Traditional stories have been told aloud for hundreds of years. Even though they aren’t meant to be taken literally, they stay with us because they share timeless truths about what it means to be human.

People of all ages love watching tricksters get into trouble—and wriggle right back out again. Today we laugh at characters like Bugs Bunny, the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote, Ace Ventura, and even Bart Simpson. But tricksters have been around much longer than cartoons and movies. Every culture in the world has its own clever mischief‑maker. In Africa, there’s Anansi the Spider. In the American Southwest, Coyote causes chaos. In the Pacific Northwest, Raven stirs things up. In the American South, Rabbit is always ready with a trick. Ireland has the leprechaun, and South America has the sly Fox. Josepha Sherman gathered forty of these wonderful stories from around the globe.

This book gathers exciting stories from almost every continent, offering short, fast‑moving tales that grab young readers right away. You’ll find funny adventures, clever trickster tales, tall tales, and stories about families—perfect for both middle‑grade readers and younger kids who love a good yarn.

Morgan and Eli, two Indigenous children forced away from their families and communities, are brought...

David can eat an entire sixteen-inch pepperoni pizza in four minutes and thirty-six seconds. Not bad...

Your name is Fidge and you’re nearly eleven. You’ve been hurled into a strange world.

You have...

Do you believe in angels? Bert and Betty Brown do, because Bert discovered one in his shirt pocket...

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School is in session as celebrated authors share their real-life academic experiences and turn them...

To enter the afterlife as a wealthy ancient Egyptian, a body had to go through some astounding—and...

Innovative and inclusive, Barefoot Books Children of the World empowers young readers to learn about...

This is the atlas for twenty-first-century readers. It’s packed with information about the way in...

The champion of the destitute and downtrodden rides again. Meet young Robin Hood before he becomes...

First published in 1882, this is a wealth of projects and games, with practical directions on how to...

If Tom Sawyer had been a girl, Aunt Polly would certainly have seen to it that she had a copy of...

The country's "addiction" to oil is described and alternative energy potential from hydrogen is...

A prequel to Battling Boy, The Rise of Aurora West follows the young hero as she seeks to uncover...

RIF's 60th Anniversary Highlighted Book for 2014. The poignant memoir of a young girl who lost her hearing due to spinal meningitis and must now wear a Phonic Ear, or large hearing aid. Poor Cece stands out in the crowd when all she wants is to fit in and make friends.