Books published by publisher Plain Tales, Inc.

Some stories are so timeless we can't wait to share them with our children. You'll find five such classics in this collection from PlainTales, including the tales of the naughty Gingerbread Boy, the clever Billy Goats Gruff, the enchanted Frog Prince, the stalwart Little Red Hen, and the courageous Bremen Town Musicians. All are told with simple, engaging language perfect for the littlest listeners.

Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, and Davy Crockett are some of the roughest, toughest characters to ever blaze the frontier. Clever as the crack of a whip and strong as a wildcat, these tall-tale heroes each left a legacy of larger-than-life deeds that has captured the American imagination for over a century. Three rib-tickling tracks tell the whole story -- believe it or not.

To save herself from certain death, the beautiful Scheherazade must beguile a Persian sultan with her enchanting stories. In two of her most well-known tales, Aladdin's and Ali Baba's cleverness and quick-thinking save the day - and a great treasure. Andrew Lang's masterful version of these ancient Middle Eastern folk tales will captivate listeners of all ages, just as they did when Scherazade was the storyteller.

Lazy Rip Van Winkle "would rather starve on a penny than work for a pound", much to the dismay of his wife. After an afternoon in the Catskill Mountains ends in an enchanted, 20-year sleep, Rip discovers that his children have grown up without him. He's even slept through the American Revolutionary War! But does he learn his lesson? From 19th-century author Washington Irving comes two cautionary tales that will broaden your vocabulary and challenge you to think.

What makes an American legend? Find out in these fascinating stories of three of our national treasures, including Johnny Appleseed, whose apple trees bore the fruit that fed a nation of pioneers; Sacagawea, the Native American woman who bravely guided Lewis and Clark on their westward journey; and John Muir, a valiant protector of the West's natural wonders and founder of the Sierra Club.

Hans Christian Andersen is one of the world's 10 most translated authors, and you only have to listen to understand why. He brings a silly sensibility to stories that showcase the triumph of the downtrodden (the ugly duckling that turns into a beautiful swan) and the downfall of the triumphant (the emperor whose arrogance won't allow him to admit that he's parading in public without any clothes). Included in this collection: "The Ugly Duckling", "The Emperor's New Clothes", "The Princess and the Pea", "The Nightingale".

King Midas is obsessed with gold: counting it, touching it, imagining it. But when a strange young man grants his wish for a golden touch, things don't go quite as he planned - particularly for his daughter Marigold. In these selections from classic American author Nathaniel Hawthorne's charming retellings of Greek myths, children meet Midas and another engaging troublemaker, Pandora, and learn lessons about love and forgiveness. Included in this collection: The Golden Touch / Pandora's Box: The Paradise of Children

Why does the giraffe have spotty skin? Why do melons taste just so? An insatiably curious young elephant can't stop asking questions, until one in particular gets him into worse trouble than he could have ever imagined. In "The Elephant's Child" and two other fanciful fables, Rudyard Kipling offers whimsical explanations for the strange lives and looks of the animals he encountered as a child. The long-trunked elephant, the saggy-skinned rhinoceros, and the half-wild housecat.

To survive a bleak winter, Hazard the coyote must find food for his pack, even if it puts him in grave danger. Finally on his own, a young raccoon named Lotor needs to find a new home before a predator finds him. Osa the brown bear builds the perfect winter den - with less-than-perfect results. These stories about fictional animal friends are rich with detail about real animal behaviors, so children learn as they enjoy the fun.

Do toys have feelings? In Margery William Bianco's sentimental classic, the answer is a definitive yes. Learn what happens to a stalwart stuffed rabbit when a sick little boy loves him all too well. In "Rosy's Journey," the beloved American author of Little Women spins the tale of a gentle little girl whose kindness to animals is repaid again and again as she searches for her long-lost father. Little listeners learn just what it means to be a friend to animals, real and imaginary.The stories included in this collection are:1. The Velveteen Rabbit 2. Rosy's Journey

When young Lionel is whisked from his nursery one morning and crowned king, he becomes fascinated by the forbidden Book of Beasts in the palace library. But when a real red dragon escapes from the pages and wreaks havoc on the kingdom, Lionel has to act fast to make things right. But how? Edith Nesbit's entertaining stories found a fan in J.K. Rowling, and with good reason. Like Harry Potter, these selections from The Book of Dragons are full of just the right mix of magic, adventure, and everyday life.

"Beautiful, shocking, at times painful... the magnificently told story of a man who triumphed over the limitations of history to become his greatest self."Fans of All the Light We Cannot See, The Nightingale, and Unbroken will enjoy this riveting true story of courage, love, and beating the odds.The life he was born into was too small for Adam Baumann. But would escaping Hungary cost him everything?Based on a true story, this is the epic tale of a boy's survival as the world plunged into the darkest days of WW2.Growing up in an isolated village in eastern Hungary between the great wars, Adam couldn’t remember a time he hadn’t yearned for more excitement, more freedom, and often more food. Locked up for theft at age nine, Adam’s life took one tumultuous turn after another as Hitler plunged Europe into war.From a 12-year-old runaway searching for food, to a 15-year-old shivering in the mud of a frozen foxhole on the Eastern Front, Adam's survival hung in the balance. When a Russian bullet found it’s mark, Adam was catapulted into a series of captures and narrow escapes from enemy forces while Europe reeled from the final destruction of WW2.Never standing still, Adam struggled through war-torn landscapes to find his family, and began to build a life from the ashes, until the results of a medical examination at an American Embassy in Germany changed the course of his future forever.