My Stories

Below I’ve included the details of each story that I told: the title, author, illustrator, history, plot, whether or not I changed anything, the age group I told it to, and my review of the story. I’ve also included photos that I took of each book cover on the side of this website.

STORY #1: The Name of the Tree

Name: The Name of the Tree

Author: Celia Barker Lottridge

Illustrator: Ian Wallace

History of Story: A Bantu Tale

Publishing Information:

• Groundwood Books
• House of Anansi Press
• Toronto
• Berkeley

Plot: During a drought in Africa, all of the animals come together to search for food. They find a tree, but the fruit of the tree can only be reached by animals who know the name of the tree. 3 separate animals at three separate times go to the lion, the king of the jungle, to find out the name of the tree. Each encounter difficulty remembering the name of the tree, except for a young turtle who saves the day.

Did I change the story: The language in this version of the story was a bit old-fashioned, so I changed the words that I used. Other than that, I kept the story very close to the book.

Age Group: Grade 3-6.

Review of Story:  I absolutely LOVE this story! This is, by far, my favorite story. It is so beautiful, and it has elements of empathy, humor, and true beauty. This story will stick with me for a long time, I’m sure of it!

STORY #2: Two of Everything

Name: Two of Everything

Author: Lily Toy Hong

Illustrator: Lily Toy Hong

History of Story: A Chinese Folktale

Publishing Information:

• Albert Whitman and Company
• 6340 Oakton Street
• Morton Grove, Illinois 60053

Plot: Mr. and Mrs. Haktuk find a large brass pot in their garden, and much to their surprise, they find out that whatever they put into the pot doubles! They double their household items, their gold coins, and then themselves – accidently!

Did I change the story? I followed this story pretty closely, except I took out the anger the characters felt when each other fell into the pot.

Age Group:  Grade 1 – Grade 5.

Review of Story: This was a great story because it was so versatile! It was also one of the first stories I found that was successful – which makes it special to me as well! The story is suspenseful, and often results in lots of laughter! It also had lots of actions, which was a great way to involve the kids. I also asked them math questions, regardless of age. Example: if the characters put 10 gold coins into the pot, how many would come out?

STORY #3: Rhinos for Lunch and Elephants for Supper

Name: Rhinos for Lunch and Elephants for Supper

Author: Tololwa M. Mollel

Illustrator: Barbara Spurll

History of Story: “A Maasai tale. Mollel is an Arusha Maasai who grew up in Tanazania. He recalls working on his grandfather’s coffee farm during the school holidays, but says that his grandfather’s stories made the work seem light” (As described in the book).

Publishing Information:

• Oxford University Press
• 1991

Plot: A rabbit hears a ‘monster’ in his cave, and enlists all his animal friends to help him get the monster out. They find out at the end that it was just a caterpillar playing a prank on them!

Did I change the story: Yes! Two of the characters were very grumpy and angry, so I changed it so they were all friends. When I told the story around the beginning of April I told it as an April Fool’s prank. I also changed it so the lines by the animals were more repetitive and easier to remember.

To make this story longer, I asked the kids what animal friend they characters ran into next. To make this story shorter, I eliminated the non-essential characters.

To involve the kids, I asked them to say the repetitive lines with me.

Age Group: Grade 1 – 4

Review of Story: This was one of my favorite stories because it was so versatile! Kids enjoyed predicting what was going to happen next, and to make this story longer, I asked the children what animal friend the characters ran into next. Allowing children to contribute to the narrative meant that every time I told the story it was different, and it made the kids feel special. To make this story shorter, I eliminated  the non-essential characters.

STORY #4: The Giant Carrot

Name: The Giant Carrot

Author: Jan Peck

Illustrator: Barry Root

History of Story: Russian Folktale, adapted from “The Turnip”

Publishing Information:

• Dial Books for Young Readers
• New York

Plot: A family of four decided to plant a carrot seed. Each family member, the mother, father, brother, and daughter, help in the garden, but the carrot grows exponentially when the daughter sings and dances around it!

Did I change the story: I changed the story so there was more repetition and added phrases that I could add actions too.

Age Group: Grade 1-3

Review of story: This was fun! I added actions for “tall, wide, strong, little”, and invited children to “huff, puff, pull and tug” with me. It was great for the younger kids – and it left many in awe of a carrot that could be so large!

