My Animal Stories Reading Library 30 Books Collection Box Set Age 5+

Usborne My Animal Stories Reading Library is a 30-book collection of animal tales and retellings created for children who are learning to read. The set brings together traditional folktales, classic fables and original stories, with a mix of simple text and slightly more challenging sentence structures across different reading levels.

Stories range from familiar favourites such as The Lion and the Mouse, The Hare and the Tortoise and The Ugly Duckling to themed collections including magical animals, unicorns, dragons and dinosaurs. The box also includes non-fiction with Bears, exploring where bears live, what they eat and how cubs spend their first day outside. Suitable for age 5+.

Included titles

• The Rabbit Tale
• The Wish Fish
• How Zebras Got Their Stripes
• The Little Giraffe
• The Dragon and the Phoenix
• The Chilly Little penguin
• Bears
• The Little Red Hen
• The Lion And The Mouse
• The Ant And The Grasshopper
• Chicken Licken
• The Scaredy Cat
• The King's Pudding
• The Goose That Laid The Golden Eggs
• The Musicians Of Bremen
• The Leopard And The Sky God
• The Hare And The Tortoise
• The Ugly Duckling
• The Town Mouse And The Country Mouse
• The Emperor And The Nightingale
• Androcles & the Lion
• The Owl & the Pussycat
• Animal Legends
• Puss in Boots
• Stories of Magical Animals
• Billy Goats Gruff
• Stories of Ponies
• Stories of Unicorns
• Stories of Dragons
• Stories of Dinosaurs

Key details

• 30-book reading library collection box set
• Suitable for age 5+
• Includes retellings of folktales, fables and classic stories
• Includes original story collections featuring magical animals, unicorns, dragons and dinosaurs
• Includes a non-fiction title about bears

Synopses

The Rabbit Tale

A retelling of a traditional folktale with illustrations by Fred Blunt. Rabbit’s burrow is too small, so he asks Wise Owl for advice and is told to invite friends and family to stay. Includes easy-to-read text and comprehension puzzles at the end, and is part of the Usborne First Reading series developed in consultation with Alison Kelly at the University of Roehampton.

The Wish Fish

Bob and Bet catch a magical fish that grants wishes in an amusing story based on a folktale. A First Reading Level 1 title for beginner readers with very light support.

How Zebras Got Their Stripes

An African folktale retold for beginner readers ready for slightly more complex storylines and sentence structures. It begins with a time when zebras did not have stripes, before a greedy baboon appears.

The Little Giraffe

An African folktale retelling about how the first, smallest giraffe became tall after meeting a wise old man. A First Reading Level 2 title for beginner readers tackling more complicated storylines and sentence structures.

The Dragon and the Phoenix

A Chinese folktale retelling featuring a dragon, a phoenix, the Queen of Heaven and a special pebble.

The Chilly Little penguin

A wintery tale for beginner readers developing confidence with more complex storylines and sentence structures. Perry the penguin has a special reason for wanting to warm up and looks for a way to take the chill off his frosty flippers.

Bears

A non-fiction introduction to bears, noting that there are eight different kinds in the world. It looks at where they live, what they eat and how baby bears spend their first day outside.

The Little Red Hen

A lively retelling written for children who are just learning to read. The Little Red Hen asks her three best friends to help plant grains of wheat, but none of them will.

The Lion And The Mouse

Aesop’s fable retold for beginner readers. It contrasts life in the wild for a tiny mouse and a big lion, and shows that friendship can appear in unexpected places.

The Ant And The Grasshopper

A lively retelling of Aesop’s fable for beginner readers. Grasshopper sings through summer while Ant gathers food for winter, raising the question of what happens when winter arrives.

Chicken Licken

Chicken Licken believes the sky is falling and runs to warn the king, but may be heading into danger with friends. A First Reading Level Three title designed to build reading stamina, including character sheets or maps alongside the main story.

The Scaredy Cat

A humorous story with repetition to help build confidence and reading stamina. Stanley is frightened of everything, and a dark house full of strange noises is the last place he wants to be, but he must face his fears to save the day.

The King's Pudding

A traditional Indonesian tale told with repetition to support confidence and reading stamina. In a dangerous jungle with a hungry tiger nearby, Little Deer relies on quick thinking to try to outwit him.

The Goose That Laid The Golden Eggs

Tom and Elena are amazed when their goose lays a golden egg. The story asks what happens when one golden egg a day is no longer enough.

The Musicians Of Bremen

When farm life becomes too dangerous, a donkey, dog, cat and rooster decide to join a band. They discover the “band” is actually a gang of robbers.

The Leopard And The Sky God

Based on a West African folktale. Leopard loves banging his drum, but when he refuses to share it with the Sky God, he gets into trouble.

The Hare And The Tortoise

A lively retelling of Aesop’s fable for children just learning to read, with illustrations by John Joven. Hare boasts about being fast, and Tortoise challenges him to a race.

The Ugly Duckling

A retelling of the classic fairy tale. One duckling hatches looking different from the others and struggles to find acceptance, wondering if he will ever find friends of his own.

The Town Mouse And The Country Mouse

A lively retelling of the classic story contrasting Town Mouse’s love of the high life with Country Mouse’s preference for quiet. When they visit each other’s homes, they consider whether differences can be a good thing.

The Emperor And The Nightingale

Hans Christian Andersen’s story retold with simple text for children beginning to read. The nightingale’s song is loved by all, but the Emperor of China becomes captivated by a mechanical songbird made from gold and rubies.

Androcles & the Lion

Aesop’s fable retold with simple text to help build reading stamina. Androcles escapes a hard life as a slave in Ancient Rome and meets a lion in the forest, raising the question of whether they can help each other.

The Owl & the Pussycat

Edward Lear’s nonsense poem about the Owl and the Pussycat, who go to sea in a pea-green boat.

Animal Legends

Three light-hearted animal legends for children who have just started to read alone. The stories explain why cats and rats were once friends, why monkeys live in trees, and how rabbits ensured crocodiles stay in the river.

Puss in Boots

A favourite tale about a talking cat who wears boots and uses clever tactics to help his master. The adventure includes encounters with an ogre, a king and a princess.

Stories of Magical Animals

Original stories of magical creatures from faraway lands for children just beginning to read. The collection features unicorns, flying horses and a creature that is half-lion and half-eagle.

Billy Goats Gruff

A retelling of the classic tale with easy-reading text for children who have started reading on their own. Three goats cross a river in search of food and meet the Terrible Troll.

Stories of Ponies

A collection of three stories about three ponies: one with surprising talents, one that causes trouble, and one that needs a small helping hand.

Stories of Unicorns

Three original stories inspired by traditional unicorn myths. The collection includes a unicorn that befriends a kitchen maid, one that outwits a greedy hunter, and one that loves strawberries.

Stories of Dragons

Three original tales about mythical fire-breathing beasts. Stan tries to outwit a dragon to feed his children, Victor attempts to persuade two dragons not to eat him, and Tom must deal with a worm-dragon he caught while fishing.

Stories of Dinosaurs

Three original stories for children who have started reading on their own, featuring wrestling raptors, vegetarian dinosaurs and a prehistoric egg hatching in a modern museum. Includes a pronunciation guide for dinosaur names.