Old Granny Fox and grandson Reddy Fox must use all their cunning to hunt up enough food to survive the long winter. Food in the Green Meadow is scarce but Farmer Brown's hens are locked up tight and protected by Bowser the Hound, so Granny takes a conceited Reddy hunting and teaches him some surprising new tricks to lure in their dinner. Old Granny and Reddy Fox encounter danger and adventure in their quests to keep their bellies full, including a close encounter with Farmer Brown's boy, a clever plot to steal Bowser's food, and an unforeseen thief who might outsmart this sneaky pair.
Four children: Henry, Jess Violet and Bennie. They are living alone in a stranded boxcar. They find items they need from the dump and a stray dog whom they name Watch. Henry earns money by working for a man named Dr. McAllister and his mother, Mrs. McAllister. But, while they are living their daily lives, little do they know that the McAllisters are watching their every move.
Peter and Wendy tells the classic story of Peter Pan, a mischievous little boy who can fly, and his adventures on the island of Neverland with Wendy and her brothers, the fairy Tinker Bell, the Lost Boys, the Indian princess Tiger Lily, and the pirate Captain Hook. (Introduction modified from Wikipedia)
In a small town far out West, 11 year old Pollyanna loses her mother then her dad to disease. This book describes how the orphan is sent to be raised by her aunt who loves far away in the East of the country. Unfortunately her aunt does not want her but accepts her very reluctantly only out of 'duty' and sticks her into a tiny hot attic room so she will be 'out of the way'. What Aunt Polly does not know is that Pollyanna is bringing the game of being 'glad' that her father taught her and that her irrepressible happy attitude will transform not only that dull and miserable house, but an entire village before she is through.
The Story Girl, by Anne of Green Gables author L.M. Montgomery, tells about the summer Felix and Beverly King visit their cousins in Carlise, Canada. Along with various cousins and other soon-to-be-friends, they meet Sara Stanley, the Story Girl, a cousin who has a story for every situation. As the children pass the summer, they get into trouble, have adventures, listen to the Story Girl's enchanting tales, and then... get into a bit more trouble!
Jack and Jill went up a hill
To coast with fun and laughter.
Jack fell down and broke his crown,
And Jill came tumbling after.
When Jack and Jill tumble off of their sled on the first good snow of the season, their injuries cause them to be bedridden for many months putting an end to their fun and frolics. Their parents and friends fill their days with the joys of Christmas preparations, a theatrical production and many other imaginative events. Both learn how to become better friend's to each other and their other school mates through their many trials. This is a warm and joyous story.
This is the story of Rose, a rich but lonely and sickly girl who has been recently orphaned and sent to live with her maiden aunts. When Rose's guardian, Uncle Alec, returns from abroad he takes over her care. Through his unorthodox theories about child-rearing and her exposure to the exploits of her seven male cousins and numerous aunts, Rose becomes happier and healthier, cured of many of her fears and prejudices. She also makes friends with Phebe, her aunts' maid of her own age, whose cheerful attitude in the face of poverty helps to illustrate to Rose her own good fortune.
Opening several years after the close of "Eight Cousins", we find Rose coming home fresh from a voyage overseas, to find much changed about her. Now of a marriageable aged and heiress to a fortune, Rose finds joy,sorrow, and finally love await her -- as the Rose is finally ready to bloom into a good, strong, sweet and true woman.
This sequel to Eight Cousins was written by Louisa May Alcott, the author of many well beloved children's books including Little Women, An Old Fashioned Girl, Under the Lilacs and more.
Rebecca goes to live with her two stern aunts in a village in Maine. Her joy for life ends up inspiring them.
Many librarians have felt the need and expressed the desire for a select collection of children's Christmas stories in one volume. This book claims to be just that and nothing more. Each of the stories has already won the approval of thousands of children, and each is fraught with the true Christmas spirit. It is hoped that the collection will prove equally acceptable to parents, teachers, and librarians.
Carol Bird was born on Christmas Day. She has spent all of her 11 years putting others above herself, always finding ways to make their lives a little more special. Even when faced with her own illness, the pure goodness of her heart shines through. She vows to find a way to spread Christmas cheer and decides to give a grand Christmas Party for a poor neighbourhood family.
Born on Christmas Day, little Carol Bird is a gentle soul who touches every life around her. Despite physical illness, Carol is loved by everyone who knows her. This year, she is going to make Christmas extra special for her family and the little Ruggles children who live nearby.
