Act!vated Stories

It's a sneak preview of Tops and Bottoms, one of our new stories for the upcoming season, and aren't you lucky to be hearing it now? Hailing from Scandinavia, this is a variation of a popular tale in many cultures, including the Southern U.S., where it was often passed down by African-Americans, and...

In honor of the Cherry Blossom Festival and Frog Month (you do celebrate that every year, don't you?) we bring you "The Two Frogs", a fable from Japan. We come to you from Holbrook, Arizona as we make our way back to the West Coast. Along the way, we visited The Blue Hole in Santa Rosa NM, The Mesal...

"The Farmer and the Werewolf" is a tale from Ireland, a country that traditionally has spun many yarns about such supernatural and sometimes frightening critters. The werewolf in this tale, however, is not an entirely vicious monster; he’s also a human who is appalled by his darker side, and w...

"The Girl Who Married a Snake" is from Bhutan, an Asian country that borders China and India. The tale bears a certain resemblance to the Frog Prince story types common in Europe, except that even when the good guys live happily ever after, the story continues until the bad guys get their comeuppanc...

"The Long Winter" is an appropriately seasonal tale from the Dene tribe of Canada. The Dene tribe is often called the Slavey tribe, because they were sometimes enslaved by their enemies, the Cree. Similar to our popular Zuni story we call "Coyote and Eagle", this nature myth about rescuing warmth (i...

Though it's not really a holiday story, "The Drum" from India seems suitable for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, with its theme of giving and gratitude. It's about a different kind of little drummer boy, who brightens the lives of many people with his generosity and creative use of a barter economy...

Read Along Read the story as you listen at the Act!vated web site

By special request from a fan, we bring you Hans Christian Andersen's beloved fable about judging people (or fowl) by their plumage. It's been the subject of songs and films -- Disney adapted it for the screen twice. In our version, a...

A long time ago, pigs were clean. At least in India. And then once upon a time drastic measures were called for.

We bring you this story especially for National Pig Day (March 1), which we just know you were just dying to learn about. It's been around for 40 years now, thanks to Texas teacher Ellen...

Happy New Year! That's a bit late for American listeners, but it's a little early for Chinese listeners. Because Chinese New Year (aka Lunar New Year) is celebrated this year on Jan. 23 (Year of the Dragon). The exact date varies considerably from year to year (It will be Feb. 10 next year.) because...

“The Twin Brothers” is a story from the former Czechoslovakia about two brothers who looked a great deal alike, and therefore were sometimes mistaken for each other. This is a motif that many writers have used, including of course Shakespeare. And as in most of these narratives, the brot...