Dial-a-Story
Kids and their families can listen to a story by phone any time of day for FREE by calling the library's Dial-A-Story service at 416-395-5400.
There are stories for younger children (7 and under) and for older children (up to 12).
Dial-a-Story is available in 16 languages:
- English
- French
- Cantonese
- Gujarati
- Italian
- Korean
- Mandarin
- Persian
- Polish
- Portuguese
- Russian
- Somali
- Spanish
- Tamil
- Tagalog
- Urdu
Featured stories
Celebrate Asian Heritage Month with these lively, thought-provoking folktale retellings.
Mr. and Mrs. Haktak (featured May 1-16)
An elderly couple find a large brass pot in their garden and soon discover the pot is magical: anything placed inside is instantly doubled! Based on the Chinese tale Two of Everything, opens a new window by Lily Toy Hong. Read by children's librarian and storyteller Alice Kane (1908-2003), co-founder of the Storytellers School of Toronto (now Storytelling Toronto).
The Lion Who Saw Himself in the Water (featured May 17-31)
In this retelling based on the book by Idries Shah, a thirsty lion is frightened by a fierce rival he sees reflected in a pool. Read by celebrated Canadian storyteller and children's author Aubrey Davis (1949-2022).