Hi Circle Round fans! Rebecca Sheer here, inviting you to join us this August at Tanglewood,

the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Lennox, Massachusetts. Our annual live

recording on Sunday August 13th is all sold out, but not to worry! You can join us on Tuesday,

August 8th, as part of Tanglewood on Parade, the BSO's annual Family Funday. Showtime

is at 2.30pm in Seiji, Ozawa Hall. General seating is available in the open air hall or on the

lawn. Kids get in free, but require a ticket. Get yours now by visiting wbwar.org slash Circle

Round and clicking on events.

All right everybody, let's start today's episode with a joke. Ready? Okay, why was six? A

freed of seven. Do you know, have you heard this one before? Because seven, eight, nine! Get it

seven, eight, nine. So maybe it's not the funniest joke in the world, but in just a moment. We'll

hear a story about a boy who loved telling jokes, and he used one of them to get out of a rather

sticky situation. I'm Rebecca Sheer and welcome to Circle Round, where story time happens all the time.

Today's story comes from Japan, an island nation in Asia. It's called the Rice Cakes and the Oni.

What is an Oni you ask? We'll find out soon.

In the meantime, some really great people came together to bring you this tale,

including some actors who've been all over the movies and TV, Tamlin Tamita and Hudson Yang.

So Circle Round everyone for the Rice Cakes and the Oni.

A long time ago, in a village by the sea, there lived a woman named Mayumi,

and her son, Haru. Everyone knew Mayumi and Haru because of the delicious rice cakes they sold

at the market. Thanks to an old family recipe, Mayumi and Haru made rice cakes that were crispy,

light, and perfectly round, just like a wheel. Every night, after dinner time and homework time,

they would cook their rice cakes in the kitchen, with Haru telling jokes to entertain his mother.

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