“Animal Tales: Raccoon, Bear, and Coyote,” “The Gingerbread Boy and Other First Tales,” and “The Reluctant Dragon” have all been awarded the Silver Award from Parents’ Choice, the nation’s oldest nonprofit guide to quality children’s media and toys, which was established in 1978.

PlainTales, created by writer, entrepreneur and father Brian Keairns, was started with the mission of providing great audio stories for children and their parents, believing that hearing the world’s best stories read aloud is a great way for youngsters to develop language and thinking skills, all while being thoroughly entertained. Fables, fairy tales and original stories inspire, educate and encourage creative thinking, and the ones featured in the PlainTales series are chosen for their rich language, cultural significance and pure enjoyment, allowing families to share something special, together.

In “Animal Tales: Raccoon, Bear and Coyote,” stories about Lotor the raccoon, Osa the brown bear, and a coyote named Hazard are rich in detail and filled with action-packed adventures. Little listeners will be enthralled with “The Gingerbread Boy and Other Tales” about the naughty Gingerbread Boy, clever Billy Goats Gruff, enchanted Frog Prince, stalwart Little Red Hen and the courageous Bremen Town Musicians. And from the author of The Wind in the Willows comes “The Reluctant Dragon,” a story of a boy who befriends a lazy, but quite pleasant, dragon.

Previous releases in the PlainTales collection of celebrated storytelling CDS include:

PlainTales Classics:
“Selected Just So Stories” (Rudyard Kipling)
“The Tailor of Gloucester and Other Tales by Beatrix Potter”

PlainTales Fantasy Classics:
“Tales from the Book of Dragons

PlainTales Literary Classics
“The Happy Prince and Other Tales by Oscar Wilde”
“Tales from a Wonder Book for Girls & Boys”
“The Ugly Duckling and Other Tales by Hans Christian Andersen”

PlainTales Adventure Classics:
“Aladdin and Other Tales from the Arabian Nights”
“Rip Van Winkle and the Devil and Tom Walker”

PlainTales storytelling CDs are recommended for ages 4-10 and are available for $12.95 each. To order, visit www.plaintales.com or www.amazon.com.

About Parents’ Choice Foundation
Designed to help parents and caregivers of all achievements and backgrounds make informed decisions about which new products are right for their children, the Parents’ Choice Awards is the nation’s oldest nonprofit program created to recognize quality children’s media. The Parents’ Choice Awards program honors the best material for children: books, toys, music and storytelling, magazines, software, videogames, television and websites. Parents’ Choice Foundation’s panels of educators, scientists, performing artists, librarians, parents and, yes, kids themselves, identify the very best products for children of different ages and backgrounds, and of varied skill and interest levels.

About PlainTales
Great lives begin with great stories. That’s why PlainTales creates high-quality audio stories for children and their families. The masterful telling of classic fairy tales, fables and original children’s stories do more than entertain. They inspire, educate, and encourage creative thinking. And yes, sometimes tickle your funny bone. When families listen to PlainTales together, they learn together. That’s a story worth sharing.

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PlainTales First Tales and PlainTales Explorers Available on CD March 10, 2009

DES MOINES, IA–(Marketwire – February 12, 2009) – With families always on the go go go, time for sharing stories with your children is going, going, almost gone! But the experience doesn’t have to be lost, thanks to the PlainTales series, which offers classic stories on CDs that can be played on any player, any time (goodbye long, boring trips this spring break!). The series is now expanding with the release of new collections, PlainTales First Tales and PlainTales Explorers, available on CD March 10, 2009.

PlainTales, created by writer, entrepreneur and father Brian Keairns, was started with the mission of providing great audio stories for children and their parents, believing that hearing the world’s best stories read aloud is a great way for youngsters to develop language and thinking skills, all while being thoroughly entertained. Fables, fairy tales and original stories inspire, educate and encourage creative thinking, and the ones featured in the PlainTales series are chosen for their rich language, cultural significance and pure enjoyment, allowing families to share something special, together.

The PlainTales First Tales collection includes:
– “The Gingerbread Boy and Other First Tales” — Perfect for the
littlest listener. R/T: 48 minutes.
– “Paul Bunyan and Other American Tall Tales” — Three rib-tickling
stories. R/T: 60 min.

