When Mike Mulligan and his steam shovel, Mary Ann, lose their jobs to the gasoline, electric, and diesel motor shovels, they go to a little country town where they find that one new job leads to another.

Children see a variety of animals, each one a different color, and a teacher looking at them.

Alexander could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. He went to sleep with gum in his mouth and woke up with gum in his hair. When he got out of bed, he tripped over his skateboard and by mistake dropped his sweater in the sink while the water was running. He could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Nothing at all was right. Everything...

Though she is fond of her people, a girl prefers to live among the wild horses where she is truly happy and free.

Goodnight to each of the objects in the great green room: goodnight chairs, goodnight comb, goodnight air.

A hungry wolf's attempts to fatten a chicken for his stewpot have unexpected results.

Tacky the penguin does not fit in with his sleek and graceful companions, but his odd behavior comes in handy when hunters come with maps and traps.

Chrysanthemum loves her name, until she starts going to school and the other children make fun of it.