Compiled and written by Caroline Feller Bauer, New Handbook For Storytellers: With Stories, Poems, Magic, And More is an extensive, 550-page guide to the art of storytelling, which ranges from reading a book at bedtime to making a grand production with visual aids to an entire classroom. Tips, tricks, and techniques for narrative timing, suggestions for enhancing the presentation, performance skills, a wide variety of unique enhancements ranging from paperback cut-ups to fingerplays and action rhymes, recommending storytelling booklists, and much, much more fill the pages of this highly recommended "how-to book" designed for aspiring as well as practicing storytellers everywhere.

This is a great book by Ms. Bauer that focuses on different approaches and techniques to help students learn creative and fun ways to reading. The author focuses on a case study approach, where she uses several examples of techniques that have been successful, mapping out the how-to process. One approach to a creative reading is called storytelling in which students act out a short story the have read and memorized, involving the entire class on one person's adventure through a book. The author gives several examples of how to get students involved in this. This technique was used in my elementary school where it was proven very successful.

This is a great book for teachers, librarians, and other professionals interested in teaching elemntary and jr. high age students more creative ways to enjoy reading.

This is an adorable book, an eclectic grouping of short stories and poems (mostly poems) by a variety of authors. The majority of the poems and stories are perfect for the elementary school age, and yet somehow it's still appealing to those of us a bit older than that. The only downside to this book is that not all of the poems/stories have to do with Valentine's Day, and that is what the book is supposed to be about.