Read Me a Story, Ink

A traditional fairytale for all ages beautifully retold by award-winning British author, Adele Geras. 

Two of the King's guards pay a young man to show them the way to Aliforde the Woodcutter's hut.  But when they arrive the humble woodcutter bests them both by sword revealing his true identity as the King's Personal Champion, self-exiled after an accidental killing of a rival. But the King has a new son, and he needs his trusted champion back to teach the young prince the way of the Knight.

According to legend, if you see a leprechaun and don't take your eyes off him, he must take you to his pot of gold, which is just what a traveling tradesman does. However, in the end, he is outwitted by the leprechaun's sad but clever story.

A skunk was madly in love with a bear. But the bear, barely noticed the skunk … that is until the skunk saved the bear from hunters and the forest's most unlikely friendship blossomed.

John Michael was poor, but his friend William was dirt poor and that's what decided John Michael to give William all the money he got from selling pecans. He would have loved to buy some sports equipment. but it was more important for William to get a bicycle so that he could get a delivery job and help support his family.

A long time ago, in a kingdom by the sea, there was a Princess as tall and bright as a sunflower, but she refused to wither in the shadow of her betrothed Prince and found greater pleasure in her beloved talking dog.

When a witch goes before the king to ask for the road in front of her house to be repaired, she is told by the king's chief advisor that the king could build castles in the air if he wanted to, rather than talk to her. This gives the witch a clever idea and pretty soon the king is looking down on his kingdom from his castle in the clouds

Arin and her Mom go to the cemetery to tell Arin's Dad that it's okay, that they love him and don't blame him for what happened in the church the night they surprised two burglars. A softly told tale of a ghostly encounter in a graveyard with a nice twist at the end.

When Rooster ducks into the barn to get out of the afternoon rain storm he is surprised to have his sneeze answered by a polite “God bless you, young man.” When he realizes it is Miz Mephitis, the skunk, he backs away just a far as he can. But his fear is replaced by curiosity when a right friendly discussion ensues and Rooster learns there is a lot more to skunks than he had imagined.

A very literary and delightful modern translation/adaptation of one of Charles Perrault's most famous fairy tails wherein the youngest son inherits nothing of value except the family cat. But the cat, who is very fond or his young master, proves to be well more that just a cat. Bebooted and behatted, the clever feline finds his master both a kingdom and a wife. For all who love happily ever afters – and cats.

A dragon, fearing that he doesn't exist, shares his concern with his friends the griffin, the unicorn and the sphinx. They can offer little to ease his worries but in the end, like Rousseau, he decides, someone imagines, therefore, I am.

A “what if” story about one of Cinderella's coachmen who stays a man rather than regaining his mouse form at the stroke of midnight. Dazed and confused, he finds himself at the gates of a castle and discovers that, upon being given lowly work in the King's stables, he has a knack as a horse whisperer.

The trouble with Trouble was he talked too much, even old skunk told him so. But when Trouble tried to tell everyone old skunk spoke to him, no one ever believed him again.

When death comes for Old Hark, the old man tells him to come again in the spring so he can feed his birds for one more winter. After some argument, Death offers to give him one more winter if he can answer three questions.

A story from Ms Banks' delightful anthology “The Magic Hare” in which the magic hare is snared by an orphan for dinner. The hare continues to suggest ingredients that would make him taste better but the final one is through the dark forest where the orphan has never gone. The hare leads the way, the orphan overcomes her fear and both live happily, but separately, ever after.

When Conal builds his castle on a hilltop he is not aware that he is intruding in the domain of the powerful fairy, Duine Sidhe. Cursed by the fairy, Conal and his family find no happiness until Conal's son is befriended by a weaver who weaves a magic tapestry that can lift the curse.

