Fairy Child

Around the world each night, parents tell stories to children as they put them to bed. Margaret Read MacDonald - a folklorist, storyteller, and children's librarian - uses bedtime tales in the daytime to end her story hours on a calm note. Here, with accompaniment on dulcimer and autoharp by musician Richard Scholtz, she includes seven of her favorites from around the world.

It's the February after Gaea's defeat, and mysterious incidents are wreaking havoc throughout Camp Jupiter. If the Romans don't figure out who - or what - is behind the episodes soon, the Twelfth Legion could implode. Suspicion falls on Claudia, the Fourth Cohort's newest probatio. After all, the mischief started shortly after she stumbled into camp. Plus, she's a daughter of Mercury, the god of thieves and tricksters.

Eleven-year-old Anthoni Gillis is not the kind of kid who believes in fairies, unicorns, or even the word maybe. She's more of a comic-book girl. So when her mom brings her to Thunder Lake for a summer at the Showboat Resort, she doesn't believe the local rumors about the Boulay Mermaid. Anthoni has bigger fish to fry. She's always wanted a true-blue friend. But it's been hard to find one, since for the past five years she's been bouncing from town to town, helping her mother sell Beauty & the Bee cosmetic products to keep them both afloat. This summer will be different, though.

Read by Paul Newman, Sidney Poitier, Kathleen Turner, and Matthew Broderick, here are the stories of the immortals of Olympus - the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece - as freshly described as if they were alive today. Mighty Zeus, with his fistful of thunderbolts; mischievous little Hermes; grey-eyed Athena, godess of wisdom; Asclepius, the first physician; Orpheus and his beloved Euridice; Helios the sun, crossing the heavens in his fiery chariot....

OF COURSE you think Cinderella was the sweetest belle of the ball. You don't know the other side of the story. Well, let me tell you....

Trapped in a world where magic is powerful and dreams are real, Cole's epic adventure comes to a close in book five of the New York Times best-selling "fanciful, action-packed adventure" series (Publishers Weekly), from the author of the Fablehaven and Beyonders series. Cole and his friends are pushed to the limit in this finale to the best-selling Five Kingdoms series. Will they finally be able to restore magic to the world of the Outskirts and find their way back home?

Elliot Hooper's troubles are far from over: his mum's health worsens, he's struggling at school, and a bunch of anarchic Greek immortals have moved into his home - including teen goddess Virgo, who's in trouble with the Zodiac. What's more, death-daemon Thanatos and his scary mum are at large. As even more immortal allies and enemies emerge, Virgo and Elliot must learn how to be heroes....

Join Nickelodeon’s Nella the Princess Knight for an adventure!

A young prince must find a princess to marry. But he has trouble finding the right one. Finally, he finds a princess who shares his interest in soccer. But how can he find out if she's a real, true princess?

Nelson Mandela's Favorite African Folktales is an audiobook benefiting children orphaned and impacted by HIV/AIDS in South Africa, featuring Gillian Anderson, Benjamin Bratt, LeVar Burton, Ricardo Chavira, Don Cheadle, Matt Damon, Whoopi Goldberg, Sean Hayes, Hugh Jackman, Samuel L. Jackson, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Debra Messing, Helen Mirren, Parminder Nagra, Sophie Okonedo, CCH Pounder, and Alan Rickman.

When Maddie and Will get a message that dire wolves—huge misshapen changelings, much larger than regular wolves—have been marauding and attacking through the hills and valleys of Celtica, the Rangers are sent on a mission to unravel just who or what is behind these dangerous creatures. Will isn’t anxious to return to Celtica, especially approaching the Rift. And as they travel, Maddie must grapple with their growing dealings with the spiritual and supernatural. But they are Rangers—and they will do whatever it takes to accomplish their mission.

This audiobook recounts the famous tale of the race between the persevering turtle and the boastful rabbit.

Isabelle should be blissfully happy - she's about to win the handsome prince. Except Isabelle isn't the beautiful girl who lost the glass slipper and captured the prince's heart. She's the ugly stepsister who cut off her toes to fit into Cinderella's shoe...which is now filling with blood. Isabelle cut away pieces of herself in order to become pretty. Sweet. More like Cinderella. But that only made her mean, jealous, and hollow. Now she has a chance to alter her destiny and prove what ugly stepsisters have always known: it takes more than heartache to break a girl.

The Herons are home in Skandia—preparing to celebrate two of their own and working on sea trials in the newly constructed Heron. But during a short excursion, they encounter an Iberian pirate ship raiding the coast of Sonderland, so Hal and his crew take action.

The Trojan War is ancient history. The gods of Olympus are silent and have not appeared to mortals for generations. In the city-state of Sparta, young Gorgo’s mother gives a warning with her dying breath: the Persians are coming. The princess Gorgo, weaned on her nurse’s stories of gods and shapeshifters, never forgets her mother’s last words. When at last the drums of war begin to sound, she is swept up in a dangerous game of politics, treachery, and vengeance.

Ella Brook can't wait to grow up, because one day she will become a fairy and have her own sparkly wings and a teacher on Fairy Tube, just like her mom! Until then, Ella has to learn by watching her mom in action. But sometimes spells go wrong, and Ella's mom can never seem to remember the right magic codes on her Computawand. A lot of the time, it's up to Ella to come to the rescue. Does she have what it takes to be a fairy one day? Or will there be more glitches than glitter?

For years, the Kingdom of Araluen has prospered, with the evil lord Morgarath safely behind the impassable mountains. For years, its people have felt secure. But the scheming hand of the dark lord has not been idle.... On a special mission for the rangers, Will and his friend Horace, an apprentice knight, travel to a neighboring village and discover the unsettling truth: All the villagers have either been slain or captured. Could it be that Morgarath has finally devised a plan to bring his legions over the supposedly insurmountable pass?

The Emperor loves to wear the most fashionable and finest clothes in the land. However, when two strangers suggest that they can weave him a special suit - which is invisible to anyone who's not worthy and wise - it has to be seen to be believed. A magical retelling of the classic fairy tale, read by Tamsin Greig.

In this third audiobook in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles series, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they're plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and prevent her army from invading Earth. Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl trapped on a satellite since childhood who's only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she's being forced to work for Queen Levana, and she's just received orders to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

Is this story too long? Is this story too short? Nope, it's just right! Abby and Jonah get pulled into their magic mirror and land in the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. There's porridge to sample and beds to test out! But if they help Goldilocks, will they risk running into big trouble with the Bear family in their cottage?