fables, lullabies, etc. Very worth the inexpensive price!

What a wonderful book of short stories for children. I was attracted by the cover and borrowed the book to read for myself (after all, every middle-aged adult still houses elements of the child they once were, right?).

In this delightful book with its lovely drawings are a collection of stories told by Jack Plank, unemployed pirate. Each night, over dinner at Mrs DelFresno's boarding house Jack explains why his job seeking isn't going so well. I was especially engaged by the reasons why Jack can't be a farmer or a fisherman.

Fortunately, everything works out at the end. In the absence of young children (or grandchildren) of my own to read this book to, I'll settle for recommending it to others.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

I was sitting at the children's reference desk the other day when a parent came up to me with a request. "I want a bedtime story to read to my daughter. Nothing cutesy or anything. Just some really nice tales to tell her before she goes to sleep. She's seven." Requests of this sort are a delight. You wait and hope for them. Not as many parents as I would like think to look for this kind of material, so when I get a request of this sort it's all I can do to keep from hopping up and down with glee. After one flash of inspiration I tried to sell the mom on Toys Go Out: Being the Adventures of a Knowledgeable Stingray, a Toughy Little Buffalo, and Someone Called Plastic by Emily Jenkins. No such luck. Not because shedidn 't like the book, mind you, but she'd already read it with her kid and wanted something new. We did some additional searching and I found her some nice books, but all the while I kept thinking to myself, "Why oh why oh whyhasn 't `Jack Plank' come out yet?" Because, you see, "Jack Plank Tells Tales," by the legendary Natalie Babbitt had not yet been published, but I'd seen a particularly enjoyable advanced reader's copy that had just charmed me. These days there's been a kind of upsurge in good bedtime reading thatdoesn't necessarily stink of either nostalgia or uber -cuteness. Finding the right balance can still be a challenge though. Maybe the time is ripe, then, for Natalie Babbitt to break her twenty-five years' worth of silence so as to bring us a book that feels like something your parents might have read to you when you were young.

Jack Plank's a lovely fellow, but the fact of the matter is that when it comes to pirating, he stinks. I mean, he gets along with everyone and he's been with his ship, The Avarice, for years and years now. But pirates always have to consider the bottom line and when it comes right down to it, Jackdoesn 't plunder very well. Not very well at all. So off he goes to find a job. While doing so he settles into a boarding house run by the kindly Mrs.DelFresno and her daughter Nina. Each day Jack and Nina go off to find him an occupation, and each day they come back empty handed. Fortunately, for every job that Jack turns down he's able to tell a rip-roaring story for why becoming a baker, a fisherman, a goldsmith, or a host of other places of employment might be too much of a reminder of his days back on his pirate ship. In the end, Jack has told stories involving everything from a girl raised by seagulls to squid-men, vengeful ghosts, mermaid lovers, and trolls. Fortunately, sometimes the best job is one so glaringly obvious you don't notice it until someone points it out to you.

Stories are so much fun, but they're sometimes difficult to promote properly. My library's folktale/fairytale section circulates beautifully, no question. Yet most of what goes out are picture books of individual tales. Collected stories gather dust, usually because peoplearen 't sure how to use them with their children. The nice thing about "Jack Plank," however, is that the main story (Jack trying to find a job) carries quite nicely from chapter to chapter. So there's a single story you're trying to get to the end of, alongside short tales of very brief length. And man oh man, talk about kid-friendly. Some of these tales do touch on things like ghosts and murder, but I would argue with you that a kid as young as four or five would get a kick out of hearing this book night after night without any nightmarish repercussions. There are pictures to look at (all penned by the author, no less), and original tales that you may have seen different versions of here and there but never in this format.

Come to think of it, y'all are familiar with Ms. Babbitt's work already, right? Her best known work, "Tuck Everlasting," is one of those Great American Children's Novels. She disappeared without a trace for twenty-five years (which is to say, shedidn 't publish anything during that time) and now this book is her return to the fold. Happily I report to you that her writing is as keen as ever. In fact, what I like about Natalie Babbitt is her ability to tell a children's tale with true simplicity. She's just good at what she does. The stories are top notch, always interesting, and fun to read aloud. The characters have wonderful names like "Waddy Spontoon", "Captain Scudder", and "Leech". And the character of Jack himself is a lot of fun. It's hard to put a narrator's personality aside so that you can use him as a kind of storytelling vessel, but Jack just comes across as a genuinely nice guy with a gift of gab and his own way of looking at things.

Basically, I'm going to sell this to skeptical parents as pirate tales. Pirates have sort of hit a Renaissance right now (or, in pirate speak, aRen-ARRR-sance ) and any book that even hints at having piratical underpinnings is certain to circulate and sell relatively well. Label "Jack Plank Tells Tales" a lovely return to form for the eloquent Ms. Babbitt. Here's hoping she has a couple more stories hidden about her person for the perusal of all. If your bedtime story collection runs a bit low, this is a lovely way to stock it up again.

