BEST BEDTIME STORIES Amy Friedman Illustrated by Lillian Hulme Gilliland Toronto, Oxford University Press, 1993. 100pp, cloth, $19.95 ISBN 0-19-540967-1. CIP Reviewed by Jane Smith Volume 22 Number 3 1994 May/June Amy Friedman won the 1992 Alberta Provincial Council's Literacy Award, a 1991 CBC Literary award, and the 1986 Kingston Short Story Award. She was editor of Southam newspaper syndicate's bedtime Story" from 1991 to 1993 and is currently editor of Universal Press syndicate's "Tell Me a Story." In Best Bedtime Stories, Friedman has collected twenty wonderful tales from "The Bedtime Story" column. This assortment of ghost stories, nonsense tales, myths, mysteries and fairy-tales will delight children of all ages. The stories have been carefully chosen for their international appeal to introduce children to various cultures. They include "The Thieving Dragon" from Central Europe, "The Tiger, the Brahman and the Jackal" from India, "The Dancing Stars" from Canada, "The Cow on the Roof" from Wales, "The Tinker and the Ghost" from Spain, "Orpheus and Eurydice" from ancient Greece, "The Magic Brocade" from China, and "Anansi Plays with Fire" from the caribbean. There are some old favourites as well as some that are less familiar. Jillian Gilliland's delicate black-and-white illustrations that decorated the newspaper column have been retained, but new ones have been added, plus eight new colour drawings. The stories in this global collection are perfectly placed for a 10 to 15 minute read before bedtime. They would be a welcome addition to any classroom or school library. Recommended. Kindergarten to Grade 6 / Ages 5 to 11 Jane Smith is a former Primary teacher in North York. Ontario