Simple, rhyming text urges the reader to be happy by making such choices as teasing less and tickling more, or groaning less and giggling more.
Get Happy
Europe
Materials from Europe
Hansel and Gretel
It’s a tale as timeless as storytelling itself: two children, lost in the woods, stumble upon a candy house that isn’t all that it seems. From Hansel’s trail of bread crumbs to Gretel’s ingenious triumph over the witch, the details of this familiar fairy tale enchant children year after year. Now, in an update on her classic retelling, Caldecott Honor winner and New York Timesbestseller Susan Jeffers brings Hansel and Gretelto life for a new generation.
Strega Nona’s Gift
In Strega Nona’s village, the holiday season is a time of celebrations-and nothing says celebration like a feast! All the kitchens are bustling from the Feast of San Nicola, when the children choose the food, to the Feast of Epiphany, when someone gets to be king or queen for the day. Even the animals share in the holiday spirit, and when Big Anthony smells the delicious treats Strega Nona is cooking for them, he decides that just a taste couldn’t hurt, right? Wrong! Big Anthony gets his just desserts, while Strega Nona surprises everyone with a special gift.
The Pied Piper of Hamelin
The Pied Piper pipes a village free of rats, and when the villagers refuse to pay him for the service, he pipes away their children as well.
King Jack and the Dragon
Jack, Zack, and Caspar build a castle fort, then spend a day fighting dragons and beasts, but at day’s end giants carry away first Sir Zack, then Caspar, and King Jack is left to face night creatures alone.
Paul Thurlby’s Alphabet
In this picture book, graphic artist Paul Thurlby presents a stunning alphabet that helps to make the shape of each letter memorable. From an awesome A to a zippy Z, this is the perfect ABC book for the young and hip.
Peter Rabbit: The Tale of a Naughty Little Rabbit
This is the story of Peter Rabbit, a naughty rabbit who doesn’t listen to his mother and sneaks into a nearby garden. In the garden, Peter stumbles across a grumpy farmer and loses his shiny shoes and his new blue coat. He escapes – but not without a few hair-raising moments of danger. This picture book retelling retains all the excitement of Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Peter Rabbit, but with more accessible language.
The General
After falling off his horse, General Jodpur discovers the beauty of flowers and nature and vows to change the world around him by bringing peace.
The Secret Garden
“The Secret Garden” is the story of Mary Lennox, a sick young girl living in India with her parents. Mary rarely sees her parents though, as her sick and unsightly condition is too much for them to bother with. She is placed in the constant care of Indian servants until an outbreak of cholera kills everyone in the Lennox household except for Mary. Mary returns to Yorkshire to live with her uncle, Archibald Craven. It is here that Mary learns of a secret garden that belonged to the late wife of her uncle. Mary is instantly intrigued and sets out to find this secret garden and what is contained within.
The Secret Prince: A Knightley Academy Book
Fourteen-year-old orphan Henry Grim’s schooling at the prestigious Knightley Academy continues, as he and some friends discover an old classroom filled with forgotten weapons which lead them into a dangerous adventure.