In his Apologetics class at Monsignor Bonner High School, Ed Stivender had a special reputation—he was the class clown. One day he pushed Father McGinnis just a little too far, and the teacher gave him a surprising punishment: Ed had to take part in a debate about The Existence of God. And even tougher, he had to argue the side against God’s existence.

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.

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.

Barking At a Fox-fur Coat is a celebrated collection of seventeen vintage family stories and tall tales set in the mountains of North Carolina.

Jewish folklore is full of stories that have traveled across many lands and cultures. Over hundreds of years, these tales have carried the joys and challenges of being Jewish, showing both the struggles people faced and the strength they found along the way.

Asian Tales and Tellers is a diverse collection featuring more than thirty traditional stories from across the rich Asian cultural landscape.

African-American Folktales is a lively collection of over 30 traditional stories designed to engage and entertain young readers.

Adventures of High John the Conqueror is a powerful collection of African American folktales featuring the legendary slave trickster who consistently outsmarted his oppressors.

Maybe it’s because his mother was a teacher. Or maybe it’s because he spent so much of his life in classrooms—first as a curious first grader, then as a hopeful college student, later as a seminarian, and now as a visiting writer who travels to schools all over the country. Whatever the reason, school has always been at the heart of Donald Davis’s stories, and this book gathers his very favorite school adventures.

Richard has a lot of stories to tell—just look at the marks on his legs and feet. Each one came from a different adventure, and none of them match up. Hard to believe, but he promises it’s the truth, and just thinking about it still gives him a shiver.

Anyone who has ever watched a great storyteller hold a whole room spellbound—without costumes, sets, or music—has probably wondered how they do it. This collection explains the secret: it all starts with a really good story. And the 40 storytellers in this book know exactly what that means. They’re some of the most beloved tellers in the country, each sharing a tale that’s been tested on even the squirmiest, most hard‑to‑please audiences.

The author grew up with two very different parents. His mom was an Irish Catholic who prayed every day that her only son would become a priest. His dad was a Navy man who liked to joke, “Son, never take a job where you have to wear a dress to work.” So Ed found a path right in the middle.

This book gathers 46 stories from many different places around the world, most of them brought to America by families who immigrated here. Together, the tales create a kind of “world tour” you can take without ever leaving your chair. Even though the stories come from far‑off places, they all share a special Jewish spirit—one that celebrates doing what’s right, using cleverness and kindness to get through tough times, and keeping a good sense of humor along the way.

These Franco‑American tales are filled with brave princesses, clever underdogs, and mischievous tricksters. They come from a community sometimes described as “a quiet presence,” but their stories are anything but quiet. The authors share the lutin’s playful pranks on farmers, the Jack‑like adventures of Ti‑Jean, Pierre’s modern‑day chainsaw heroics, a princess who outsmarts a wicked witch, and family tales passed lovingly from one generation to the next.

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.