Flora Lee's birthday came in July. Her mother wished very much to celebrate the occasion in a proper manner. Flora was a good girl, and her parents were always glad to do any thing they could to please her, and to increase her happiness.
The scene of this story is laid in Kentucky. Its heroine is a small girl, who is known as the Little Colonel, on account of her fancied resemblance to an old-school Southern gentleman, whose fine estate and old family are famous in the region.
The second book in The Bobbsey Twins series finds the two sets of twins experiencing life in the country during the first part of their summer vacation from school. Their stay with their aunt, uncle and cousins on their farm in Meadow Brook is filled with new adventures for the 'city' Bobbseys.
In The Little Colonel in Arizona the story is centered around the Ware family, who, after their husband and father has died, and due to the mother's illness, have to move from Kentucky to Arizona. Joyce now has to take most of the responsibility for holding the family together. She is having difficulties in coming to terms with the family's new existence, feeling lonely and that her dreams for the future will never come true. But when she learns to know an invalid at Lee's Ranch who tells her the “Legend of Camelback Mountain”, and she learns the “Lesson of the Bees”, she begins to see a new hope growing.
A letter to Lloyd, “the Little Colonel”, has the effect that she comes to visit the Ware's at their Wigwam for a month. Here she meets the handsome and likeable Phil Tremont who stirs something in her heart, and she wonders if he might be the one written in the stars for her. But Phil, kind and likeable as he is, has his own problems and has to learn to handle them and to learn the “Legend of Alaka and the lost turquoises”.
Another important person who we get to know more of in this story is the talkative and entertaining little Mary Ware, who has an important role in other, later stories.
In this sixth volume of “The Little Colonel Series” for girls, Lloyd is surprised with a gift for her twelfth birthday, of a summer trip to Europe. In Geneva she becomes friends with an old Prussian major and his Red Cross dog, a St. Bernard named Hero. Through many adventures, in the end the Little Colonel learns the true meaning of selfless duty.
Years ago, a manufacturer built a great dock, jutting out from and then turning parallel to the shore of a northern Michigan town. The factory was abandoned, and following the habits of small towns, the space between the dock and the shore became "The Cinder Pond." Jean started life in the colony of squatters that came to live in the shanties on the dock, but fortune, heroism, and a mystery combine to change her fortunes and those of her friends near the Cinder Pond. (Advertising material from the publisher, 1915)
More than one girl who reads this story will envy Jeanne her queer little home out on the end of the old dock in Lake Superior. It must indeed have been a fascinating place to live, but Jeanne's father, a gentleman himself, wanted her to grow up to be a lady, so she was sent away to be trained and educated among strangers. They were her own relatives, but they could never be anything but strangers to her, for they had no love in their hearts for the little girl who had come to make a home with them. Only her grandfather learned to love her, for she filled a bright place in his lonely life, and the story tells how he showed his feeling for her and how she was able to go back to Cinder Pond to help her little stepbrothers and -sisters. (Book Review Digest, vol. 11, 1916)
An interesting story of a little French girl, who lived with her step-family on a dock near the Cinder Pond and who after several trying experiences finds a good home and real joy in helping care for her several step-brothers and sisters. Though reason for the marriage of Jeannette's father to a shiftless, but kindly Irish woman is unnecessarily emphasized, the story is a very usable one, stamped with Jeanne's friendliness and sincerity. (The Booklist, vol 12, Oct. 1915--July, 1916)
A charming collection of 10 relaxing tales, come along into the Forest as Winnie-the-Pooh tries to get some honey, the search is on for Eeyore's tail, some new visitors arrive in the form of Kanga and Baby Roo and an 'Expotition' is held to discover the North Pole! A classic for over 95 years and one that everyone young and old will surely adore.
Roberta, Peter and Phyllis are suddenly yanked out of their comfortable lives and removed to live in the country with only their mother and to "play at being poor". Will they ever again be allowed to have bread with butter AND jam? Why does mother spend all day frantically writing in her room? And what has happened to their father?
The Railway Children is one of Edith Nesbit's best-loved books. It has been made into five films and a musical. The story of three children making friends with everyone around them and doing their best to do good and to be good (but not always succeeding) contains no magic, but the warmth of Nesbit's storytelling permeates the book.
