Showing results by narrator "Tom Weiss" in All Categories

Old Man Coyote deliberately leads Bowser the Hound far away from Farmer Brown's farm because he is tired of being chased. Bowser gets lost and injures himself during the pursuit. Help for Bowser comes from an unlikely source, which proves that there is some good in everyone. As with all Thornton W. Burgess stories, young listeners gain positive values while learning a great deal about the animals that share their world. Burgess was a conservationist and author of children's stories. He loved the beauty of nature and its living creatures so much that he wrote about them for 50 years.

Peter Rabbit has no appetite, which is very unusual for him. After thinking about it, Peter decides it is loneliness affecting him. He decides to leave the Old Briar Patch and see the Great World, starting at the Old Pasture. After a close encounter with an old nemesis, Hooty the Owl, Peter discovers that he is still lonely. He runs into Old Jed Thumper who wants nothing more than to chase Peter away. Peter also discovers that Old Jed Thumper has a charming young daughter, Little Miss Fuzzy Tail, who Peter falls for. Their relationship quickly blossoms.

For historical buffs, Signers of the Declaration is a nonfiction work that offers short biographical sketches of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence. Outside of their colony, many of the signers were not well known. In general, the signers were individuals who happened to be delegates sent from their colony to meet in Philadelphia and organize colonial resistance to Parliament's coercive tax acts. Of the 56, only eight were born in Britain. Unknown to most Americans, the signers did not all sign the Declaration on July 4, 1776 as is commonly believed.

Peter Rabbit has a great deal of curiosity and loves to hear stories. In this collection of 16 short stories, Peter Rabbit learns more about many of his neighbors in the Green Forest and the Green Meadows. Sometimes Grandfather Frog tells him a story but there are other neighbors who also share their "knowledge" with him. For example, Peter wants to know why Mr. Bluebird has a beautiful coat when he can be such a bratty bird. Peter would also like to know why Mr. Hare gets a white coat in the winter and a brown one in the summer.

Peter Rabbit has a great deal of curiosity. He always wants to learn more about his neighbors. In this collection of 16 short stories, Peter often visits Grandfather Frog to learn more about his neighbors. For instance, Peter wants to know why Striped Chipmunk has such beautiful stripes. Peter would like to know if Buster Bear has a tail. Since Grandfather Frog has lived a long time, he is willing to tell stories to Peter and his friends about how some of these things happened (according to Grandfather Frog).

Peter Rabbit discovers a surprise visitor to the Smiling Pool. It's Mrs. Quack the Duck. She and Mr. Quack have been hunted as they attempt to migrate. Mr. Quack is missing and Mrs. Quack does not know his fate. Peter Rabbit, Jerry Muskrat, Sammy Jay and Blacky the Crow decide to help Mrs. Quack by searching for Mr. Quack.

A Guest of Ganymede is a tale of a scoundrel and a blind passenger who have discovered alien beings that can reverse human afflictions. The blind passenger has chartered a spaceship to take him to Ganymede where he hopes to have his sight restored. The rogue plans to steal the secret for reversing the afflictions and make himself rich beyond his dreams.

Happy Jack is a grey squirrel who lives in the Green Forest. Like most little creatures, he must fend for himself. Happy Jack has discovered a tree that chocked full of hickory nuts. He wants them to be all his own and believes the tree is his because he found the nuts. But his cousin Chatterer the Red Squirrel doesn't believe this. A loud quarrel ensures between the two along with a chase and suddenly the hickory nuts are gone! Where could they have gone?

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organization, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Mass in B minor, two Passions, and over 300 cantatas of which around 200 survive.

Jerry Muskrat lives in the Smiling Pool along with many of his friends, including Grandfather Frog, Spotty the Turtle, and others. One day Jerry discovers there is something wrong with the Smiling Pool and the Laughing Brook that feeds it. Both are slowly disappearing. Jerry and his friends set out on a mission to determine what is wrong with the Smiling Pool and the Laughing Brook.

Blacky the Crow is a mischief maker. He has very sharp eyes and sees things he shouldn't. They often get him into trouble. Blacky loves eggs. One day he discovers that Hooty the Owl and Mrs. Hooty have laid eggs in a nest when there is still snow on the ground. Blacky devises a plan with his fellow crows to steal them. Later, we find out that Blacky has a good side too. As with all Thornton W. Burgess books, there are positive messages for young listeners.

Martin Luther was a German professor of theology, composer, priest, monk, and a seminal figure in the Protestant Reformation. Luther came to reject several teachings and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money, proposing an academic discussion of the practice and efficacy of indulgences in his 95 Theses of 1517.

Lightfoot the Deer is a story about animals in the Green Forest that are hunted in the fall. The story is mostly about Lightfoot, a male deer hunted by one hunter and describes how he tries to escape being shot. The story tells Lightfoot's encounter with another buck and a battle for territory and the lovely, Miss Daintyfoot. As with most Thornton Burgess books, young listeners learn valuable lessons about nature, wildlife, and positive morals.

The short story "Doctor" chronicles a fear of a virus that has already decimated one planet and is so deadly that there is no cure for it. Planets that are known to have chlorphage are quarantined from the rest of the galaxy. Unknown to others, a small girl who is infected manages to board an interplanetary ship and the ship's doctor tries to combat the virus.

Jimmy Skunk is slow and avoided by his neighbors because of the perfume that Mother Nature has given him for protection. But his perfume doesn't keep Peter Rabbit from playing a trick on both Jimmy and Reddy Fox. When Jimmy thinks Reddy has pulled the joke, Reddy gets a dose of Jimmy's perfume as punishment. Most folks think Reddy Fox deserves what he gets because he is always trying to catch and eat Jimmy's friends.

Sammy Jay is a blue jay who, like most blue jays, is mischievous. He delights in making trouble for other creatures of the Green Meadows and the Green Forest. Sammy really doesn't want to see them hurt, he just wants to make torment them. Enter Chatterer the Red Squirrel, who also lives in the Green Forest and can be as troublesome as Sammy Jay. In The Adventures of Sammy Jay, Chatterer and Sammy Jay match wits and show off their bad attitudes toward one another.

Paddy the Beaver is a newcomer to the Green Forest. The little people of the Green Meadows and the Green Forest are wary of strangers. They don't know what to expect of Paddy, especially when he starts building a dam and the water stops flowing to the Laughing Brook.

The year is 2232. Earth is grossly overpopulated. The nations of the world, working through the United Nations, have authorized a global bureau known as the Bureau of Population Equalization (Popeek), whose goal it is to relocate people from overcrowded areas to the less densely populated parts of the planet. A highly unpopular euthanasia program weeds out newborns who have may have defective genes and accelerates the death of the incurable.

The Adventures of Johnny Chuck tells the story of a feisty woodchuck named Johnny. Johnny decides he is unhappy with his home in the Green Forest and elects to venture into the wide, wide world. As he wanders he gets into a territory fight with another chuck, discovers a new home, learns there is some good in all, and discovers the most wonderful thing in the world.

Old Granny Fox was a wise old fox who lived with her grandson Reddy. Reddy is young and impulsive and gets into a great deal of trouble because of this. So Granny must teach him the lessons of nature if he is to survive. The practical lessons about theft, gratitude and kindness that Granny teaches Reddy, as in all Thornton Burgess books, promote these virtues to young children listening to this book.