Folk Tales for Bold Girls Read online

  The monster lifted the sack. It growled at the girl inside, ‘Sing, singing sack, or I’ll give you a whack!’

  The girl trembled. She began to sing in a scared little voice:

  I am my mother’s only daughter,

  Now I am alone, all alone, all alone.

  She sent me to fetch her the water,

  Now I can’t go home, can’t go home, can’t go home.

  ‘That’s a lovely little song!’ said the person in the house, and the girl heard the monster slurp down a great big bowl of soup.

  The monster went to the next house. It knocked on the door. When the door was opened, the girl heard the monster say: ‘I’ve got a singing sack. If my sack sings to you, what will you give me to eat?’

  And someone answered, ‘A singing sack? I’ve never heard of such a thing! If your sack really can sing, I will give you some bread and cheese.’

  The monster lifted the sack. It growled at the girl inside, ‘Sing, singing sack, or I’ll give you a whack!’

  The girl began to sing again.

  I am my mother’s only daughter,

  Now I am alone, all alone, all alone.

  She sent me to fetch her the water,

  Now I can’t go home, can’t go home, can’t go home.

  ‘That’s a sad little song!’ said the person in the house, and the girl heard the monster gobble up a cheese sandwich.

  The monster went to the next house. And the next. And the next. At each house it made the girl sing. At each house people gave it something to eat.

  The monster was very greedy. It went right through the whole village, until there was only one house left. The monster went to the last house and knocked on the door. When the door was opened, the monster said, ‘I’ve got a singing sack. If my sack sings to you, what will you give me to eat?’

  And it was the girl’s mother who answered!

  The girl sang her song:

  I am my mother’s only daughter,

  Now I am alone, all alone, all alone.

  She sent me to fetch her the water,

  Now I can’t go home, can’t go home, can’t go home.

  The mother recognised her daughter’s voice at once. She thought quickly.

  She said, ‘That’s lovely. I have just made supper, but my daughter hasn’t come home. Why don’t you come in and eat her food?’

  The monster went in. It put the sack in the corner and sat at the table in the girl’s place. The mother gave the monster soup and rice and meat and bread and tomatoes and fruit and wine. Soon, the monster was so full that it fell asleep with its fat piggy nose on the table. It snored really loudly.

  Then the mother undid the sack and her daughter climbed out. They hugged each other.

  ‘Shush!’ said the mum, ‘Don’t wake it up. I’ve got an idea.’ She fetched their cat and their dog and put them in the sack, tying it up tightly again. The cat and dog didn’t like it, but they put up with it. The girl hid in a cupboard.

  When the monster woke up, the mother gave it the sack and it went away. It didn’t notice anything different about the sack, until it came to the first house in the next village.

  The monster went to the house and knocked on the door. When the door was opened, the monster said, ‘I’ve got a singing sack. If my sack sings to you, what will you give me to eat?’

  And someone answered, ‘A singing sack? I’ve never heard of such a thing! If your sack really can sing, I will give you some breakfast.’

  The monster lifted the sack. It growled, ‘Sing, singing sack, or I’ll give you a whack!’

  But nothing happened.

  The monster shook the sack and said again, ‘Sing, singing sack, or I’ll give you a whack!’ Still nothing happened, though the sack did wiggle a bit.

  ‘I think your sack is broken,’ sniggered the person on the doorstep, and she went back inside and shut the door.

  The monster was angry. It whacked the sack. Inside the sack, the dog barked and the car miaowed. ‘What kind of song is that?’ growled the monster. It opened the sack.

  Out jumped the cat and dog!

  The cat scratched the monster on its fat piggy nose. The dog bit the monster on its fat piggy bum. Then they ran away home. The monster rubbed its nose and its bum. Then it threw the sack away and stomped off home. Wherever that was!

  No one ever saw it again.

  The girl and her mother heard scratching at their door. They opened the door. Their cat and their dog were waiting there. ‘Well done, you two,’ said the mum. ‘Now we’ll get some peace, I think.’

  The monster never bothered them again.

  And the girl still has the special necklace made of shells that her mother gave her.

  A TALE FROM FRANCE

  Once upon a time there was a girl who lived with her mother in a little cottage on the edge of the forest. The mother baked some bread. She said to her daughter, ‘Take a warm loaf and this bottle of milk to your granny.’

  At the crossroads the girl met a wolf. ‘Where are you going?’ asked the wolf.

  ‘I’m taking some bread and milk to my granny,’ said the girl.

  ‘Which path will you choose?’ asked the wolf. ‘The path of needles or the path of pins?’

  ‘The path of needles,’ said the girl.

  ‘Then I’ll take the path of pins,’ said the wolf.

  The girl wandered along the path she had chosen, picking up the needles as she went.