The Wind in the Willows is a classic children's book--enjoyed by all ages!--by British novelist Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. Begun as letters to his 7-year-old son Alistair and later developed into a novel, it tells the adventures of animals Mole, Rat, and Toad, who dwell, along with Badger, Otter, and other animals, in the riverbank, fields, and woodlands of the English countryside. Best friends Mole and Rat, along with Badger, are continually rescuing Toad from his scrapes. An encounter with nature god Pan lends a special magic to this tale.
In 2011, I recorded this delightful reading by my friend Sarbaga Falk. We made presents of the recordings for Sarbaga’s family and our friends and their children and grandchildren; and had it in mind to put it on LibriVox. Shortly after we recorded Wind in the Willows, Sarbaga was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s, which worsened until she passed away in February 2020.
Sarbaga loved tales, jokes, and stories, and she would no doubt be tickled to listen to this wonderful tale told in her own inimitable and expressive voice. This stands as a fitting tribute to our dear friend, as she continues to delight us all.
Johanna Spyri’s classic story of a 5 year old little Swiss orphan who is heartbroken when she must leave her beloved grandfather and their happy home in the mountains to go to school and to care for an invalid girl in the city. It was written as a book "for children and those who love children" ( phil chenevert and the author)
Spinster Polly Harrington is perfectly content to be in control of her comfortable life, even if is she alone in a big house. But then a letter arrives informing her she is the guardian to her young orphaned niece, and she as well as the whole town quickly learns that life will never be the same with Pollyanna around to help them count their blessings.
Jerusha Abbott was brought up at the John Grier Home, an old-fashioned orphanage. The children were wholly dependent on charity and had to wear other people's cast-off clothes. Jerusha's unusual first name was selected by the matron off a grave stone, while her surname was selected out of the phone book. At the age of 18, she has finished her education and is at loose ends, still working in the dormitories at the institution where she was brought up.
One day, after the asylum's trustees have made their monthly visit, Jerusha is informed by the asylum's dour matron that one of the trustees has offered to pay her way through college. He has spoken to her former teachers and thinks she has potential to become an excellent writer. He will pay her tuition and also give her a generous monthly allowance. Jerusha must write him a monthly letter, because he believes that letter-writing is important to the development of a writer. However, she will never know his identity; she must address the letters to Mr. John Smith, and he will never reply.
Jerusha catches a glimpse of the shadow of her benefactor from the back, and knows he is a tall long-legged man. Because of this, she jokingly calls him "Daddy Long-Legs." She attends a women's college, but the name and location are never identified; however, men from Princeton University are frequently mentioned as dates, so it is certainly on the East Coast. The college is almost certainly based on the author's alma mater, Vassar College, judging from college traditions mentioned. She illustrates her letters with childlike line drawings, also created by Jean Webster.
This story is about an American lad of 7 years old who lives with his young widowed mother in New York. He spends his days with his friend the grocery man Mr. Hobbs, the boot black Dick, and other young lads from his town. His best friend is his mother, whom he calls dearest, because that is what his papa used to call her. Cedric has curly blond hair, a sturdy young body, and a beautiful face that is only matched by his sweet temperament. He is always thinking of others and what they might need.
One day, an English lawyer comes to Cedric's house with news that will change his young life forever. Cedric's papa was the son of a great Earl in England. The earl has lost all three of his sons and is now looking for his heir. He is a crusty old gentlemen with a hard, cold heart. He has spent his life chasing after his own pleasures and not caring one mite for the needs of others, especially the needs his tenantry. He is extremely prejudiced against Americans and was outraged when his youngest son married an American woman. His proud heart views with disgust his young heir before he even meets him, expecting him to be rude, uneducated, and selfish. Little does he know that the meeting of the Earl of Dorincourt with little Cedric is destined to change his life forever.
Mary Wollstonecraft was one of the early promoters of gender equality long before other crusaders took up the cause. She is perhaps best known for her books, “A Vindication of the Rights of Women” (1792) and “A Vindication of the Rights of Men” (1790). But she also wrote widely on education and used fiction formats to promote her progressive views. This book using the genre of didactic children’s stories, was written the same year as her “Mary: A Fiction” 1788, but was first published anonymously. It relates the re-education two young girls -- Mary 15 and Caroline, 12, by Mrs. Mason who dispenses her advice on topics of character and behavior ranging from the treatment of animals to idleness and innocent amusements, without any real dialog.
