Multicultural children’s literature from across the world – stories, poems, folktales and books in English for kids, and stories in Hindi and poems in Hindi too. Original literature in English for kids from around the globe and book reviews and recommended reading lists for children.
432 items in this section. Displaying page 4 of 44
How the Moon was Created
Long long ago when the world was just created there was just the sun but no moon. So there was just day with the sun shining brightly all the time. The sun did not set. So there was no night. People worked until they were too tired to work any more. There was no set time for work or a fixed time for rest. One day the creator of the world came to visit it. He saw men working in fields....
Tansen – The Magical Musician
Almost exactly in the centre of India is a town called Gwalior. In this town is the tomb of Tansen, one of the greatest musicians that ever lived. Next to his beautifully carved stone tomb stands a little tamarind tree. It is believed that by eating a leaf of this tree and touching the tomb, a singer can improve his voice. If this sounds like magic, the story of Tansen is equally magical. Even today, many famous musicians follow the style of music created by Tansen known as the “Gwalior Gharana”....
Guddu's Lucky Day
The sun shone through Gayatri’s window. It teased her eyelids open. She yawned, stretched and got out of bed – things she had done a thousand times before. For Gayatri, today began like any other day. Gayatri Verma was a bright, 12-year-old girl with sparkling eyes and dimpled smile. She was an eighth grade student in a local school, forever praying to God for a new bicyle. She hated travelling in a school bus. After all she was big enough to ride the bike on busy streets....
If You Were
If you were busy being kind, Before you knew it, you would find You’d soon forget to think ‘twas true That someone was unkind to you. If you were busy being glad, And cheering people who are sad, Although your heart might ache a bit, You’d soon forget to notice it. If you were busy being good, And doing just the best you could, You’d not have time to blame some man Who’s just doing the best he can....
Qui Jun and the Arrogant Monk
There once lived a monk called Shan, in a village in China. He had earned a great name for himself. But he was very arrogant. Qui Jun heard of his arrogance and wanted to teach the monk a lesson. He went to meet Shan who neither greeted him nor acknowledged his presence. Just then a servant of the monk came with a message: “The son of an army officer is here to see you.” The monk said, “I will go and greet him....
Shaikh Chilli
Long, long ago, there lived a simpleton whose name was Shaikh Chilli. Because of his stupid but innocent actions, he was popular among his friends. They enjoyed his company. One day, the village zamindar (landlord) sent for him. This landlord was well-known for his dishonesty. He asked Shaikh Chilli to count all the houses in the village. He promised to pay him at the rate of twenty paisa per house. Poor Shaikh Chilli worked hard for many hours, walking through the streets and lanes....
The Special Prize
What a naughty boy! He deserves to be thrashed. I have also received reports of his getting into fights with other boys. Send for him. “Mohan! Hey Mohan!” the headmaster shouted for the chowkidar. Mohan guessed from the growl in the voice that the headmaster was very angry. He rushed in and asked apprehensively, “Yes, Sir?” “Hurry and get Tapan of class V,” the headmaster ordered. Let me introduce the reader to the boy named Tapan....
The Great Escape
On the outskirts of a bustling city near the sea coast was a zoo named Kananvan. It was famous all over the world for its magnificent white tigers, exotic birds and several other rare species. However, there was one special quality that made the zoo different and about which no human knew. The animals of Kananvan practiced a democracy that is quite rare even in the so-called civilised world. A democracy in a zoo? I’ll explain....
King of the Birds
The birds of the jungle had no king. It was a real embarrassment for them since everyone else in the jungle had kings. A king is someone who heads the flock and decides every thing for them. All the birds decided they too needed a king. The called a meeting to resolve the problem. But who will be the king? The Mynah had an idea. “Let the bird who can fly the highest be made king of the air,” she said....
The Desert Creature
This happened thousands of years ago. Life was hard as people had to do all the work by themselves. A large number of people were nomads – they would travel from one place to another in search of food and shelter. While travelling one day, a man arrived at the edge of a desert. He was walking in the sands, when suddenly, he came across a frightening creature – it had extremely long, thin legs, a giant hump and a long neck....