After John Robert found a dragon's egg down by the swamp, he and his Grandpa Riley kept it a secret from Aunt Bess whose life was too hard to care about such things. That is until it hatched, grew to 14 feet in two months and drank all the coal oil in the barn. Well, something had to be done. Lucky for John Robert and Grandpa Riley it was the flyin' kind…

A story from Ms Banks delightful anthology “The Magic Hare” in which the magic hare hears tiny bells after every good deed and discovers they are applause from a sad, unnamed flower. In gratitude, the magic hare gives the flower a name, ‘harebell,' or ‘Campanula rotundifolia.'

When Derek's kid brother finds bunches of mistletoe on the ground in an orchard, he decides to sell them to earn money to buy Derek a much needed guitar case. Little does he know that Derek is the one cutting the mistletoe trying to earn enough money to buy him the wooden recorder he has always wanted. Nicely reminiscent of O. Henry's “The Gift of the Magi.”

When a stranger comes to the city of Chelm, he claims that he can make his own latkes with nothing but his magic spoon. To make them even better, the folk of Chelm start to loan him ingredients until they are feasting on the perfect latkes.

Young Kotoshi is supposed to be the yearly sacrifice to appease the local dragon. But when she finds the dragon grief-stricken over her dying pup, she uses her healing skills to save the pup.  In gratitude, the dragon promises that no harm will ever come to the village.

Young Kate Fotheringay is refused entrance to Miss Perkle's School for Young Witches, until one of her spells saves the school and causes Miss Perkle to reconsider.

Young Hamid, is bound as a servant to rug merchants that he believes are his aunt and uncle, until one day a beautiful but ghostly figure hands him an old carpet. Both the woman and the carpet seem remotely familiar and, indeed, they lead to Hamid being reunited with his father, a prince, while the abusive couple get their comeuppance.

When a young orphaned girl comes to live with Old Vanka, he tells her of his yearly search for the goat that leaves jewels wherever he stamps his silver hoof.

Rooster is wondering how to untangle his lucky bobber when mean Old Man Bockenweiler comes strolling down the path. While Rooster hides, his dreaded enemy stops, untangles the bobber, neatly rolls the line and leaves Rooster's fishing pole by his can of worms, showing Rooster a surprisingly kind side of the Old Man.

A lovely verbal rhythm develops as three squirrels, foot, foot-foot and foot-foot-foot, attempt to eat all the nuts on the tangliest ol' giant of a nut tree in the bottom of the holler.

Farmers Abel, Nagel and Zeke could argue about anything, and did. But when they started to argue about which of them owned the moon, their wives said enough was enough and demanded they go into town and talk to the Teacher who settled their argument in a very clever fashion

A grumpy and friendless old woman begrudgingly gives a weary traveler a bed for the night. In exchange the traveler gives the old woman a magic kerchief. Wearing her new kerchief, the old woman's curt and hateful words come out compliments as warm as sunshine, bringing with it the riches of new found friends.

For a minor crime, Howard and Francis must stay at their desks for recess. Left to their own devices, they climb through the trap door above the cloak room only to find W. T. Mellon, founder of their school and dead these many years, living in a room filled with books and overflowing with information, including where teachers come from.

When the emperor dies, no man in the kingdom is brave enough to be tested by the great dragon. It is only the emperor's daughter Si-Ling who has the courage to face the dragon and test her skill against his riddles. Solving the three riddles she ascends the throne with the dragon's best wishes and rules with courage, heart and wisdom the rest of her days.

While eating his morning cereal, Jamie is confronted by two 5 centimeter aliens named Zzyxc and Xthyyz. Jamie suggests that there lives would be a lot simpler if they had names like Alan. The aliens think this a brilliant idea, give up their plan of conquest and head home to rename their planet, and all of its inhabitants, Alan.

Dahoe, Maine boasted its very own evil wizard—it said so right on the sign over his door, "Evil Wizard Books, Z. Smallbone, Prop." But Mr. Smallbone's apprentices never stayed long, that is until young Nick Chanticleer arrived.

In a modern day twist on a well known fairy tale, Cinderella can't seem to convince her fairy god-mother that she just wants to stay home and read a good book.

When a young couple moves into a remote valley, they assure the local trolls that they mean no harm. As the years pass the trolls come to love the couple and they the trolls. Unfortunately the family's prosperity brings development to the valley and eventually the trolls have to move north, leaving behind a precious gift for their friends.