When Jack and Jill tumble off their sled on the first good snow of the season, their injuries cause them to be bedridden for many months, putting an end to their fun and frolics. Their parents and friends fill their days with the joys of Christmas preparations, a theatrical production and many other imaginative events. Both learn how to become better friends to each other and their other school mates through their many trials. This is sure to become a family favorite!
Jo’s little men and women are grown up and entering new stages of life. Along with discovering their individual niches, there are lots of lessons to study, plays to perform, and parties to attend… and love is undeniably in the air. When three of Jo’s most beloved boys embark on journeys of their own, they encounter some of the most difficult challenges ever faced in their young lives. Meanwhile, back at home, Jo and her family must be strong when they receive the news that not all three of the boys may return. Will Emil, Nat, and Dan find their way home to Plumfield?
Find out in Jo’s Boys, the final installment of the Little Women trilogy by Louisa May Alcott.
Join the endearing May family in small-town England as each member lives through some pivotal years. How will they face the changes that shake their family to the core?To quote the preface: "It would beg to be considered merely as what it calls itself, a Family Chronicle—a domestic record of home events, large and small, during those years of early life when the character is chiefly formed, and as an endeavour to trace the effects of those aspirations which are a part of every youthful nature."The following cast list (including nicknames) may be helpful when first meeting the large May family. Parents: Dick and Maggie, Children: Richard (May), Margaret, Flora, Norman (June), Ethel, Harry (July), Mary, Tom (August), Blanche, Aubrey, Gertrude Margaret (Daisy)
After her famed book "Anne of Green Gables," Lucy Maud Montgomery continued her stories in "Chronicles of Avonlea" followed by "Further Chronicles of Avonlea." The book includes fifteen short and entertaining, funny, and romantic stories. She brings back old characters such as Anne, Rachel Lynde, and Matthew Cuthbert, although most of the stories are focused around new characters living in Avonlea.
Elizabeth Ann is a timid, sickly little girl who lives with her Aunt Frances and her Great-Aunt Harriet. When Great-Aunt Harriet becomes ill, poor little Elizabeth Ann is sent to live with the much-feared Putney cousins, whom, as Great-Aunt Harriet said "Such lack of sympathy, such perfect indifference to the sacred sensitiveness of child-life, such a starving of the child-heart ... No, I shall never forget it! They had chores to do ... as though they had been hired men!" But to the Putney cousins in Vermont Elizabeth Ann has to go. And there, with her Uncle Henry, Aunt Abigail and Cousin Ann, she grows strong and well and happy and, most importantly, learns to think for herself, and truly becomes Understood Betsy. (summary Kymm Zuckert)
Sickly and sheltered, nine-year-old Elizabeth Ann is horrified to hear she must be sent away to live with the "Putney cousins." According to Aunt Harriet, these mysterious relations are cold-hearted, stiff-necked, as well as heavy-handed when it comes to the delegation of children's chores. But what will life at the Putney farm truly have in store for Betsy?
Katy Carr always gets in trouble for everything. When her mother died, she told Katy to be a mother to the little ones. But it seems like Katy can't do anything right. Her Aunt Izzie always scolds her, so one day Katy decides to ignore her aunt's command and ride the swing in the barn. Suddenly, something cracks, Katy feels like she's falling, and everything goes dark.
The Bobbsey Twins are the principal characters of what was, for many years, the Stratemeyer Syndicate's longest-running series of children's novels, penned under the pseudonym Laura Lee Hope. The first of 72 books was published in 1904, the last in 1979. The books related the adventures of the children of the middle-class Bobbsey family, which included two sets of fraternal twins: Bert and Nan, who were 12 years old, and Flossie and Freddie, who were six.
More humorous adventures (1925) by the world’s most misunderstood English boy.
A story told, through the viewpoint of a sewing needle, about family life and siblings. The narration from the needle tells how he was made and witnesses the relationships within the family. The needle also makes friends with a thimble and some scissors.
The adventures of Lucy, Emily and Henry are described in this short novel, written and set in Regency England. Their naughtiness, their activities and their interactions with the children next door; Miss Augusta and Charles Trueman, are all delightfully described. Their daily lives are an insight into childhood and the family and religious values at the time - each chapter has a moral lesson, and the good end happily, while the bad get what they deserve.
This book is a collection of short stories from India.
