The New Oxford Progressive English Readers offer a great selection of classic novels and plays from renowned authors that have been abridged in the form of easy-to-read stories for children to enjoy.

"There once lived a very rich king called Midas who believed that nothing was more precious than gold." So begins this imaginative and breathtaking retelling of the myth of the man with the golden touch. When a mysterious stranger offers to reward Midas for a kindness, the king does not hesitate: He wishes that all he touches would turn to gold. To his delight, his wish is granted and he soon sets about transforming his ordinary palace into a place of golden beauty. But to his dismay, when he accidentally turns his beloved daughter into a golden statue, Midas learns that what at first seems a blessing can also become a curse.

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Grade level: 3, 4, 5, e, p, i.

Five classic stories of horror, humor and the macabre from Jane Rice. From the Salem Witch Trials to a drowned man’s revenge and a man-eating plant, Jane Rice finds a macabre humor in some horrific stories. The House (1941) – The House hated. It had a grim and determinedly evil personality all its own, and it had set out to murder every member of the family, one by one— The Golden Bridle (1943) – The golden bridle was the answer to the golden dream of every jockey—it meant a winner in every race. But its golden touch had something, too, of the Midas touch— The Crest of the Wave (1941) – He was riding the crest— ’til a Delilah and a Judas tipped him into the river. After that—he rode them! The Elixir (1942) – Maybe it was the Witches’ Cup, maybe it was the mighty potion of mixed drinks she’d mixed—but something sent her from a 1942 Halloween party to a Salem witch-hunt. At the wrong end of the hunt! Pobby (1942) – Pobby was a difficult character for an author to handle. He kept coming around to visit the writer, demanding that the ending be changed. He didn’t want the plant to grow—