In Memory of Dianne De Las Casas- Let's Read

Award-Winning Author  Dianne De Las Casas passed away. She was a prolific author and an amazing storyteller. We will miss you Dianne but I know that you will continue to inspire us through your wonderful books.  

Beware, Beware of the Big Bad Bear!

Illustrated by Marita Gentry

A delicious folktale sure to make you laugh! Oh no, Maw Maw is out of the most important ingredient for her beautiful buttery biscuits- sody sallyraytus! She sends her family off, one by one, with a warning about the bear at the bridge. Follow along as they try unsuccessfully to get the sody sallyraytus home. Who knew that a friendly, and very hungry, squirrel would jump in to save the day! Readers can make their own fluffy biscuits with the recipe included at the end.

The Cajun Cornbread Boy

Illustrated by Marita Gentry

You can't catch me--I'm full of cayenne! Baked in a skillet with two chilies for the eyes, a peppercorn for the nose, a link of boudin sausage for the mouth, and a large dash of cayenne pepper for extra spice, the Cajun cornbread boy runs through the bayou, sprinting past hungry animals who would like to sample such a tasty treat. When an artful alligator tries to trick the boy into becoming dinner, he's in for one really spicy surprise. Told in the charming language of an experienced storyteller, this colorful romp through Cajun country is perfect for children of all ages looking for a flavorful twist to a familiar fable.

There's a Dragon in the Library

Illustrated by Marita Gentry

Max loves story time at the library. One day he spots a large speckled egg on a bookshelf. No one believes Max when he says a dragon has emerged and is now growing up in the library. Young readers will learn about book care as they follow the dragon's antics.

A is for Alligator: Draw and Tell Tales from A–Z

Illustrated by Marita Gentry

Using a can't-miss formula, these 26 original stories and accompanying illustrations connect kids' love of animals and drawing with early literacy skills.

• 26 easy, step-by-step stories and simple illustrations

• 8–12 illustrations per story

• A glossary that explains all the animals

• Stories appropriate for grades PreK–3

Mama's Bayou

Illustrated by Holly Stone-Barker

A lullaby from the beautiful bayou. As the crickets chirp, frogs sing, and mosquitoes drone, dusk falls across the bayou. Mama rocks her baby to the soft symphony as the animals get ready for bedtime. Illustrated in beautifully detailed cut paper, this soothing chorus introduces children to animal sounds and lures them into peaceful slumber.

Little "Read" Hen

Illustrated by Holly Stone-Barker

Let your story-writing skills take you out of the henhouse! When the Little "Read" Hen's friends won't help her write an "eggcellent" story, she doesn't let it ruffle her feathers! This literary spin on a beloved folk tale is perfect for aspiring young writers interested in learning how their own fledgling ideas can hatch into a polished story. Holly Stone-Barker's vibrant cut-paper illustrations add riotous fun to each page.

Gigantic Sweet Potato

Illustrated by Marita Gentry

This children's picture book is a cumulative story adapted from the Russian folktale The Giant Turnip. In this version, Ma Farmer has a hankering for some sweet potato pie. But the sweet potato she has planted is too big to pull up, even with the help of just about every animal on the farm, from Pa Farmer, to Bessie Cow, to Ralphie the Dog, to Kittie Cat. Can Lily Mouse be the one to solve the problem? A page of fun facts and a sweet potato pie recipe are included.

Cinderellaphant

Illustrated by Stefan Jolet

This beloved fairy tale comes with a bigger glass slipper!

This punny twist on the beloved fairytale will delight readers of all ages. Children will enjoy finding similarities between Cinderella and her pachyderm equivalent as she searches for love at the ball of the zebra prince, heir to the throne. With a plethora of funny fur and hooves from across the animal kingdom, including an adorable fairy god-mouse, the lighthearted illustrations serve to highlight the imagination of this fractured fairytale.

Handmade Tales: Stories to Make and Take

Targeted for elementary teachers, librarians, and drama teachers, Handmade Tales offers more than 25 original tales from around the world that use hands as an active way to tell the stories.