The PlainTales Explorers collection includes:
– “Animal Tales: Raccoon, Bear and Coyote” — These stories about
fictional friends are rich with detail about real animal behaviors. R/T: 48
minutes
– “Johnny Appleseed and Other American Legends” — Fascinating stories
of national treasures. R/T: 67 minutes

Previous releases in the PlainTales collection of celebrated storytelling CDs include PlainTales Classics, Fantasy Classics, Literary Classics and Adventure Classics. PlainTales storytelling CDs are recommended for ages 4-10 and are available for $12.95 each. To order, visit www.plaintales.com.

Contact:
Andrea Blain
Andrea Blain Public Relations
Email Contact
847-933-9884

Announcing Three New Lines From PlainTales

With a mixture of music, fantastic readers and excellent stories, this brand new range from PlainTales magically brings to life traditional fairy tales and short stories.

Classic tales such as Aladdin, Snow White, The Ugly Duckling, Sleeping Beauty and Jack and the Beanstalk, which help encourage your child’s enjoyment of listening and comprehension.

PlainTales Classics

This is a line of the world’s best unabridged children’s classics.

Age: 6+ years

PlainTales First Tales

This is a collection of retold and dramatized versions of classic children’s stories.

Age: 4+ years

PlainTales Explorers

This collection explores the natural world through stories that are true to life descriptions of the natural world. These stories are told in an engaging and exciting way but grounded in the life cycle of the animals and natural environments being explored.

Age: 6+ years

All of the above titles will be available to buy on CD

PlainTales Will Focus on Creating the Worlds Best Audio Stories for Children Starting at Age 4

With a mixture of music, fantastic readers and excellent stories, this brand new range from PlainTales magically brings to life traditional fairy tales and short stories.

Classic tales such as Aladdin, Snow White, The Ugly Duckling, Sleeping Beauty and Jack and the Beanstalk, which help encourage your child’s enjoyment of listening and comprehension.

The Velveteen Rabbit and Rosy’s Journey

1. The Velveteen Rabbit
2. Rosy’s Journey

Age: 4+ years

Rip Van Winkle & The Devil and Tom Walker

1. Rip Van Winkle
2. The Devil and Tom Walker

Age: 4-6 years

Hansel and Gretel and Other Tales by the Brothers Grimm

1. Hansel and Gretel
2. Rapunzel
3. Snow White
4. The Fisherman and His Wife

Age: 6+ years

Jack and the Beanstalk and Other Classic Fairy Tales

1. Jack and the Beanstalk
2. Sleeping Beauty
3. Puss in Boots
4. Rumpelstiltzkin

Age: 6+ years

Tales From the Arabian Nights

1. Scheherazade
2. Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp
3. Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves

Age: 6+

American Tall Tales

1. Johnny Appleseed
2. Davy Crockett
3. Paul Bunyan
4. Pecos Bill

Age: 6+ years

All of the above titles will be available to buy on CD

PlainTales Will Focus on Creating the Worlds Best Audio Stories for Children Starting at Age 4

With a mixture of music, fantastic readers and excellent stories, this brand new range from PlainTales magically brings to life traditional fairy tales and short stories.

Classic tales such as Aladdin, Snow White, The Ugly Duckling, Sleeping Beauty and Jack and the Beanstalk, which help encourage your child’s enjoyment of listening and comprehension.

The Tailor of Gloucester and Other Tales by Beatrix Potter

1. The Tailor of Gloucester
2. The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse
3. The Tale of Peter Rabbit
4. The Tale of Two Bad Mice
5. The Tale of Mr. Jeremy Fisher
6. The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle

Age: 6+ years

The Ugly Duckling and Other Tales by Hans Christian Anderson

1. The Ugly Duckling
2. The Emperor’s New Clothes
3. The Princess and the Pea
4. The Nightingale

Age: 4-6 years

Selected Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling

1. The Elephant’s Child
2. The Cat That Walked By Himself
3. How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin

Age: 6+ years

The Selfish Giant and Other Tales by Oscar Wilde

1. The Selfish Giant
2. The Happy Prince
3. The Remarkable Rocket

Age: 6+ years

Selected Tales from The Book of Dragons by Edith Nesbit

1. The Book of Beasts
2. The Dragon Tamers

Age: 6+

The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame

1. The Reluctant Dragon

Age: 6+ years

All of the above titles will be available to buy on CD