Most Popular Books by Margaret Read

Offers over eighty short stories from around the globe, including Asia, Mexico, and eastern Europe.

In this British variant of a traditional tale, an ungrateful woman who complains constantly about her house is granted increasingly grandiose wishes by a fairy.

Includes twenty folktales that encourage audience participation.

The Animals and Birds are getting ready for the big game. Bat wants to WIN. The Animals look strong and fast, so Bat picks that side. But when the Animals fall behind, Bat switches to the Bird team—doesn''t a bat have wings? Maybe the Birds will win!

A companion to Three Minute Tales compiles another delightful collection of entertaining stories from around the world to read or tell on any occasion. Simultaneous.

A quick and easy guide to storytelling for parents and grandparents. Includes nineteen easy-to-tell stories and lists of story sources to help find more.

Presents five folktales for young children, including "Snow Bunting''s Lullaby" from Siberia, "Chin Chin Kobokama" from Japan, "The Playground of the Sun and Moon" from Argentina, and "Counting Sheep" from the British Isles.

Instruction on how to tell stories. Includes 12 tales from other countries.

Working with or without a native speaker, a storyteller can touch the minds and hearts of all listeners—even those with little or no English language skills. Here a group of expert storytellers share a variety of tips and techniques that help bridge the language gap; along with sample stories that librarians, teachers, and professional storytellers can easily incorporate into their repertoires. Four basic techniques for bilingual telling are explored: summarizing, line-by-line translation, tandem telling, and inserted phrases. In addition, contributors discuss such topics as the translator''s role, using story in language instruction, presenting tellers of other languages, traveling and giving workshops abroad, and more.

Tales of ghosts inhabiting the Pacific Northwest include stories of haunted houses, departed loved ones, and disturbed Native American burial sites

An old woman complains about all the housework she has to do, but when some fairies come to help her she finds that they are more trouble than they are worth.

This handy paperback presents 80 songs designed to be sung as rounds. Each one appears on an uncluttered page or two, illustrated by a simple ink drawing. A fine resource for school music teachers, choir directors, camp leaders, and children who sing for the love of it.

Presents twenty-five variants of the "Tom Thumb" tale from around the world, with notes on each, a unit for classroom study, a bibliography, and suggestions for other related activities.

Folktales build bridges to other cultures! Enrich the experience of sharing traditions for your students with this fun, easy, and practical sourcebook. Noted folklorist and storyteller Margaret Read MacDonald presents 20 of her favorite folktales celebrating worldwide holidays. Each is presented in an ethnopoetic format that helps the teller establish the story''s rhythm and construct an exciting, dramatic delivery.

2010 Best English Language Children''s Book, Sharjah International Book Fair Jouha gets confused counting his donkeys while leading them to market. Jouha is loading his donkeys with dates to sell at the market. How many donkeys are there? His son helps him count ten, but once the journey starts, things change. First there are ten donkeys, then there are nine! When Jouha stops to count again, the lost donkey is back. What''s going on? Silly Jouha doesn''t get it, but by the end of the story, wise readers will be counting correctly−and in Arabic!

A bragging contest between Whale and Sandpiper turns into a battle over the beach and sea, until both parties realize that the beach and the sea, as well as sea creatures and shorebirds, are interdependent.

Peace Tales contains more than three dozen folktales and proverbs that illustrate these choices. Always fun to read these stories also prompt us to think about the seemingly minor events that lead to war and the little events that can also lead to peace. Stories from across the globe are accompanied by generous story notes, source information, and suggestions for further reading on the topic of peace.

Read Along or Enhanced eBook: Gecko may be small, but he has a giant-sized problem. Every night he is awakened by the fireflies outside his window. And when Gecko doesn''t get his rest, he gets a little grumpy. So he goes to Elephant, the head of the village, to complain. His request that the fireflies stop working at night sets off a comical chain of problems for everyone in the village and complicates everyone’s life. Through this cumulative tale from the Balinese tradition, Gecko learns that his well-being depends on that of the entire village and he finally goes to sleep, a little wiser.

Pick of the Lists, ABA A 2001 Parents'' Choice Picture Book Silver Honor Highly Commended Book–2002 Charlotte Zolotow Award Committee Texas Library Association 2002 2 X 2 Reading List Children''s Literature Choice List 2002 Storytelling World Award-2002 Winner-Stories for Young Listeners 2001 Aesop Accolade, American Folklore Society 2003 Washington Children''s Choice Master List "MacDonald''s retelling of this Limba tale is engineered for storytime success."—School Library Journal starred review Mabela may be the smallest mouse in the village, but her father has taught her to be clever. And this cleverness comes in handy when the cat comes, inviting everyone to join the secret Cat Society. The mice line up, with Mabela at the front and the Cat at the back. They march into the forest, singing the secret Cat song and shouting FO FENG! Only clever Mabela realizes the Cat is up to no good!

Examining storytelling through the distinct voices of ten traditional tellers, this text offers a look at their lives and art as they discuss their reasons for telling, their uses of the stories, and the influence of their cultural heritage.

A collection of skits written by young people with instructions for performance. The skits are arranged under such categories as "Cumulative Actions," "Silly Singers," "Skits With Trick Endings," "Skits From Jokes," "Musical Ensembles," and others.

Read Along or Enhanced eBook: When a rich man is rescued from thieves by a smelly, slobbery dog, the man offers the dog any treasure is his house as a reward. The treasure that the dog chooses is the rich man’s daughter. With great sadness, the daughter honors her father’s promise and goes to live with the dog. Over time, a friendship grows between the girl and the dog, but she still misses her father. In this tale from Great Britain, award winning author, Margaret Read MacDonald puts a new spin on the classic story, “Beauty and the Beast”, reminding us all that appearances can be deceiving and that compassion can be powerful.