Blue Frog: The Legend of Chocolate

Illustrated by Holly Stone-Barker

A long, long time ago, the Sun God spent his days enjoying a very special secret treat: rich, dark cacao. Unlike the Wind God, the Sun God did not want to share this heavenly food with the creatures of the Earth. One day, the Wind God transformed himself into the Rana Azul, or Blue Frog, and he taught the children of the Earth where to find the secret cacao beans through song. A recipe for hot chocolate and a sprinkling of Spanish words and phrases enhance this intricately illustrated foodie fable.

Story Fest: Crafting Story Theater Scripts

Contains 25 story theater scripts appropriate for Grades 2-6. The scripts are designed to accommodate whole-classroom participation. The book also includes a description of the process for working with students to create a school Story Fest. Grades 2-6.

Kamishibai Story Theater: The Art of Picture Telling

De Las Casas has adapted 25 folktales from across Asia for whole classroom use, borrowing a Japanese method of storytelling through pictures. Kamishibai theater harkens back to itinerant storytellers (Kamishibai Men) who conveyed their tales by means of illustrated cards slid into slots in wooden stages built on the back of their bicycles. This book includes an introductory chapter describing in detail the methods to use in coaching students in the art of Kamishibai Story Theater. It offers tips on rehearsing, and detailed discussion and background of the Kamishibai processes, and it describes how to coordinate grade-level story presentations. Reproducible tales can be distributed to each member of the class to aide in creating illustrations. Spot illustrations for each tale give students an idea of the flavor of their drawings for that story. The stories in Kamishibai Story Theater will delight children in grades 2-6, enticing them to participate in their own story fest.

Dinosaur Mardi Gras

Illustrated by Marita Gentry

Get ready to stomp and chomp to that mambo beat! When carnival time rolls into New Orleans, these hip dinosaurs want to boogie on down. Iguanodon wiggles to the music of a marching band, while Zigongosaurus dances zydeco and Pterodactyal swoops into the crowd. From singing tunes and tossing beads, these big beasts sure know how to party. Laissez les bon temps rugir!

The Story Biz Handbook: How to Manage Your Storytelling Career from the Desk to the Stage

Beginning with wonderful tips and advice about the art and presentation of storytelling, this is a complete resource about how to build a storytelling career. Storytellers come to their careers centered on the stories they love and soon realize that in order to make a living at what they love, they must build a business. This in-depth book tells them just how and what to do in every detail, from choosing a sound system to building a website to using podcasts and setting up an office.

Resource lists and tried and true ideas abound as the author shares her marketing and business success story throughout. Each chapter is a story in itself, beginning and ending with different traditional folktale openings and closings. There is even a chapter on how to plan for retirement.

Tales from the 7,000 Isles: Filipino Folk Stories

Also by Zarah C. Gagatiga

Celebrate the unique diversity and vibrancy of the Philippines through an in-depth exploration of the stories, traditions, songs, crafts, and recipes of the many different regions of the country.

• Traditional Filipino recipes, games, songs, and crafts indigenous to various regions of the islands

• Dozens of color photographs depicting the land, people, and folk traditions of every region of the Philippines

• A glossary of Filipino words

• A bibliography of print and online resources

Spooktacular Tales: 25 Just Scary Enough Stories

Written by a popular performer and well-known storyteller, this entertaining compendium reveals the secrets for suspenseful storytelling and features 25 spooky stories for audiences of all ages.

• Explains the tangible benefits of scary stories to young audiences

• Includes source notes for story adaptations

• Provides a list of both print and web story resources

• Offers stories ranging from suspenseful to comical to thrilling

• Rates how scary each story is and for which audience it is intended

Scared Silly: 25 Tales to Tickle and Thrill

Award-winning storyteller Dianne de Las Casas offers a primer on how to tell a spooky story, with 25 tales organized by age appropriateness and tips on how to effectively tell each tale.

