Fairy Tales & Folklore Audiobooks

The Twits, The Minpins & The Magic Finger

"Roald Dahl sometimes shared a tonal kinship with Ogden Nash, and he could demonstrate a verbal inventiveness nearly Seussian [His] stories work better in audio than in print." -The New York Times THE TWITS How do you outwit a Twit? Mr. and Mrs. Twit are the smelliest, nastiest, ugliest people in the world. They hate everything-except playing mean jokes on each other, catching innocent birds to put in their Bird Pies, and making their caged monkeys, the Muggle-Wumps, stand on their heads all day. But the Muggle-Wumps have had enough. They don't just want out, they want revenge. THE MINPINS Little Billy strays into the forest, where he meets the Minpins?tiny people who live within the trees. The Minpins tell Billy about The Gruncher, who preys on them. So Billy embarks on a mission to rid the Minpins of their foe once and for all, and sets off?on the back of a swan?to confront The Gruncher. THE MAGIC FINGER What happens when the hunter becomes the hunted? To the Gregg family, hunting is just plain fun. To the girl who lives next door, it's just plain horrible. She tries to be polite. She tries to talk them out of it, but the Greggs only laugh at her. Then one day the Greggs go too far, and the little girl turns her Magic Finger on them. When she's very, very angry, the little girl's Magic Finger takes over. She really can"t control it, and now it's turned the Greggs into birds! Before they know it, the Greggs are living in a nest, and that's just the beginning of their problems . From the Compact Disc edition.

Roald Dahl (Author), Bill Bailey, Kate Winslet, Richard Ayoade (Narrator)

Audiobook

Wild Boy

Snatched up by an unscrupulous and abusive showman, Wild Boy, covered in hair from head to toe, becomes a sideshow freak. Isolated from other children and wickedly abused by the cruel master who bought him, Wild Boy becomes an avid observer, developing Sherlock Holmes–like deductive skills. Although he is tormented and insulted, kicked and spat at, his quick mind takes in everything he sees. When a murder occurs at the fair, Wild Boy is hastily accused. Can he use his powers of deduction to save himself? And will the talented and spunky young acrobat Clarissa be with him — or against him? Listeners will be swept along by the cinematic pace, immersed in the vivid historical setting, and gripped by suspense as they wait to find out if a better fate could possibly await someone so very different.

Rob Lloyd Jones (Author), James Clamp (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Very Nearly Honorable League of Pirates #1: Magic Marks the Spot

Admiral Westfield sucked in his breath and released it in a tremendous gust. "My dear," he said, "let me be clear: You are a young lady. You will not tell silly tales and you will never be a pirate." Hilary Westfield has always dreamed of being a pirate. She can tread water for thirty-seven minutes. She can tie a knot faster than a fleet of sailors. She particularly enjoys defying authority, and she already owns a rather pointy sword. There's only one problem: The Very Nearly Honorable League of Pirates refuses to let any girl join their ranks of scourges and scallywags. Girls belong at Miss Pimm's Finishing School for Delicate Ladies, learning to waltz, faint, and curtsy. But Hilary and her dearest friend, the gargoyle, have no use for such frivolous lessons,they are pirates! (Or very nearly.) To escape from a life of petticoats and politeness, Hilary answers a curious advertisement for a pirate crew and suddenly finds herself swept up in a seafaring adventure that may or may not involve a map without an X, a magical treasure that likely doesn't exist, a rogue governess who insists on propriety, a crew of misfit scallywags, and the most treacherous,and unexpected,villain on the High Seas. Will Hilary find the treasure in time? Will she become a true pirate after all? And what will become of the gargoyle? Caroline Carlson holds an MFA in writing for children from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She grew up in Massachusetts and now lives with her husband in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, amid many stacks of books.

Caroline Carlson (Author), Katherine Kellgren (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Midnight Heir

A short story about Magnus Bane, an immortal warlock in The Mortal Instruments series. The fourth story in a new series of ten e-only short stories about fan-favorite Magnus Bane, who features prominently in The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices, which will begin in April 2013 and conclude in January 2014.

Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan (Author), Cassandra Clare, David Oyelowo, Sarah Rees Brennan (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Lonely Lake Monster

Pearl doesn't mean to be a troublemaker. Trouble just seems to find her. Pearl Petal and Ben Silverstein can't wait for their first official day as apprentices of Dr. Woo, veterinarian for imaginary creatures. That is, until they are tasked with clipping the sasquatch's toenails. Gross! Then Pearl spots a monster in the lake behind the hospital. Even though they were told not to leave the building for any reason, Pearl sets off for a closer look, with Ben trailing cautiously behind. The outing goes awry when Ben is captured by the creature and held hostage on an island in the middle of the lake. It's up to Pearl to hatch a rescue mission. Will she save the day or cement her reputation as the town troublemaker? And will the hospital's secret patient be able to help? In this fun-filled series, Suzanne Selfors takes readers on an incredible adventure filled with mythical creatures and astonishing discoveries that are anything but imaginary.

Suzanne Selfors (Author), Bryan Kennedy (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Real Boy

On an island on the edge of an immense sea there is a city, a forest, and a boy. The city is called Asteri, a perfect city saved by the magic woven into its walls when a devastating plague swept through the world years before. The forest is called the Barrow, a vast wood of ancient trees that encircles the city and feeds the earth with magic. And the boy is called Oscar, a shop boy for the most powerful magician in the Barrow, who spends his days in the dark cellar of his master's shop grinding herbs and dreaming of the wizards who once lived on the island. Oscar's world is small, but he likes it that way. The real world is vast, strange, and unpredictable. And Oscar does not quite fit in it. But it's been a long time since anyone who could call himself a wizard walked the world, and now that world is changing. Children in the city are falling ill; something sinister lurks in the forest. Oscar has long been content to stay in his small room, comforted in the knowledge that the magic that flows from the trees will keep his island safe. Now, even magic may not be enough to save it. Anne Ursu has written an unforgettable story of transformation and belonging,a spellbinding tale of the way in which the power we all wield, great and small, lies in the choices we make. Anne Ursu is the author of Breadcrumbs, which Kirkus Reviews called a "transforming testament to the power of friendship" in a starred review, and was acclaimed as one of the best books of 2011 by the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, Amazon.com, and the Chicago Public Library. It was also on the IndieBound Next List and was an NPR Backseat Book Club featured selection. She was also the recipient of the 2013 McKnight Fellowship Award in Children's Literature. Anne teaches at Hamline University's MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. She lives in Minneapolis with her son and three cats,monster fighters, all.

Anne Ursu, Erin McGuire (Author), Chris Sorensen (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Whatnot

Oh, the Sly King, the Sly King, in his towers of ash and wind. Pikey Thomas doesn't know how or why he can see the changeling girl. But there she is. Not in the cold, muddy London neighborhood where Pikey lives. Instead, she's walking through the trees and snow of the enchanted Old Country or, later, racing through an opulent hall. She's pale and small, and she has branches growing out of her head. Her name is Henrietta Kettle. Pikey's vision, it turns out, is worth something. Worth something to Hettie's brother,a brave adventurer named Bartholomew Kettle. Worth something to the nobleman who protects him. And Pikey is not above bartering, Pikey will do almost anything to escape his past; he'll do almost anything for a life worth living. The faeries,save for a mysterious sylph and a mischievous cobble faery or two, have been chased out of London. They've all gone north. The army is heading north, too. So Pikey and Bartholomew follow, collecting information, piecing together clues, searching for the doorway that will lead them to Hettie. The Whatnot is the enthralling, surprising, and unforgettable companion to Stefan Bachmann's internationally bestselling debut novel The Peculiar. Stefan Bachmann is a writer and musician. He was born in Colorado and now lives with his family in Zurich, Switzerland, where he attends the Zurich Conservatory. He began writing The Peculiar in 2010, when he was sixteen years old.

