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    Great Folk Tales of the World
    Great Folk Tales of the World
    Great Folk Tales of the World
    Ebook134 pages1 hour

    Great Folk Tales of the World

    By Anitha Murthy (Illustrated by Sayan Mukherjee)

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    About this ebook

    Travel around the world with this glorious collection of best-loved folk tales

    Harisharman, a poor man from India, pretends he has magical powers and can solve any problem. But what will he do when the king himself asks for his help to find the g old stolen from the royal treasury? In ancient Arabia, Ameen Beg meets a scary ghoul. With just some salt and an egg, he outsmarts the ghoul and makes him run away fast and far. In distant Eastern Europe, a king is furious with his attendant George. The only way George can escape punishment is by finding the mysterious maid with the golden hair. Will he be able to find her and bring her to his king?

    Meet these and many other odd and wonderful characters—wily witches from Australia, brave and just eagles from North America, magician-giants from South America and boastful tailors from Scotland—in these captivating stories. There are tales of love and humour, of adventure and daredevilry, of ogres and animals. Beautifully illustrated and skilfully retold, this collection will thrill and charm readers young and old.

    About the Author
    Anitha Murthy is a software consultant by profession, who likes to write whenever inspiration strikes. She has dabbled in many genres, from short stories and poetry to humour and travel. She has been published both online and in print and has even managed to win a few contests. She is a voracious reader and is a partner-cum-librarian at Cosy Nook Library, a children’s library. She lives in Bengaluru with her husband and daughter and pretends to be Zen about everything.

    Sayan Mukherjee is an illustrator from Calcutta, who works from his own studio. After working in advertising for around nine years, he went solo with his passion: illustrations. He loves children’s books and loves to create art for kids.

    He has worked with various publishers, including Penguin, Hachette, Tulika Books, Juggernaut, Speaking Tiger, Pratham Books, Ms Moochie Books.

    He has a number of sketchbooks and carries them wherever he travels, to preserve all the beautiful memories.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSpeaking Tiger
    Release dateApr 10, 2019
    ISBN9789388874564
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      Book preview

      Great Folk Tales of the World - Anitha Murthy (Illustrated by Sayan Mukherjee)

      Acknowledgements

      Prologue

      Hello, I’m Ritu. Are you looking for some stories? Well, you’ve come to the right place, for I am a storyteller.

      What sort of stories do I tell?

      All sorts. Some stories have animals, some have people. Some stories happen in dense forests, others happen in busy cities. Some stories are true, some stories are…well, all stories are true, aren’t they?

      No?

      Ah well, all stories are true in my head. They live, they dance, they breathe, they change. And a good storyteller knows how to make the stories come alive with words. You can lose yourself in a story, but you can also find yourself in a story, isn’t it?

      What’s my favourite story?

      Hmmm, that’s really, really hard to say.

      Why did I become a storyteller?

      I think it was all because of the Professor. Oh, the stories he told us! I get goosebumps even when I think about them today. If I close my eyes, I am immediately taken back to the little cottage on the hill, he with his pipe on his armchair and three kids at his feet…

      It’s the strangest thing that’s ever happened to me! So perhaps you should make yourself nice and comfortable, and I can tell you all about it.

      The Haunted Cottage

      ‘Raj! Raj! Where are you?’ I called out rather crossly.

      It was all my mother’s fault. Dragging my brother and me out to this stupid place in the middle of nowhere, just because she wanted to catch a glimpse of some feathered fowls! (To be fair, she is a rather famous or-ni-tho-lo-gist, which is a fancy name for a person who spends her time studying birds.) It was all very well for her to be excited about the lush green surroundings, the clean crisp mountain air, and quaint little dwellings. But what about something for us? We didn’t have anything to do—there was no TV, no movies, nothing! How long could I go walking around, oohing and aahing over every strange flower or bug I saw? What I really wanted was to get back to my comfortable home in Bangalore and cozy circle of friends. I thought longingly of them as I trudged up the hillock behind our rented cottage, looking for my annoying younger brother who had disappeared.

      As I crested the hill, I spied my brother a little way off. But who was that with him? A tall boy, dressed in ugly shorts and a T-shirt that was obviously too small for him, was pointing something out to Raj.

      ‘Why did you run off like that, Raj?’ I huffed and puffed as I walked up to the boys. ‘You think I have nothing better to do than chasing you around?’

      Raj jumped up and down, barely able to contain his excitement. ‘Guess what? Saurav says that cottage is haunted! Want to go see it?’

      ‘What?’ I frowned at the two boys. ‘And who are you?’

      ‘Saurav is visiting his grandmother here,’ Raj answered. ‘He wants to go to the haunted cottage, and he says I can go with him!’

      ‘No way, Raj!’ I said firmly. ‘Mom has put me in charge, and I’m not about to let you go off with a complete stranger to a haunted cottage!’