STORY #5: The Great Big Enormous Rock

Name: The Great Big Enourmous Rock

Author: Celia Barker Lottridge

Illustrator: Joanne Fitzgerald

History of Story: Unknown

Publishing Information:

• A Groundwood Book
• Douglas and McIntyre
• Toronto/Vancouver

Plot: Four animals living on an island work together to push a great big enormous rock off the top of a mountain so they can have a picnic.

Did I change the story: I added space for children to guess the plot – but other than that I kept the story very close to the original!

Age Group: Kindergarten – Grade 3

Review of Story: This was a great story that emphasizes the importance of teamwork. It is also relatively short, which worked great as a time-filler.

STORY #6: Ananse’s Feast

Name: Ananse’s Feast

Author: Tololwa M. Mollel

Illustrator: Andrew Glass

History of Story: Ashanti tale, West Africa

Publishing Information:

• Clarion Books
• New York

Plot: During a drought in Africa, Ananse the Spider makes a feast of food, and Akye the Turtle smells the food and comes over to Ananse’s house. The spider doesn’t want to share, so he tricks Akye into leaving the house to wash his hands, and the spider eats all the food while the turtle is gone. Later, the turtle invites the spider to his home for a feast, and plays the same trick on him.

Did I change the story: Yes! The characters in the book don’t share, and aren’t particularly kind to one another. I changed the ending of the story so the characters become kind and inclusive, and Akye shares his meal with Ananse and that from that point forward – the characters worked together and shared. I didn’t want to send a message of “payback”, instead, I wanted to send a message of “teamwork”. 

Age Group: Grade 3-6

STORY #7: Mr. Pak Buys a Story

Name: Mr. Pak Buys a Story

Author: Carol Farley

Illustrator: Benrei Huang

History of Story: Korean Folktale

Publishing Information:

• Albert Whitman and Company
• Morton Grove, Illinois

Plot: A man named Mr. Pak works for an elderly couple named Mr. and Mrs. Kim, who are often bored in the evenings. One day, the Kims send Mr. Pak to the village with a box of gold coins to buy a story from someone. Mr. Pak meets a man, who is a thief, who sees the box of gold coins and pretends to know a story. The thief simply describes what a bird in a field is doing (crouching, bending, getting away). Mr. Pak finds the story to be strange, but pays the man and tells the Kims the story, who also find the story strange. Every night, they retell the story, trying to make sense of it. One evening, the same thief with a band of robbers are about to rob the Kims. But everything that the thief does is described loudly by Mr. Pak telling the story! (Crowing, bending, getting away). The thief is convinced someone is watching him, so he runs away! Who knew such a strange story could keep the Kims safe from robbers!

Did I change the story: The story is a bit complicated, so I eliminated the less-important details, such as Mr. Pak’s journey into the village, how the thief was with other robbers, etc.

Age Group: Grade 5-6

Review of story: I told this only to older kids as a second story during my session, and I liked it because it was a story about a story! It generated laughter too – because the thief was confused when he heard Mr. Pak describing his every move.

STORY #8: Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile

Name: Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile

Author:  Won-Ldy Paye and Margaret H. Lippert

Illustrator: Julie Paschkis

History of Story: “Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile is a traditional story from the Dan people of northeastern Liberia in Africa. The Dan people are rice farmers who are known for their storytelling, wood carving, masked dancing, and music. Won-Ldy first heard this story from his grandmother Gowo when he was very young” (As described in the book).

Publishing Information:

• Henry Holy and Company
• New York

Plot: Mrs. Chicken accidently gets caught by the Hungry Crocodile, but Mrs. Chicken convinces the Crocodile that she shouldn’t eat her because they are sisters – by tricking her and switching their eggs.

Did I change the story: Not drastically. I kept this story very similar to the book.

Age Group: Grade 1 – 3

Review of story: I liked this story because there is a trickster element to it. There was a build-up of suspense because the kids know that the chicken shouldn’t go into the water! There was laughter when the chicken switches the eggs. I liked this story because there were many opportunities for actions: take a bath, walk down to the river, flap wings, etc.

STORY #9: The Three Little Rabbits

Name: The Three Little Rabbits

Author: Ivan Gantschev

Illustrator: Ivan Gantschev

History of Story: Balkan Folktale

Publishing Information:

• Michael Neugebaur Book
• North-South Books
• New York

Plot: This story is about three little rabbits, whose father instructs them each (as they go off into the big great world) to make sure they build a safe rabbit hole. Each of the rabbits go off, excited to be without rules. The first rabbit builds a house with hay, and the second rabbit builds a house in a tree. Each encounter a fox that chases them (the rabbits get away). The third rabbit does what her father instructed and digs a safe rabbit hole. The fox gets stuck in the hole when he’s trying to get the rabbit, so the rabbit helps him out. The other rabbits learn to follow their father’s instructions. Every time the fox comes looking for the rabbits, they have a safe place to hide.