Stefan Bachmann (Author), Peter Altschuler (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Saving Raphael Santiago

A Manhattan teen—Raphael Santiago—is missing, and Magnus Bane must track him down before it’s too late. One of ten adventures in The Bane Chronicles. In 1950s New York City, a distraught mother hires Magnus Bane to find her missing son, Raphael. But even if he can be found, is Raphael beyond saving?

Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan (Author), Michae Trevino, Michael Trevino (Narrator)

Audiobook

A Wounded Name

Ophelia Castellan will never be just another girl at Elsinore Academy. Seeing ghosts is not a skill prized in future society wives. Even when she takes her pills, the bean sidhe beckon, reminding her of a promise to her dead mother. Now, in the wake of the Headmaster's sudden death, the whole academy is in turmoil, and Ophelia can no longer ignore the fae. Especially once she starts seeing the Headmaster's ghosts two of them on the school grounds. Her only confidante is Dane, the Headmaster's grieving son. Yet even as she gives more of herself to him, Dane spirals toward a tragic fate dragging Ophelia, and the rest of Elsinore, with him. You know how this story ends. Yet even in the face of certain death, Ophelia has a choice to make and a promise to keep.

Dot Hutchison (Author), Liz Pearce (Narrator)

Audiobook

Revolting Rhymes & Dirty Beasts

"Roald Dahl sometimes shared a tonal kinship with Ogden Nash, and he could demonstrate a verbal inventiveness nearly Seussian…[His] stories work better in audio than in print." -The New York Times REVOLTING RHYMES Did you think Cinderella married the prince and lived happily ever after, or that the three little pigs outsmarted the wolf? Think again! Master storyteller Roald Dahl adds his own darkly comic twists to six favorite tales, complete with rambunctious rhymes and hilarious surprise endings. DIRTY BEASTS Roald Dahl's inimitable style and humor shine in this collection of poems about mischievous and mysterious animals. From Stingaling the scorpion to Crocky-Wock the crocodile, Dahl's animals are nothing short of ridiculous. A clever pig with an unmentionable plan to save his own bacon and an anteater with an unusually large appetite are among the characters created by Dahl in these timeless rhymes. This new, larger edition is perfect for reading aloud and makes Quentin Blake's celebrated illustrations even more enjoyable. 'Will elicit a loud 'Yuck.' In other words, children will love them.' (Children's Book Review Service) From the Compact Disc edition.

Roald Dahl (Author), Miriam Margolyes, Stephen Mangan, Tamsin Greig, Tasmin Greig (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Rise of the Hotel Dumort

A short story about Magnus Bane, an immortal warlock in The Mortal Instruments series. The fifth story in a new series of ten e-only short stories about fan-favorite Magnus Bane, who features prominently The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices, which will begin in April 2013 and conclude in January 2014.

Cassandra Clare, Maureen Johnson (Author), Maureen Johnson, Stephen Lunsford (Narrator)

Audiobook

Freaky Families

Two quirky and hilarious stories from the bestselling Diana Wynne Jones. Two groups of children learn that while you can choose your friends, dealing with your family can make you wish you could choose a different one...THE FOUR GRANNIES. Two children are left alone for a couple of days, while their parents go away on a business trip. They have four very different grandmas - a mean one, a snobby one, an anxious one, and a delicate one. Erg (the boy) tries to make all the grannies leave him alone, but manages to turn them into one 'Super-Granny'...AUNTIE BEA'S DAY OUT. Annoying Auntie Bea always does things HER way. And when she decides to take the three children (Nancy, Debbie and Simon) to the seaside, despite what the signs say, she is determined that they will sit on the small, fenced off and isolated island. It turns out to be a magical island though, and whisks her & the children (and dog) around to different places trying to get rid of them...

Diana Wynne Jones (Author), Penelope Rawlins (Narrator)

Audiobook