The Little Kentucky "Colonel," so much of a favorite with young readers, has reached the age for interest in other people's love affairs. The main action of this new page of happenings in the life of Lloyd Sherman centers about a southern wedding, so perfectly arranged as to give the impression that everything "bloomed into place." (Book Review Digest, Vol. 2 - 1906)
This charming book has many stories that deal mostly with the holiday of Thanksgiving, perfectly suited for family listening and reading. and gathers in one volume tales of tasty turkeys, festive parties, generous gestures, and holiday cheer. The stories featured include works by such writers as Harriet Beecher Stowe, George Eliot, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and others. So if you want to listen to some great stories that bring out gratitude for life and a thanksgiving attitude, here are a bunch of the best.
Magic wishing emeralds mysteriously arrive in the little kingdom of Skampavia. King Skamperoo immediately confiscates them and wishes to become the Emperor of Oz, with his magic horse Chalk as his advisor. All the residents of Oz are enchanted to forget Ozma and their own rulers, except for Dorothy and Pigasus the flying pig. Can Dorothy and Pigasus break the enchantment and rescue Princess Ozma? Will they forge an unlikely alliance with the Gnome King? And who is the real owner and possessor of the secret of the wishing emeralds?
The Wishing Horse of Oz is the twenty-ninth in the series of Oz books created by L. Frank Baum.
There are five of these children, and I call them my Five Mice; and the queer house that they live in I call the Mouse-trap. They are such funny children! I watch them sometimes all day long, their pranks are so amusing; and then when night comes, I slide down a moonbeam and sit by their pillows, and tell them stories and sing them songs. Ah! they like that, you may believe! And you all shall hear the stories and songs too, if you like, for I will write them down. So now, children all, listen! in America, Jennie and Johnny; in France, Marie and Emil; in Germany, Gretchen and Hans; in Italy, Tita and Nanni; in Kamschatka, Patchko and Tinka. Listen all, great and small, to the old Man in the Moon
Mildred Keith has a good life in Lansdale, Ohio - family, friends and school keep her happy and busy. But when her parents announce they're all moving to Indiana, Mildred's faith is tested beyond anything she could have imagined. Through good times and bad, follow Mildred and her family as they learn to rely on the Lord for strength in every circumstance!
The seventh in the Elsie Dinsmore series, this book begins with the death of Elsie's beloved husband. As Elsie learns to live in widowhood, the story shifts to the lives of those most precious to her - her children and extended family.
The Five Little Peppers are off to school - Joel and Davie at a boys' boarding school, Polly, Phronsie and Ben at home. At first the storyline shifts between the boys and the girls, until the boys come home for the holidays and all the children are caught up in plans to help the poor family of a brakeman who was killed in an accident. Meanwhile Polly struggles to keep Jasper's friend from being expelled, Phronsie has a frightening accident and Ben works hard to repay Mr. King. It's another heart-warming tale from the author of Five Little Peppers and How They Grew!
Five Little Peppers Midway is the joyous continuation of the Pepper family's story. A snooty cousin comes to stay with the Peppers, and yet even this can't dampen the joy the Pepper children feel about the wonderful prospect of Mamsie's upcoming wedding!
Lisbeth Longfrock - (Sidsel Sidsærkin in its original Norwegian) was seen by the author as a book written for adults, telling the story of a young girl growing up in a farming district in a steep-sided Norwegian Valley. First written when the author's daughter was 8 years old so she would know about his childhood spent in similar surroundings, living on a farm and spending summer in charge of the cows and goats on the mountain pastures.
When a neighbor brings word that Grandma is sick, Mr. and Mrs. Bassett hurry off to tend to her, leaving their seven children to prepare for Thanksgiving on their own. The story of the adventures of Eph, Tilly, Prue, Seth, Sol, Roxy, and Rhody Bassett as they go sledding, face bears, tell old stories, and wrestle with plum puddings is a holiday treat fit to make anyone stop and count their own blessings.
In this ninth book in the classic Elsie Dinsmore series, the family finishes their summer at the seaside and returns to Ion. The narrative turns from Elsie to Violet's family, particularly her step-children Max and Lulu as they adjust to life in their new family.
The Peppers are a family of three boys, two girls, and Mamsie. They are poor, living in their "Little Brown House", but they always manage to be happy. This book comprises the adventures of Joel, the middle Pepper child and the most mischievous. Among other things, Joel encounters a snake, a thief, and a nail pile; puts on a circus; rides on a stagecoach; and gets into a fight on Strawberry Hill!
This book tells of a girl named Alice falling through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world populated by peculiar, anthropomorphic creatures.