Storybook: A Puss in Boots Wants Red Shoes

by Karen Lewis (Canada)
illustrated by Kelly Dorman

RedShoes

Once upon a time there was a little black and white kitten named Wendy, who didn’t want to be a puss in boots. “I’m tired of wearing boots all the time,” she told her mother. “I want shoes, red ones. They would match my jumper.”

Wendy had first seen the shoes she wanted, in a shop window on her way to school. They were a lovely shade of cherry red, with shiny black soles and silver buckles. But her mother would not listen. “A nice pair of new black boots will wear longer and be warmer in winter,” she stated firmly. “And you can even step in puddles with them.”

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Storybook: The Creation of the Night

a Brazilian myth
written and illustrated by Maria Lucia Guimaraes Maier

night

When the earth was very young the night and the animals didn’t exist.

There were only trees, plants and people. During this time, the sun shined very brightly. The people were always very tired because they didn’t sleep well. The trees were faded because of the hot weather.

Only the Big Snake who was a witch could make the night appear.

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Storybook: Thumbelina

by Hans Christian Andersen

thumb

Once upon a time there was a woman whose only wish was to have a tiny little child. She had no idea where to get one, so she went to an old witch and asked her: “Please, old witch, tell me where I can get a tiny little child.”

“That is not so hard,” said the witch. “Plant this seed in the ground and see what happens.”

The woman paid the witch twelve gold coins and went home to plant the seed. No sooner was it in the ground than it started to sprout. A big beautiful flower grew up. It became a tulip that was ready to bloom.

“What a lovely flower,” said the woman as she kissed the red and yellow petals that were closed so tightly. With a snap they opened and became a real tulip. In the center of the flower sat a tiny little girl. She was so beautiful and so delicate, and exactly one inch long.

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Storybook: Hannah Banana

By Joshua Ingram

In the deepest jungle of Africa, there lived a family of monkeys. There was a Mama Monkey, and a Papa Monkey, and they had a young daughter named Hannah.
The monkey family lived very happily swinging and playing in the trees and vines. But unfortunately, it wasn’t all play. Papa Monkey had to make sure their home in the canopy was warm and protected.

Mama was responsible for the sewing and cooking of the family’s meals. Hannah helped with the cleaning, but her main chore was to collect all the bananas and other fruit for the monkey family’s meals.

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Storybook: Gentian’s Grumpy Day

by Kristen Collier (USA)
illustration by Kevin Scott Collier
There is also a Joy the Jellyfish web site.

Gentian the Great White Shark was grumpy. Nobody wanted to approach him today! Fish fled from his path. Joy the Jellyfish saw the commotion. She gulped and then approached the out of sorts shark.

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Storybook: Fairy of the Dawn – An Epic Fairy Tale

This is an epic fairy tale  that reworks the classic Grimm’s story, ‘The Water of Life,’ into a grand Nordic tale of magic, goddesses, fairies and heroes. Go on an epic quest with the young son of an emperor to find the magic of the Fairy of the Dawn.

Fairy of the Dawn
By John Brookes

There was once an emperor, very great and mighty, and he ruled over an empire so large that no one knew where it began and where it ended. But if nobody could tell the exact extent of his Sovereignty everybody was aware that the emperor’s right eye laughed, while his left eye wept. One or two men of valour had the courage to go and ask him the reason of this strange fact, but he only laughed and said nothing; and the reason of the deadly enmity between his two eyes was a secret only known to the Monarch himself.

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