It's always a good day to fight pirates, especially if you're a dragon and a boy, friends for life. Even if you mother keeps telling you that the is no such thing as “people” and that you must curb your dragon imagination.

Gyffes Llaw is the finest shoemaker in Wales and the Princess of Wales goes barefoot for lack of good shoes. But it won't be easy for Gyffes to win her heart. “I will marry, but the man I wed must come to me neither on horse nor on foot.  He must welcome me neither inside nor out.  He must stand above me yet remain beneath.”

The first of three lovely, interconnected stories about nurse Mary Breckinridge who created the Frontier Nursing Service and spent her life riding the isolated hills of Appalachia bringing medicine to their poorest residents and building clinics.

Arcite, the coldest queen, feels neither joy nor sorrow. At the suggestion of her High Counselor, Arcite sets out on an adventure in hopes of finding both. In her chance encounter with the great Bully Legged Bogle, she finds, at last, both sorrow and great joy.

  Each night the alchemist and the mouse meet in the lab to try to make gold. But after so many years, it is as much for friendship as it is for the gold. One night – almost absentmindedly – they succeed with just enough to coat the mouse's whisker but the Alchemist can't even remember how he did it, or perhaps simply doesn't want the nightly friendship to end.

Juan had wanted his own Rhino for the longest time. Then, one birthday, his parents gave him a Rhino. But after a short few hours of fun, Juan realized that the Rhino was homesick and Juan had to figure a way to get the Rhino back to the Serengeti. So, Juan stuffed his Rhino into a hatbox…

It is the Ogres' sacred trust to watch over human beings, but when Oni's mother is killed by humans she vows to never help a human again. That is until she begrudgingly saves, then befriends a young woman who is drowning.

When an old woman shows up in a prosperous village with twelve beautifully bound books that contain all the knowledge and all the wisdom in the world, the town refuses to buy them for one sack of gold. By the time they realize the true cost of ignoring knowledge and wisdom it is nearly too late.

A pirate has captured everything but the moon.  After many attempts, he finally comes up with a plan to own the moon but in the end, it is the moon that captures the pirate's heart.

Critch, an old witch who is living in a time past the time of witches is befriended by a strange young girl who helps her with her failed spells and keeps her house entirely too clean. When the girl brings her brothers, sisters and friends, Critch finds she has a place after all, as a storyteller.

When Hogbone and his gang ride into town, the sheriff and his men are just a holler up the creek fishing. Unfortunately everyone is too scared to holler and saving the town is up to young Wally who tricks Hogbone into a hollering contest.

Old Mikila came each day to feed the wild cats at the base of the light house, all the while ignoring the teasing of the lighthouse keeper. But when she fell sick, it was the very same keeper who fed her beloved cats thus starting a friendship that brought warmth to their aged lives.

According to legend, if you see a leprechaun and don't take your eyes off him, he must take you to his pot of gold, which is just what a traveling tradesman does. But in the end, he is outwitted by the leprechaun's sad but clever story.

On the day of their emancipation, field hands on George Thomas' plantation threaten to leave unless he builds a school to educate their children. Young Sarah, the mistress's personal slave, is conflicted between taking her freedom and dedication to her mistress but decides to stay on awhile if she can go to the school and study to become a teacher.

John had been reading to his younger brother, Matthew, his entire life. Early on they discovered that something happened when the two of them read together, they found themselves IN the story. When Matthew was knocked out by a baseball and lay in a coma in the hospital, all John could think to do was to read to him, which had unexpected and amazing results. 

What Jeff mistakenly thought was a black velvet rope in the doorway to his classroom turned out to be the tail of a huge black panther - a panther that no one else saw, and it had clearly chosen Jeff.  But why?

Elderly best friends living at the Feldon's Downs Nursing Home always look forward to Christmas when they can exchange their precious whittling knives…until one Christmas when neither knife can be found, but snow falls gently for the first time in 100 years.