Did I change the story: Yes. Because I used this story for younger grades, I left out the unimportant details, such as the detailed conversation with the Father Rabbit, and the details about the house. I also made the fox less of a violent character.

Age Group: Grade 1-3.

Review: I liked telling this story with my “The Giant Carrot” story, especially the few weeks leading up to Easter. I think the themes of following rules is subtly reinforced. I would often ask the children what the rabbits should have done in the first place, which was to listen to their father to keep them safe.

STORY #10: The Impudent Rooster

Name: The Impudent Rooster

Author: Sabina I. Rascol

Illustrator:  Holly Berry

History of Story: Romanian Folktale

Publishing Information:

• Detton Children’s Books
• New York

Plot: An old man, whose only friend was a rooster, was sick and poor, and had an old woman for a neighbor, who had a chicken who produced lots of eggs. She wouldn’t share the eggs with the man, but she did share with him how her chicken produced so many eggs: she would beat her chicken. The man refused to beat his rooster, but did get frustrated at one point and told his rooster he wished he was a chicken. Then the rooster finds a purse with gold coins in it. The owner of the purse took it back from the rooster, but the rooster chased the owner, and the owner pushed the rooster into a well. But the rooster drank all of the water in the well. The owner found him and threw him into an oven, but the rooster spurted out all the water. The owner put the rooster in the money room (of gold coins), but the rooster just swallowed all of the gold coins. The owner then threw the rooser into the herd of cows, but the rooster just swallowed all of the cows! (The rooster is very large at this point). All the other chickens followed the Rooster back to the old man’s house, where the rooster spurted out the gold and the cows, now the old man was rich and able to afford a doctor. The old man used the wealth to help others around him.

Did I change the story: Yes!! I really disliked the old woman at the beginning of the story who was unkind to the man. I also eliminated the storyline of the coachman (the owner of the purse). The story was quite lengthy, so I told the story as a rooster who wanted to help his owner, his best friend, because he was sick, poor, and hungry. I also chose to call this story “The Rooster”, because I’m sure many of the kids wouldn’t know what “Impudent” means.

Age Group: Grade 4-6

Review of the story: the story was complex, so I told it solely to older kids. In my version, I liked the elements of kindness and teamwork.

STORY #11: The Little Boy Who Turned Himself Into a Peanut

Name: The Little Boy Who Turned Himself Into A Peanut

Author: Celia Barker Lottridge

Illustrator: Joanne Fitzgerald

History of Story: Unknown

Publishing Information:

• A Groundwood Book
• Douglas and McIntyre
• Toronto/Vancouver

Plot: A little boy waiting for his father to play with him turns himself into a peanut (to hide), chicken swallows the peanut, a fox swallows the chicken, a wolf swallows the fox, and a big fish swallows the wolf. The father catches the fish, pulls out the animals in reverse order, and finds his son.

Did I change the story: I changed the story so the swallowing of each other wasn’t so violent – by adding “gulp” noises, etc.

Age Group: Grade 1-3.

Review of story: Jenny told us a version of this story during training, and I really liked how she made the story non-violent, and sewed up each of the characters after. I also like the repetition of “inside a chicken, inside a fox, inside a wolf, and inside a fox”. It’s fun to have the kids say it along with me!

STORY #12: The Race of Toad and Deer

Name: The Race of Toad and Deer

Author: Pat Mora

Illustrator: Maya Itzna Brooks

History of Story: Guatemalan Folktale

Publishing Information:

• Orchard Books
• New York

Plot: A group of frogs are singing when the meanest and biggest deer in the jungle tells them to be quiet because he is the biggest and fastest. The toad and the deer decide they will race to see who is faster, and all of the other animals are excited for the race. The toads decide to work together to beat the deer – by impersonating the original toad and each of them racing for a section.

Did I change the story: Yes – because I don’t speak Spanish and a lot of the phrases were in Spanish! I also changed the Spanish names because I was unsure how to properly say them.

Age Group: Grade 3-5

Review of Story: I liked this story because the toads work together to get rid of the deer who was bullying them! There is a element of humor because the deer has no idea how this frog continues to race them. Often this time of year the elementary schools have relay races (for sport day), so I ask if they have done a relay race before (like the toads).