The Story Tree [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Hugh Lupton (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2001

Two new spellbinding Audio Books join our line of quality CDs which feature unabridged versions of our popular anthologies narrated by the world's most accomplished storytellers. Beautifully packaged in cases that include eight-page illustrated leaflets about the stories, Barefoot Audio Books are all high-quality, enhanced CDs that you can simply listen to on a CD player, or, if you have a PC, you can view images from the book as you listen.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The Story Tree: Tales to Read Aloud by Hugh Lipton offers seven retellings from around the world. Some will be familiar to youngsters, such as the Norwegian "The Three Billy Goats Gruff." Others, such as "Little Lord Feather-Frock" from Russia and India's "Monkey-See, Monkey-Do," may be new. Lipton's text winds itself through Sophie Fatus's equally narrative illustrations, each with a different mood and palette.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Gr 1-3-The seven stories included in this collection are versions of oft-told folktales from around the world. "The Magic Porridge Pot" is similar to Tomie dePaola's Strega Nona (S & S, 1979), "Monkey-See, Monkey-Do" to Esphyr Slobodkina's Caps for Sale (HarperTrophy, 1987), and "The Sweetest Song" is adapted from Virginia Hamilton's The People Could Fly (Knopf, 1985). There are also versions of "The Blue Coat" (the Jewish folktale, "The Tailor") and "The Three Billy Goats Gruff." These retellings, with their repetitions and rhythmic language, reveal Lupton's background as a storyteller, and should appeal to young readers. While the illustrations aren't large enough for large-group viewing, children will appreciate Fatus's droll, childlike art, her strong sense of design, and the easy-to-read font. Sharp-eyed viewers may spot several minor flaws in the otherwise lively and appealing artwork. For example, while the text indicates that the troll "licked his gray lips with his red tongue," the illustrations clearly depict him with red lips, and the Little Red Hen is mainly brown. This book would work in early elementary classrooms as a supplementary reader, but is not a necessity for libraries that already own outstanding versions of these classic tales illustrated by well-known artists.

Laurie Edwards, Dauphin County Library System, Harrisburg, PA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Barefoot Books; Unabridged edition (September 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1841484172
• ISBN-13: 978-1841484174
• Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 4.8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,530,646 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Collection of classic tales, May 3, 2004

By 

Erika Mitchell (E. Calais, VT USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story Tree (Hardcover)

This book is a collection of well-known tales from different cultures, including Indian, Norwegian, African-American, etc.. Some of the stories have some tension and may be rather scary, but some kids may like them. The book includes:

--The magic pot: about a magical pot that is always full of food, and how it needs to be managed.
--Monkey see, monkey do: about a hat salesman who upsets his cart and a bunch of monkeys who steal his hats. The salesman must be quite clever to get his hats back.

--Sweetest song: about a little girl who goes out to pick flowers, and forgets to mind where she is going, soon wandering off deep into the forest. She has to think fast to get away from the wolf who follows her.
--Little Lord Feather-frock: about a cat, blackbird, and rooster who all lived together. A cunning fox starts carrying them away, and the cat and the blackbird must scheme to free the rooster.
--Three billy goats gruff: about 3 billy goats who need to cross a bridge that has a terrible troll living under it. They manage to get across by relying on the troll's greediness and their own brute strength.
--Little red hen: about a hen that finds a seed and asks other animals to help her plant it and take care of it. But no one is interested into helping her, so she must do the work herself. When the seed grows and ripens, she makes it into bread and keeps it for herself since no one helped her with the work.
--Blue coat: about a little boy with a favorite coat made out of blue fabric. When he wears out the coat, his mother cuts it down and makes a vest out of it. This happens again and again until the coat is reduced to a button.

All told, the book has about 4100 words.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great pictures and fun stories, February 18, 2008

By 

Diana (Muncie, IN United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Story Tree (Hardcover)

This is one book my husband and I can stand to read over and over. Our toddler loves it. We cannot figure out why but for six months it has been the top choice to read and study the pictures. Although some stories are a little much for a toddler, he likes the sweeter ones anyways, so we are fine with reading it to him.
The table of contents is great as there are pictures by the titles so he can choose which story we read. He did not like the CD at all and cried - the man's voice is kind of creepy on it.
A wonderful book to add to any collection.

Update: Now that my son is 3 1/2 he still loves the stories and has come to love the stories on CD. In fact, the 'voice' has grown on me too and we really love the stories! It has nice transition music between stories.

5.0 out of 5 stars a reader from Ohio, November 26, 2008

By 

A Certified Dietician (Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Story Tree (Hardcover)

This is an excellent read aloud storybook for young children. The illustrations are full page and well done. The stories themselves are short but captivating enough to read to a squirmy toddler.