IN THE SUMMER OF 1909 a young father and widower sat down one day to write a letter to his little boy. The child was spending some time in Chicago with rela tives, while the father worked at his poosition as a magazine writer and editor in Springfield, Massa chusetts. As he prepared to write, the man began to think about his own boyhood in Sandwich, Massa chusetts, and of the many happy hours he had spent playing in the woods and meadows there. He had an idea.

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Welcome to the timeless world of the Green Forest, the Laughing Brook and the Smiling Pool. Here young readers will meet a menagerie of funny and fascinating animal friends--Peter Cot tontail, Jimmy Skunk, Reddy Fox, Grandfather Frog and many more--and learn about their exciting adventures.

In this beloved classic, the first in a series of highly popular animal tales by Thornton W. Burgess, children discover the answers to such questions as why Grandfather Frog has no tail and why Jimmy Skunk wears stripes. There"s also great fun to be had in reading or hearing about the grand goings-on at Billy Mink"s swimming party, Little Joe Otter"s slippery slide and Reddy Fox"s unfortunate fishing expedition. These and many other exciting adventures are told here in a warm, whimsical way that combines gentle lessons about wildlife and the environment with the fun of a good story.

  I. Mrs. Redwing"s Speckled Egg

 II. Why Grandfather Frog Has No Tail 

III. How Reddy Fox Was Surprised 

IV. Why Jimmy Skunk Wears Stripes 

 V. The Wilful Little Breeze

VI. Reddy Fox Goes Fishing

VII. Jimmy Skunk Looks for Beetles

VIII. Billy Mink"s Swimming Party

IX. Peter Rabbit Plays a Joke 

 X. How Sammy Jay Was Found Out 

XI. Jerry Muskrat"s Party

XII. Bobby Coon and Reddy Fox Play Tricks

XIII. Johnny Chuck Finds the Best Thing in the World 

XIV. Little Joe Otter"s Slippery Slide

XV. The Tale of Tommy Trout Who Didn"t Mind

XVI. Spotty the Turtle Wins a Race