      ‘It’s hundred per cent haunted,’ Saurav told me with a fierce stare. ‘Ask anyone around here.’

      I scowled. ‘So? Why don’t you go on alone? Why do you need my brother with you? Are you so scared?’

      Saurav squared his shoulders. ‘Pah! I’m not scared. It was your brother who was begging to come with me.’

      I glared at my brother. What an annoying pest he was!

      ‘Please! There’s nothing else to do any way. It’s so boring here. Let’s do something fun, no?’ He pleaded, and I sighed, rolling my eyes.

      ‘Fine!’ I said. ‘But I’m not letting you go alone. I’m coming too.’

      ‘No!’ Saurav said.

      ‘Yes!’ I snapped. ‘I know karate, okay!’

      ‘Yes, she does!’ Raj seconded me with enthusiasm.

      Saurav shrugged and walked off.

      We made our way to a little cottage that stood perched on top of the hillock. It had an abandoned air about it, the little garden patch growing wild and untended, the mossy walls badly needing a coat of paint. The small wooden gate festooned with cobwebs stood ajar, and Saurav cautiously pushed it open. It creaked, making me jump. Saurav smirked and went boldly up the path to the door. He jiggled the doorknob but it was clear that it was locked.

      ‘Hmmm,’ he said, looking around.

      ‘You are not going to break in, are you?’ I asked, horrified.

      ‘What’s the good of coming all the way if we don’t get a peek in?’

      ‘But…but…it’s not right to break open a locked door.’

      ‘Are you afraid of what you might find inside? Ghosts? Boo!’

      ‘Shut up!’ I snapped. ‘I’m not afraid of ghosts. There’s a doorbell and I’m going to ring it. Who knows, somebody might actually be living here.’

      I reached up and pressed the doorbell. The sound echoed through the little house and then there was silence.

      ‘Hahaha! Looks like the place is filled with people!’ Saurav laughed, and I was furious.

      He picked up a rather large stone, and was about to smash the doorknob with it, when the door suddenly swung open.

      ‘Ow! Ow! Ow!’ Saurav howled in anguish as he let go of the stone onto his toes. Raj and I stared at the figure at the door, our mouths agape with astonishment.

      A thin old man, who could have easily passed for Dumbledore with that flowing white beard, stared at us over his moon-shaped glasses. Dressed in suspenders and a yellowing white shirt, he had a pipe in his mouth, and an absurd beret perched on his head.

      ‘Er…hello…Sir,’ I stuttered.

      ‘Hello!’ the man said cheerily, removing the pipe from his mouth. ‘And what brings you children to my doorstep on such a fair day?’

      Saurav stopped howling and stared at the man.

      ‘I’ve seen your picture!’ he suddenly said. ‘Aren’t you the one they call the Professor around here?’

      The man guffawed. ‘Yes, indeed! I am the Professor. Good to see I am recognized even after all these years!’

      ‘But you are…ancient! They said you were dead.’ Saurav blurted out. ‘They said you disappeared in the rainforests of the Amazon, and others said you were eaten by a crocodile in the Nile!’

      ‘All very good stories,’ the old man pronounced. ‘How people come up with such tales is beyond me! Come in, come in. It’s so good to have guests drop by. No one comes by any more. Come on in, children.’

      He ushered us inside, and we gazed around in utter amazement. The place was overflowing with all sorts of odds and ends, shelves were crammed with what looked like really ancient books. On a large table in the centre of the room, there was a really thick manuscript.

      ‘So, you’re not a ghost, and this isn’t a haunted cottage?’ Raj asked, looking rather crestfallen.

      The Professor laughed, a merry twinkle in his eyes. ‘Of course I am a ghost, my boy! And yes, this is a haunted cottage indeed.’

      My jaw dropped. He was joking, wasn’t he? Scary thoughts flooded my mind, and a chill ran down my spine. What had I been thinking, walking into a perfect stranger’s house? We should have never ever come here in the first place. Mom would kill me now!

      I looked at the Professor once again, and he looked perfectly normal. Had I just heard wrong?

      ‘What is this?’ Raj picked up something that looked like a sword and was whirling it around dangerously.

      ‘Raj!’ I said sharply. ‘Put that down at once. Don’t you know it’s bad manners to touch things without asking?’

      ‘That’s okay, child.’ The Professor took the sword from Raj and weighed it on his palm. ‘I got this sword from Japan. It’s supposed to have been used to cut off an ogre’s hand. Can you believe it?’

      ‘Really? An ogre?’ Raj’s eyes lit up. ‘Can you tell us all about it, please?’

      ‘Raj!’ I caught hold of his hand and pulled at him urgently. ‘We can’t disturb the Professor like this. Let’s go.’

      My brother jumped, yanking his hand

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