It comes as no surprise that a wolf is able to blow down the first two pigs' houses. When the wolf can't blow down the third pig's brick house, everyone comes together and the fun begins. The first two pigs give him potato chips and sody-pop, and the third pig makes everyone a healthy meal. Since only one pig has a house left, the other two pigs and the wolf move in with her. The somewhat bad wolf is no longer hungry.

    A retelling of the four books of the Mabinogion, a collection of Welsh medieval tales about the feats and exploits of legendary Welsh kings and princes.

    Her house is bleak and empty and he keeps seeing shadows when nobody is there. Emily laughs at him. "You'll get used to them," she says. "Everybody does."However, Hollis meets the real shadows, who live in the summerhouse, when he discovers the magic of the dolphin fountain. The Shades are delighted and they welcome Hollis into the family. Each day he roams the garden with the Shades. He makes Emily celebrate his birthday party outside so that the Shades can eat the shadow of his cake. At the end of the summer, an evil force threatens to enslave the Shades and it is Hollis who must work out a plan to save them.(From the inside flap of the dustcover.)

    Each of our holidays has its own familiar traditions: Trick-or-treating on Halloween, eating turkey on Thanksgiving, waiting for Santa Claus on Christmas, exchanging cards on Valentine's Day. But where do these customs come from, when did they begin, and why do we continue to observe them? In the engaging blend of careful research and lively prose that has earned her books a lasting place on the holiday bookshelf, Edna Barth explores the multicultural origins and evolution of the familiar and not-so-familiar symbols and legends associated with our favorite holidays. Full of fascinating historical details and little-known stories, these books are both informative and engaging. Festively illustrated by Ursula Arndt, they are now available again in hardcover as well as paperback editions, featuring new, eye-catching jacket designs, and fun holiday activities inside the paperback covers. Each book includes an annotated list of holiday stories and poems and an index.

    There, his father the King, who has been searching for him for nine long years, tells him his true name is Mio, and lavishes upon him the loving attention he never received from his foster parents back in Stockholm. Mio learns of a prophecy that has been foretold for thousand of years. With his best friend Pompoo, and his horse with the golden mane, Miramis, he must travel into the darkness of Outer Land to battle the cruel Sir Kato.

    Hoffmann's tale of the Nutcracker has enchanted readers, inspired artists and composers, and delighted audiences around the world. In cities and towns everywhere, children thrill to annual performances of Tchaikovsky's classic Christmas ballet about a girl named Marie who helps a wooden nutcracker defeat an evil army of mice, and is rewarded by a visit to the magical dream world, the Land of Toys.Lisbeth Zwerger's stunning, all-new interpretation on "The Nutcracker," adapted from the original Hoffmann tale, rounds out the story depicted in the ballet, exploring the background of the feud between the Nutcracker and the seven-headed Mouse King, the true role of the mysterious Drosselmeier, the tragic fate of Princess Pirlipat, the spell cast by Mistress Mousie that is finally broken by loyal Marie, and the satisfying, happily-ever-after conclusion to the great battle and fantastic journey. In pictures filled with wit and whimsy, drama, mystery, and magic, Lisbeth Zwerger transports us to the darkest reaches and brightest beauty of this fairy-tale world.

    This book gives an account of ethics from a pagan viewpoint for the modern world.

    These tales capture the interest and imagination of children and adults alike, showing that while we might wish and wander, we should be grateful for what we have and where we are in life.Beautifully reissued, this new book has all the enchantment of Eric Carle's art, plus the compelling storytelling and morals of Grimms' tales.

    When the Princess learns what her father has done, she is horrified. But she is as clever as she is beautiful. Quickly, the Princess devises a plan to escape and, relying on her own spunk and good sense, ultimately marries the man she chooses for herself.

    "Wife! Wife!" he cried. "We are undone! My britches have burst and my buttons are burnt, every one!" After putting her husband to bed, the wife enlists the aid of her three daughters in replacing their father's buttons. The eldest promises to find a rich man who will give her buttons in exchange for her hand in marriage. The second daughter decides to join the army for the sake of the buttons on a soldier's uniform. And the youngest is going to run through the meadows with her apron held out before her, hoping to catch a few buttons falling from the sky. Which of these young ladies will succeed in restoring the family fortunes? The answer is the essential and satisfying stuff of fairy tales. Brock Cole's whimsical prose and pictures make this original story feel like a hundred-year-old classic.

    In January 1680 a dozen Pueblo Indians are charged with conspiring to incite a revolution against the colonial government. When the prisoners are brought before the Governor, one of them is revealed as a young woman. Educated by the friars in her pueblo's mission church, Serafina speaks beautiful Spanish and surprises the Governor with her fearlessness and intelligence.The two strike a bargain. She will entertain the Governor by telling him a story. If he likes her story, he will free one of the prisoners. Like Scheherezade, who prevented her royal husband from killing her by telling him stories, Serafina keeps the Governor so entertained with her versions of Nuevo Mexicano cuentos that he spares the lives of all her fellow prisoners.Some of the stories Serafina tells will have a familiar ring to them, for they came from Europe and were New Mexicanized by the Spanish colonists. Some have Pueblo Indian plots and characters--and it is this blending of the two cultures that is Anaya's true subject.

    One day, she trades a brocade for a beautiful painting of a palace. She then spends years lovingly recreating the scene in brocade only to lose her work on a windy day. After everything she has done for her family, her youngest son seeks to recover the lost treasure, traveling through terrible weather and rocky terrain.Great for ages 5 and up. Beautiful and vibrant full-color illustrations.

    She was beautiful and dangerous, and the fishermen of those parts were careful to speak well of her. All but Eric Anderson, who scorned her very existence—until the day the mermaid smashed his fishing boat against the rocks, nearly killing him and his crew. Eric bid his family good-bye, for after that, no one would sail with him. His grandchildren, Jon and Anna, never stopped missing him; so from the moment they saw the mermaid for themselves, they knew it was up to them to tame her and bring their grandfather home again...

    Award-winning author Ursula Jones tells the story with elegance and humour, capturing all the magic and excitement of this timeless fairy tale. Illustrated with exquisite style by Sarah Gibb, this is a beautiful book to pore over and cherish.

    But the story has remained alive for adults, allowing it to lead a rich subterranean existence in novels ranging from Jane Eyre to Lolita and in films as diverse as Hitchcock's Notorious and Jane Campion's The Piano.In this fascinating work, Maria Tatar analyzes the many forms the tale of Bluebeard's Wife has taken over time, particularly in Anglo-European popular culture. It documents the fortunes of Bluebeard, his wife, and their marriage in folklore, fiction, film, and opera, showing how others took the Bluebeard theme and revived it with their own signature twists.In some tales the wife is a deceiver; in others she is a clever investigator. Earlier ages denounced Bluebeard's wife for her "reckless curiosity" and for her "uncontrolled appetite"; our own times have turned her into something of a heroine, a woman who rescues herself--and often her marriage--through her detective work and psychological finesse. And as for Bluebeard? Once considered a one-dimensional brute, he has found renewed cultural energy both as a master criminal who kills in order to create a higher moral order and as an artist figure who must shield himself against intimacy to foster his creative powers. A brilliant account of how one classic fairy tale has been continually reincarnated, Secrets beyond the Door will appeal to both literary scholars and general readers.