Authors reading children's books online for free. It's Storytime in the Reading Room from A Story Before Bed.
The Reading Room
Spike in the City
Read by Author and Illustrator, Paulette Bogan
It's Spike's first trip to the big city and there are so many new things to do, see, and smell-he doesn't know where to begin. A cat on a leash! A snake with legs! A dog on a skateboard! And that's just the beginning. Spike can't believe his eyes. He can't wait to tell his owner, Shannon. But where is she? Suddenly Spike is all alone-a little dog in the big city!
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The Night Before Thanksgiving... The Legend of The Christmas Elves
Read by Author, Phyllis Porter Turner
At the North Pole on the night before Thanksgiving, toy making is finished and Santa is getting ready to send the elves to their special children all around the world. From Thanksgiving until Christmas, the elves have to play hide and seek, watching for good behavior, and reporting back to Santa. On Christmas Eve night, the elves move to the tree and wait for Santa to take them back to the North Pole.
Buttercup's Lovely Day
Read by Illustrator, Andrea Beck
Wend your way through Buttercup's lovely day. In poetry that winds and wends like a creek through a farmer's field, we journey through one lovely day in Buttercup's life. Whether she is ruminating on the mud beneath her feet or the moon and the stars in the blue-black sky, she draws us deep into her rich and wonderful world.
Elliot's Fire Truck
Read by Author and Illustrator, Andrea Beck
Elliot Moose is on the loose once more. As he jumps aboard his bright red fire truck and takes off to the next rescue, he feels courageous. All his friends want to ride on the truck and be firefighters too. Nobody wants to be rescued. One by one, Elliot’s friends climb aboard until there is no more room on the truck. When suddenly they all need a rescue for real, it is his two youngest and smallest friends who save the day.
Pierre Le Poof!
Read by Author and Illustrator, Andrea Beck
Introducing Pierre—a pooch with a mind of his own. Pierre, a pampered show poodle in training, is torn between his love for his devoted owner, Miss Murphy, and his dreams of running wild in the park. One day, an open door beckons and Pierre escapes. But, this spunky little pooch gets more than he bargains for and learns that home is the best place of all.
Baltazar and the Flying Pirates
Read by Author, Oliver Chin
Baltazar has always enjoyed hearing pirate stories. But did the boy know he was related to the legendary scallywag Greybeard? The Captain of the infamous Corsairs does, so Redlocks travels to recruit young Baltazar and to locate long lost treasure. But now the amusement park "Treasure Island" sits atop their buried booty!
The Emperor's New Clothes
Read by Illustrator, Patrick Allison
A silly monarch falls prey to two scam artists who promise to tailor him a new outfit from a miracle fabric only the wise can see. His entire court, duped by their own foolish pride, and nearly his entire kingdom are complicit in one of the biggest snow jobs of all time, but for one small, loud-mouthed kid, who points out that the emperor is parading about in his underpants.
Julie Blackbelt
Read by Author, Oliver Chin
When Julie takes a kung fu class, she thinks getting a black belt will be easy. But her bold teacher says guess again! As reality doesn't match her expectations, Julie wonders what would her matinee idol Brandy Wu do?
The Twelve Dancing Princesses
Read by Illustrator, Elizabeth Haywood
The king cannot figure out what ails his 12 maiden daughters. They have become remote, distant, and listless. Many noble knights and royal men try to discover the cause, only to vanish. The humble gardener follows the princesses to solve the mystery.
Welcome to Monster Isle
Read by Author, Oliver Chin
A family's vacation goes bananas when a perfect storm tosses their skipper's tiny boat off course. Now seven castaways are stranded on an uncharted desert island! Finnegan, his sister, parents and dog Howl venture into the wild and encounter a menagerie of colorful monsters. Can these hardy survivors befriend seven beasts straight from their wildest imaginations?
Timmy and Tammy's Train of Thought
Read by Author, Oliver Chin
A brother and sister love train so much that their parents take them on the ride of their lives. Join this amazing daydream, as Timmy and Tammy hop aboard ever-larger locomotives, see colorful sights, and hear all the railroad sounds.
Nobody Likes a Caterpillar in Their Tea
Read by Illustrator, Ivy McLeod
In this version of The Princess and the Pea, the princess is not a young woman waiting to be carried away by a prince. The prince is a bit of a novice when it comes to women and it shows in his attempt to see if the princess is a true princess. (Who really wants someone to put vegetables in their bed?) Also, while marrying a princess may be the picture of a happy ending for the prince, the same is not necessarily true for the princess. In the end, the prince learns that a true princess is one who speaks her mind.
The Year of the Dog: Tales from the Chinese Zodiac
Read by Author, Oliver Chin
Born on New Year's Day, the puppy Daniel explores the world with the girl Lin, and learns how to become "man's best friend." This is the first book in an annual book series highlighting the twelve charming animals of the Chinese New Year.