Long ago, in the City of Bagdad, in the land of Persia, there lived a merchant called Ali Cogia. Over the years, Ali Cogia had saved one thousand pieces of gold. He put this gold into a big jar of clay. On top he put some olives. He sealed the jar and took it to a merchant friend who had …
Read More »Ali Baba And The Forty Thieves – Edith H. Tarcov
Long ago, in a town not far from Bagdad, in the land of Persia, there lived a poor woodcutter called Ali Baba. One day, Ali Baba was working deep in the forest. Suddenly he heard the noise of many horses. He tied up his two mules behind some high rocks. Then he climbed into a tall tree to hide. From …
Read More »Adventures In The Desert – Cheryl Rao
Two children from Mumbai spend a year in a small army township in the middle of the Rajasthan desert. Missing the urban sights and sounds, it takes them a while to get used to living in a place where the only excitement is a roll in the dunes. But adventure is just a sandstorm away and all too soon their …
Read More »A Unique Birthday – Shiela Srivastava
Shashank and Mayank were twins and 10 years old. Every year, their parents would celebrate their birthday with much fanfare. They made it a point to get them new clothes for the party. One evening, on his return from office, their father informed them that he had been transferred to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. So all of them would …
Read More »A Thief In The House – Mulla Nasruddin
One night Nasruddin was sitting on the street outside his house. He suddenly saw a burglar entering his house from a side window. The burglar did not see Nasruddin in the dark. The Mulla was scared to go and fight the thief. He watched as the thief loaded almost all his possessions onto a donkey and set off. Nasruddin ran …
Read More »A Test of Strength – Deepa Agarwal
If only Rohit had been able to come, Nitin thought, as Richa stopped to take a breath for the umpteenth time. To think that he had looked forward to this holiday in Manali so much. His friend Rohit and he had planned so many treks and climbs together. But Rohit’s father had not been able to get away. So here …
Read More »A Present For Grandfather – Jusran Safano
There was a young boy named Bakri who lived in a lonely village far in the mountains. It was lonely village, yes, but also very quite and peaceful. A swift-flowing stream tumbled down from the mountains and ran through the village. The villagers could hear the rush of its crystal-clear waters as they lay in their beds at night. And …
Read More »A Narrow Escape – Purnima Varman
Oh dear, I am so glad that is finished, sighed Mrs. Salinda Sardine, who had been busy spring-cleaning her little sitting-room in Rockbay Terrace. All I need now is some dainty pink seaweed to make new curtains for the window. Did you hear that? There is some pretty seaweed near Cissie Catfishs house, let us get some and give Mummy …
Read More »A Life Alone In The Vast Sea – Naresh Kumar
On April 24, 1895 Captain Joshua Slocum set to sailing. He was the first man to sail alone in a small boat, ‘spray’ around the world. He repaired the old boat and started on his historical mission. This is the story of Captain Joshua who braved the torrents of sea all alone. Barbarous Red Indians had surrounded the ‘spray’. They …
Read More »A Lesson For The Innkeeper – C. Schmid
The town barrel-maker had repaired some barrels for the innkeeper. When he had finished the work he came to the inn and the lady-innkeeper of “The Sun” brought him a glass of wine. “Well, my good woman,” said the barrel-maker, “how is it going?” “No good at all,” answered the woman. “Those people in the town are all going to …
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