In my battle to keep a DVD player out of our car, I have a new ally: Juanita the Spanish Lobster. Juanita comes to us from Magic Maestro Music's "Stories in Music" series (also available in Spanish as Juanita la Longosta Española). A modern-day spin on books-on-tape, this series was put together by a husband-and-wife team with an extensive symphonic background. The CD tells the musical story of cranky crustacean Juanita, her dreams of going to The Land and her hair-raising escape from a lobster pot. When the story ends, the album moves on to an audio tour of the creative minds behind Juanita — perfect for road trips and/or music appreciation class. One track is devoted to how composer David Haslam uses a wonderful combination of flamenco and bel canto opera to set the stage down in Juanita's ocean grotto ("What's a grotto?" asked my children); hearing the castanets, one can just see Juanita's claws clacking. Another boasts an alternate doo-wop take of the story's love song, O, Juanita. The London Symphony orchestra is featured throughout. Juanita's story has inspired much artwork in my house, and the behind-the-scenes tracks left my girls feeling that they, too, could grow up to be storytellers or composers. — Melissa Eva Miller