English

This story is called The Ice Cube Club by Phil Shapiro, recorded by LibraryCall. Some people collect stamps. Some people collect baseball cards. Some people collect dolls. And some people collect ice cubes. You might not have heard about the ice cube collectors before, but they're really not so strange as they sound. You might even run into some ice cube collectors if you visit Atlanta, Georgia in the winter. You see Atlanta, Georgia is a southern city. And southern cities don't get too much snow.

WHY THE HIPPOPOTAMUS LIVES IN THE WATER Many years ago, the Hippopotamus, whose name was Isantim, was one of the biggest kings on the land; he was second only to the Elephant. The Hippo had a wife, of whom he was very fond. Now and then he used to give a big feast to the people, but a curious thing was that, although everyone knew the Hippo, no one, except his wife, knew his name. At one of the feasts, just as the people were about to sit down, the Hippo said, “You have come to feed at my table, but none of you know my name.

THE STONE-CUTTER Once upon a time there lived a stone-cutter, who went every day to a great rock in the side of a big mountain and cut out slabs for stone. He understood very well the kinds of stones wanted for the different purposes, and as he was a careful workman he had plenty of customers. For a long time he was quite happy and contented, and asked for nothing better than what he had. Now in the mountain dwelt a spirit which now and then appeared to men, and helped them in many ways to become rich and prosperous.

This story is called The Neighbors: Julian and Leilani Out in Nature by Lauren Kratz Prushko. This is a LibraryCall recording. In two tiny houses on two little hills two best friends, Julian and Leilani opened their doors, (opening door sound) they clicked off their lights, they stepped outside, and they closed their doors. Then, they went up the hill. They went down the hill. They went up the hill. They went down the hill. They went up the hill. They went down the hill. And they met in the middle. "Hello, hello, Julian," said Leilani. "Hello, hello Leilani," said Julian.