Well, Jack Plank isn't actually on board his pirate ship anymore, being a victim of cost-cutting measures--i.e., he got laid off. He now lives at a rooming house, where he manages to tell a story at dinner every night, always in connection with his ongoing efforts to find a new career (aided and abetted by a child, of course). I thought Jack Sparrow had spoiled me for every other pirate imaginable, but then I met Jack Plank and fell in love all over again. Not that Jack is glamorously bizarre; instead he is as kind and gently funny as a favorite uncle. Kids will just plain like the stories, based on premises such as a shipmate who turns into something rather more aquatic than a wolf on full-moon nights or the little girl on a deserted island who's been raised by seagulls. The delivery is so relaxed that when you're finished, you find yourself thinking back through the book as it slowly dawns on you what an amazing collection of stories this really is--all at a level that can be appreciated as a read-aloud by 5-year-olds, 12-year-olds, and everything in between. As for grown-up readers, they can enjoy Natalie Babbitt's notoriously superb craftsmanship. For example, pay attention to the snippets of clever commentary from the dinner guests following each tale. It is said that the best practitioners in any field make their art seem effortless, and this non-aggressive, non-flashy piece of writing fits the bill. True, Jack Plank Tells Tales doesn't have the deep-sea philosophical implications of the classic Tuck Everlasting, but it doesn't need them: it surfs the waves of human nature with a humor and grace and affection often sadly missing from today's children's books.

This is a very tender book, with love and understanding children and adults can relate to. Ideal for ages 2 and up.

John Brown is a large shaggy dog living contentedly with Rose. When a cat arrives needing food and love, Rose is ready to open her heart and home to the new arrival, but John Brown has a very hard time sharing Rose, and watching Rose take care for someone else. By the book's end, John Brown has changed. In simple words and marvelous pictures, this book helps children - and the adults reading to them - consider a difficult and complicated emotion: jealousy. The perfect book to help children get ready for a baby brother or sister, it's too bad it isn't easier to find.

A beautiful book that can be shared together with children and adults. With a sweet story of longtime companionship between elderly woman Rose and her stubborn yet loving dog John Brown and the sudden interuption of a black cat in their humdrum lives. For children, the story of a close-knit friendship between a lady and her dog that opens up to allow a new addition to share their house and lives. For adults, an underlying symbolic reference of the black cat representing death, Rose's acceptance of it and John Brown's refusal to allow it into their home/life. All in all, a good story.

We really appreciate the beauty of this series of books as it covers "The Epic of Gilgamesh" in an appropriate and accessible way for our children. We love to use actual historic documents in our study if possible, but the actual epic is too uncomfortably graphic even for our older children, so we use these for everyone as we study Mesopotamia, Sumer and Babylon. There are not many books that cover these Near East cultures, which makes this set especially valuable. Along with "Our Young Folks' Josephus" as our history spine, "Science in Ancient Mesopotamia" and "Ancient Egyptians and their Neighbors: An Activity Guide (covering Hittites, Nubians, Mesopopotamians and Egyptians) this series helps considerably to round out our ancient history studies and to teach our children about one of the most ancient tales in the world in a beautifully engaging way.

My children and I are beginning a study of ancient civilizations and I bought the three Gilgamesh books to expand our coverage of ancient Sumer. These books are just amazing! The story itself is powerful but I wondered how the author was going to tone down some of the violence; not to mention the fact that Shamat was a prostitute in other versions. Ludmilla Zeman has brought this story to children with intensity and grace that comes as a complete surprise. I especially liked her painting of the chaste kiss between Shamat and Enkidu with the explanation that Shamat taught Enkidu to speak and together they explored the ways of love. Very tender.

In her illustrations, Ludmilla Zeman has made an attempt to incorporate actual historical artifacts. These are all high-quality books in every sense and I cannot recommend them highly enough.

Gilgamesh the King

The Revenge of Ishtar

The Last Quest of Gilgamesh:

"At the mouth of a river at the end of the earth a man lies, near death. Could this be Gilgamesh...? What has brought him to this desperate state...?

It was the fear of Death." Yet, with Shamhat's encouragement, Gilgamesh is able to reach inside himself and endure incredible hardships. Besides physical challenges, he will be tempted by pleasure and have to use his wits to reach his goal. And Ishtar isn't through with him yet.

Can Gilgamesh's strength and will overcome the challenges he faces? Will despair win out over determination? Can immortality be obtained by men?

This picture book is the third and last in a series that retells the ancient story for eight to twelve year olds. The beautiful pictures are done Mesopotamian style. The author includes a note at the back of the book concerning the story, the flood legend, hell, and her opinion of Gilgamesh.