Read Along or Enhanced eBook: A clever, singing rabbit eats his way through the pea patch until Little Girl snatches him up and he is soon singing a new tune as he plans his escape. With a nod to Brer Rabbit, Pickin Peas is adapted from two folktales collected in Alabama and Virginia. The lively storytelling voice of award-winning author Margaret Read MacDonald, combined with Pat Cummings'' bright, bold contemporary illustrations, makes this timeless battle-of-wits an instant classic.

Anthropologist''s observations of child rearing and use of mission school education in Nyasaland / Malawi.

This book discusses the art of storytelling in a small community of Southern Indiana. Based on audio-taped participant observation in the rural community of Scipio, Indiana, the author presents an analysis of storytelling performances during social events of family and friends. MacDonald discusses performative aspects such as the techniques of the storyteller and stresses the role of the audience during the story event. She also examines several genres of Scipio story, such as fish stories, old codger stories, and practical joking tales. The repertoire and style of one of the community''s master storytellers is analyzed along with the attributes of a master storyteller and the passing on of the storyteller''s role. Scipio Storytelling concludes with a note on the future of this storytelling style in this particular community.

Read Along or Enhanced eBook: In this action packed folktale from Panama, a clever little rabbit and his Tía Mónica find ways to outwit a fox, a tiger, and a lion, all of whom want to eat him for lunch.

Read Along or Enhanced eBook: Sandpiper finds her daily stroll on the beach interrupted by Whale, who boasts that he is ruler of the sea. Sandpiper responds with equal bravado, asserting her rights to the sand and seawater. Soon the rivals are calling in their cousins, and the beach and sea are filled with shorebirds and sea mammals of every stripe. The standoff grows ominous as Whale leads his cousins in an assault on the beach, eating the sand from under the birds. Sandpiper retaliates by ordering her cousins to drink up the ocean. Soon the landscape is filled with fish, crabs, and sea creatures gasping for survival. How will this end? The outcome of this timely yet timeless nature tale suggests that we are all connected in the ecological chain.

The stories of some 340 holidays from over 150 countries are told, wherever possible, in quotations from books, journals, biographies, and other firsthand accounts by people who actually celebrate the holidays in their own homes. Additional information is furnished by folklorists and anthropologists. Especially strong is the treatment of non-European countries, scantily represented heretofore in the reference literature. Arrangement is according to the Gregorian Calendar, January 1 to December 31 (the introduction explains the origins and organization of this and other calendrical systems). A single index combines ethnic, subject, and geographic entries. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

In this retelling of a Shona folktale from Zimbabwe, a girl promises a crocodile he can come to a party in exchange for a favor, but since crocodiles aren''t allowed in the village, she doesn''t expect she''ll have to keep the promise. When you promise Croc a party, you better keep that promise and give him a party! Zuva knows you should never invite a crocodile to town—everyone knows that! But what if the crocodile does you a favor? And what if you promise to return the favor by inviting him to the village party? And what if this croc actually comes knocking on your front door? Because this crocodile is a PARTY CROC! This hilarious retelling of a Shona folktale from Zimbabwe is both a cautionary tale about keeping promises and a raucously fun read-aloud for party animals of any age.

Read Along or Enhanced eBook: Have you ever heard the saying, “Your eyes are bigger than your stomach”? Well, Cat''s stomach is bigger than a lot of things. He is always hungry, and living with culinary-inclined Mouse, who makes thirty-five pies in one day, just makes it worse. Fat Cat swallows everything in sight, including the washlady and her washtub, a troop of soldiers and their swords, even a king and his elephant! But when Cat swallows Mouse and her sewing basket, that''s the last straw. Tiny Mouse cuts to the heart of the situation, taking an upside-down world and turning it right-side-up again. Greedy Cat learns his lesson and turns “fat” into “fancy,” “fabulous,” and “fantastic.” Margaret Read MacDonald''s infectious energy combines with Julie Paschkis''s folk-inspired gouache paintings to create a new retelling of a favorite comic cumulative tale.

A cumulative tale from Chile that begins with a hen and ends with sixteen different animals and a guitar.

Quack, moo and neigh along to this riotous cumulative song that features animals of all shapes and sizes. Inspired by a folk tale from Chile, this classic Barefoot Books singalong story introduces children to animals and their babies, and teaches how to count up to 16 in multiples of 2.

Read Along or Enhanced eBook: In this timeless tale from Thailand, A girl cannot decide which of her many silken dresses and lavish jewels to wear to the dance, so she wears them all. Her foolish decision, teaches her a valuable lesson.

Suggests programs for preschoolers featuring books about science, the seasons, holidays, the imagination, travel, art, and music.

This unique and diverse selection of traditional folktales from the countries of the Arabian Peninsula appeals to a broad audience, ranging from storytellers and educators to folklorists and scholars. A unique compilation of stories, Folktales from the Arabian Peninsula includes tales from seven countries: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Coauthored by a renowned folklorist and a professor of education who recalls some of these poignant tales from her own childhood, the book opens with a discussion of the Arabian Peninsula that introduces each country and discusses its terrain, peoples, and current situation to provide important background information. The engaging stories that follow will serve elementary, junior high, and high school librarians as well as public librarians, professional storytellers, and folklorists. The tales themselves—many of which have never been published in English language children''s collections—are appropriate for readers grades five and up.