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.

Have you ever played the game “Telephone,” where one person whispers a message and it travels around the circle until it comes back sounding completely different? Stories work the same way. As they’re passed from person to person—and from place to place—they stretch, twist, and grow into new versions. The stories in this book show just how powerful that “story grapevine” can be. Many of these tales have been traveling for hundreds of years. Some appear in different countries all over the world, each with its own special twist. All of them are fun to read aloud, and even more fun to tell in your own voice.

Scary stories have always been a favorite with kids. It makes sense—listening to spooky tales wakes up our imaginations, adds excitement to everyday life, and lets us practice being brave while knowing we’re completely safe.

People all around the world tell stories that teach us about wisdom and fairness. These tales help us remember that when people use good judgment and treat each other kindly, everyone can live together in peace. Wisdom tales show us how important it is to listen, think carefully, and do what’s right.

Tricksters are some of the most exciting characters in stories from all over the world. They’re clever, playful, and full of surprises. Sometimes they act a little foolish, sometimes they’re amazingly wise—and often they manage to be both at once. Their adventures remind us that using our wits can help us stand up to bullies, solve problems, and even have a little fun along the way.

Every culture on Earth has its own lovable fools—people who mean well but somehow manage to mix things up anyway. Even though they often choose the wrong thing to do, their hearts are usually in the right place. By listening to their stories, we learn how to make better choices ourselves… and how to laugh when we have a silly moment, too.

Insects have been part of our world since the very beginning. Sometimes they buzz in our ears or give us itchy bites, and sometimes they amaze us with their bright colors, clever tricks, and tiny superpowers. People everywhere have watched insects closely enough to imagine what their lives might be like, giving them stories, personalities, and even heroic moments.

People all around the world celebrate special days called holidays. These are moments when ordinary life feels a little brighter, a little more exciting, and full of extra spirit. Sometimes that spirit feels like kindness and love. Other times it feels like starting fresh, or even a tiny bit spooky in a fun way.

What does it really take to be a hero? Do you need giant muscles, towering height, or endless power? Not at all. Sometimes being a hero starts with quick thinking, a brave heart, or the simple choice to help someone else. When we read about the bold characters in these stories, we can feel our own inner hero waking up, reminding us that we all have the power to do good.

This special collection of American folktales travels all across the country—from Alaska’s icy tundra to Virginia’s soft green hills, from Louisiana’s steamy bayous to the wide‑open prairies of South Dakota. The author tells each story in his gentle, welcoming style, making every tale feel like it’s being shared around a cozy campfire.

For a long, long time, Eastern Europe has been a place where many different peoples, languages, and traditions meet. Sometimes there were disagreements, and sometimes there was great cooperation—but through it all, people told stories. These folktales show just how diverse the region is, and each one shares a challenge that can be faced with clever thinking, bravery, and hope.

The August House Book of Scary Stories is a thrilling collection of spooky tales designed specifically for oral storytelling and middle-grade readers.

In many Native American traditions, the spirit world and the natural world are closely connected. What happens to animals, people, or the land can echo in the world of spirits—and the other way around. Choctaw storyteller Tim Tingle shares this idea through tales passed down by the Five Civilized Tribes: the Creek, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Seminole nations. In these stories, the spirit world steps into our world in surprising and unforgettable ways.

Have you ever heard the silly story about the woman whose beehive hairdo was sprayed so stiff that tiny creatures decided it would make a perfect home? Everyone seems to know someone who knows someone it happened to—though the details always get a little mixed up. That’s the magic of urban legends. They’re modern folktales, passed along as “totally true,” even though they always happened to a “friend of a friend.”

The Broken Tusk is an engaging collection of Hindu mythology stories centered on Ganesha, the popular elephant-headed god of new beginnings.

The author grew up in the mountains of western North Carolina listening to stories that many kids in America had never heard before. He didn’t realize it at the time, but he was learning old tales that had traveled across the ocean with Scots‑Irish families long ago. In the 1950s, people in the Appalachian Mountains were still telling these stories, most of them about a clever, brave, and sometimes very lucky character named Jack. Versions of Jack appear in almost every culture, which makes him feel familiar no matter where you’re from.

Through a Ruby Window is a charming collection of fifteen stories that captures the magic of growing up on Martha's Vineyard.

Fielder's Choice by Rick Norman is a gripping historical fiction novel that follows Andrew Jackson Fielder from the baseball fields of Arkansas to a Japanese prisoner of war camp during World War II.

Discover a heartwarming collection of stories about growing up in the rural Midwest during the 1950s.

Big Doc's Girl is a classic coming-of-age story set in rural Arkansas, following a young woman named Mary as she balances her dreams of becoming a concert pianist with her family responsibilities.

A long, twisty highway. Kids squabbling in the back seat. Parents trying every trick they know to keep the peace. It sounds like an ordinary family road trip—but Donald Davis turns it into an adventure no one forgets.

Beneath the Blazing Sun is a powerful collection of 18 stories that explores the African American experience from its roots in West Africa to the present day.

The author—famous for telling some of the spookiest stories around—have gathered a whole collection of chills and thrills in this book. The tales are grouped into fun themes so kids can pick exactly the kind of scare they’re in the mood for. This collection is packed with scares, laughs, and unforgettable moments—just right for kids who love stories that make their hearts race and their imaginations soar.