• Includes 25 stories appropriate for children in grades 1-5

• A "Spook-O-Meter" illustrates how scary each story is for what audience it's intended

House That Santa Built

Illustrated by Holly Stone-Barker

This merry take on The House That Jack Built features a mouse, elf, reindeer, and much more. Young readers can get in on the act thanks to sound prompts such as "squeak," "stomp," and "jingle."

Tangram Tales: Story Theater Using the Ancient Chinese Puzzle

Targeted for elementary teachers, drama teachers, and teaching artists, Tangram Tales contains adapted tales from around the world appropriate for grades 2 through 6. Teachers can tell the stories in the classroom as part of a math unit, or have the students use the scripts provided here to perform the stories using tangrams. In the author's tangram story theater process, students are given roles as storytellers, tangram artists, and chorus members to create grade-level story presentations. Other tangram methods, such as individual student tangram tales and student-created tangram tales, are shared as well. The ways in which tangram tales connect language arts and math is demonstrated. The book includes simple black-and-white spot illustrations for each story, showing the tangram figures that depict the story. A reproducible tangram pattern is provided.

Tell Along Tales!: Playing with Participation Stories

This book makes the perfect addition to teachers' and librarians' story time selections, containing 25 educational and entertaining tales from around the world as well as proven storytelling techniques.

• Provides suggestions on storytelling techniques specific to each tale

• Includes spot drawings that enliven each of the stories

• A bibliography provides all the details for the story sources

Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach

Illustrated by Marita Gentry

When Madame Poulet realizes her friend Monsieur Roach is a no-good lazy bug who is taking advantage of her, it isn't long before Madame Poulet puts an end to her roach problem for good.

Stories on Board!: Creating Board Games from Favorite Tales

This unique learning tool lets students read and listen to a popular folktale, analyze the structure through story mapping, and create a board game based on their analysis.

• Includes drawings of the various types of board games

• Provides a glossary of board game terms and a bibliography of folktales

Handmade Tales 2: More Stories to Make and Take

Children love seeing ordinary objects such as paper and string transformed into extraordinary things. This book provides a collection of fun make-and-take tales that enable educators and librarians to take storytelling to a higher level.

House That Witchy Built

Illustrated by Holly Stone-Barker

Children will creak, clap, flap, and rattle along to this story of Witchy's house and the creepy creatures that live inside. A ghost, a bat, a cat, and a skeleton are only a few of the characters haunting the house. Illustrated with exquisitely detailed cut-paper and collage, this Halloween tale invites interaction through repetition, onomatopoeia, and infectious rhyme.

Cool Kids Cook: Louisiana

Also by Kid Eliana and illustrated by Soleil Lisette

For kids who want to cook—Louisiana style! Kid Chef Eliana keeps the good times rolling in this kid-friendly cookbook of Louisiana cuisine. With nearly thirty exciting recipes from meat pies to boudin balls to Mardi Gras king cake, Eliana undertakes a culinary journey exploring unique gastronomic traditions from all regions of the state. With Eliana's help, your delicious dishes are sure to satisfy the taste buds of all ages!

Captain Deadeye: The Bully Shark

Also by John Couret and illustrated by Stefan Jolet

Fourth grader John goes to Oceanside Elementary and because of his lazy eye, he is bullied by a boy who calls himself "Shark." Shark gives him the hurtful nickname "Deadeye John." John feels awful so his mom cheers him up by sending him on a treasure hunt where he discovers a magical chest full of loot! He finds an eye patch and a pirate hat, and becomes "Captain Deadeye, Master of the Seven Seas." Join Captain Deadeye on this seafaring pirate adventure where he battles a fierce storm; his nemesis, Captain Blackheart; and a vicious shark all while finding the courage to make a new friend and stand up to his real-life bully at school.

Cool Kids Cook: Fresh and Fit

Also by Kid Eliana and illustrated by Soleil Lisette

Kid-friendly foods made healthy! Whip up nutritious meals with America's favorite kid chef. Wholesome, fresh, and flavorful ingredients are the centerpiece in these tasty dishes, which include Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry, Crab-Stuffed Tomatoes, and Inside-Out Peach Crumble. Children (and adults!) can prepare these international recipes with ease.