Showing results by author "Thornton W. Burgess" in All Categories

Thornton W. Burgess was a bird-watching, berry-picking student of nature, who took up writing children's stores including those collected in "Old Mother West Wind 'Where' Stories" (1918). He writes about talking animals, but his characters remain true to their real-life counterparts. Each story explains how Old Mother Nature gives special attention to each creature's needs -- where Grandfather Frog got his big mouth, for example, and where Mr. Quack the duck got his webbed feet.

Tuktu and her brother, Aklak, are Eskimo children who live happily with their beloved reindeer in the Northland. When Tuktu is lost in a fog, she meets Santa Claus or the Good Spirit as she knows him. This generous little girl wants to share her reindeer with the children of the world and so works to help Santa on his annual Christmas journey.

There's nothing that sly troublemaker Sammy Jay likes better than stealing corn - unless it's playing tricks on the other animals in the forest. Yet Chatterer the Red Squirrel would like to keep his corn, thank you very much, and while he's at it prove he is just as smart as Sammy Jay! Thornton Burgess takes us once again into the charming world of the Green Forest and Green Meadows in this delightful story.

Old Granny Fox and grandson Reddy Fox must use all their cunning to hunt up enough food to survive the long winter. Food in the Green Meadow is scarce but Farmer Brown's hens are locked up tight and protected by Bowser the Hound, so Granny takes a conceited Reddy hunting and teaches him some surprising new tricks to lure in their dinner. Old Granny and Reddy Fox encounter danger and adventure in their quests to keep their bellies full, including a close encounter with Farmer Brown's boy, a clever plot to steal Bowser's food, and an unforeseen thief who might outsmart this sneaky pair.

This is the story about Tommy and how he came to better understand the animals around him. Tommy has a favourite stone that he likes to sit upon to think about his day and ponder his troubles. He comes to name this stone the wishing-stone, as it seems to grant his impulsive wishes to become various animals that happen to cross his path while sitting there. Tommy learns first-hand about the exciting life of these animals and gains a new perspective after each exciting adventure.

As the days grow colder, little Whitefoot the Wood Mouse decides it is time to find a warm, safe place to spend the winter. The happy little creature finds the perfect spot in Farmer Brown's barn, where he meets a friendly stranger, tumbles into a life-threatening situation, and learns the meaning of the word "trust."

"The Adventures of Paddy Beaver" is another in the long list of children’s books by the conservationist, Thornton W. Burgess. In this book, the industrious and clever Paddy Beaver, a newcomer to the Green Forest, has encounters with Sammy Jay, Jerry Muskrat, Ol’ Man Coyote and other inhabitants of the Green Forest. Along the way, we learn how Paddy builds his dam and his house, and how he stores his food.

“Listen,” whispered Jimmy Skunk to Peter Rabbit as the strange howling sound echoed through the Green Forest. But Peter was listening. He had never heard anything like it. The sound made cold chills run up and down his backbone. What could it be?

When Mr. and Mrs. Bob White come down from the Old Pasture to live beside Peter Rabbit in the Briar Patch, they attract the unwanted attention of some of the predators, like Old Reddy Fox. Through care and cunning, the Bob Whites raise their family of fifteen baby quail and prove to be very welcome neighbors indeed to Farmer Brown and his son.

Peter Rabbit and Jimmy Skunk are two of the biggest pranksters in the Green Forest. But when Peter Rabbit plays a prank that goes awry, everyone gets a lesson in why Jimmy Skunk is better left alone! As Peter Rabbit, Reddy Fox and Unc' Billy Possum all learn, Jimmy Skunk can be a temperamental beast, and one can get into a good bit of trouble by crossing him.Children will delight in these warm, whimsical adventures that combine all the interest and excitement of a good story with gentle lessons about nature, wildlife and such virtues as courtesy, kindness, and preparedness.

Old Mister Toad is in a hurry! But why? Nobody knows, so all the animals set off looking for him and find him singing in the pond. Peter Rabbit never knew Old Mr. Toad could sing! Quickly, all the animals learn why they should heed his song, and in time, Peter Rabbit learns many, many things that he didn't know about Old Mr. Toad and his children. But Mr. Toad has things of his own to learn, too, and dangers to watch out for!

When Paddy the Beaver moves into the Green Forest and wants to build his home, he never quite expected it would cause so much commotion! Being a focal point of attention, the forest animals watch him carefully and scrutinized his work, make fun of and question his building project, someone screams at him saying unkind things, and one forest animal sets his sights on hunting him to have him for lunch! That's an awful lot for a little beaver to overcome - do you think he can do it?

Farmer Brown's boy, Little Joe Otter, and the residents of the Green Forest have to adjust when a new animal, Buster Bear, comes to live there. Is he a fearsome beast or a friendly neighbor? An enemy or a local hero? In this collection of stories, everyone struggles to understand the ways of this unexpected newcomer, as he comes to find his place among them.