  The wolf raced along the path of pins, until he came to the grandmother’s house in the middle of the forest. He burst in and ate up the grandmother! He climbed into her bed and pulled the covers over his long nose.

  The girl reached the cottage and knocked on the door.

  ‘Lift up the latch and come in,’ called the wolf.

  The girl went in and said, ‘Good morning, Granny. I’ve brought you a fresh loaf and a bottle of milk.’

  ‘Put the bread and milk on the shelf, next to that bottle of wine,’ said the wolf. ‘And have a drink of wine if you are thirsty.’

  The girl looked at the bottle. She hadn’t ever drunk wine. She wondered what it was like. But then the little cat curled up by the fire hissed, ‘Don’t drink that!’

  So she said, ‘No thanks, Granny, I’m not thirsty.’

  ‘Very well,’ said the wolf. ‘Take off your clothes and get into bed with me.’

  The girl took off her jumper. She said, ‘What shall I do with my jumper?’

  The wolf said, ‘Throw it into the fire, my dear. You won’t need it any more.’

  She took off her shoes. ‘What shall I do with my shoes?’

  The wolf said, ‘Throw them into the fire, my dear. You won’t need them any more.’

  She took off her socks. ‘What shall I do with my socks?’

  The wolf said, ‘Throw them into the fire, my dear. You won’t need them any more.’

  She said, ‘I’m not taking off anything else, Granny. I’ll be cold.’

  ‘All right then. Get into bed with me.’

  The girl got into bed. She looked at the wolf. She said, ‘Oh, Granny, how hairy you are!’

  ‘All the better to keep myself warm, my child.’

  ‘Oh, Granny, what big nails you have!’

  ‘All the better to scratch myself with, my child.’

  ‘Oh, Granny, what big shoulders you have!’

  ‘All the better to carry firewood, my child.’

  ‘Oh, Granny, what big ears you have!’

  ‘All the better to hear you with, my child.’

  ‘Oh, Granny, what a big nose you have!’

  ‘All the better to smell you with, my child.’

  ‘Oh, Granny, what a big mouth you have!’

  ‘All the better to gobble you up, my child.’

  The girl thought fast. She had been pretty sure, all along, that this was not her granny. Now she knew she had to get out of there. She said, ‘Oh, Granny, I need a wee!’

  ‘Do it in the bed,’ said the wolf.
r />   ‘Ugh, Granny, no, that’s nasty. Let me go outside and do it.’

  ‘All right, but be quick!’

  The wolf tied a rope to the girl’s foot and held tight to the other end, in case she tried to run away.

  The girl went outside. She tied her end of the rope to the plum tree in the yard, and ran away as fast as she could.

  The wolf waited and waited. Then he got impatient. He called out, ‘Why are you taking so long? Are you having a poo?’

  When there was no answer, he jumped out of bed and ran into the yard. He saw that the girl had escaped. He raced after her, and followed her home, but he was too late. He got to her house just as she slammed the door. The girl and her mother were safe.

  The wolf kept well away from them after that. He knew that the girl was too clever for him.

  A TALE FROM ITALY

  Once upon a time there was a farmer who had many fields of fruit trees. Her farm belonged to the king. Every autumn, the farmer paid rent to the king. The rent was four baskets of pears.

  But one year the farmer only had enough pears to fill three and a half baskets. So she asked her little daughter to climb into the fourth basket. Then she put the last few pears on top of the little girl, and the basket looked full. She took the baskets of pears to the palace and they were put in the larder.

  The farmer went home. The little girl stayed in the basket. When she got hungry, she ate some pears. After a while, the servants noticed that there weren’t so many pears in the baskets. They saw pips and stalks lying around. They looked in all the baskets and they found the little girl, so they took her to the king. The king said she could stay and work in the palace.

  The little girl grew up in the palace. Everyone called her Perina, because they had found her in a basket of pears. She was friendly and everyone liked her.

  The king’s son liked her: they were the same age and they played together, even though he was a prince and she was a servant. But this made the other servants jealous, so they decided to get Perina into trouble with the king. They made up a lie and told it to the king, ‘That girl boasts all the time. She says she can do anything. She says she can get the witch’s treasure from the house with the dangerous door.’

  ‘Hmm,’ thought the king. ‘It would be very nice to have a witch’s treasure.’ So he sent for Perina and said, ‘I want you to bring me the witch’s treasure from the house with the dangerous door.’

  Perina was surprised. ‘Sorry, your majesty,’ she said, ‘I don’t know where that is.’

  ‘I think you do!’ said the king. ‘So off you go, and don’t come back without it.’

  Perina didn’t have much choice, so she left the palace. At the palace gate her friend the prince called to her. He said, ‘I know what you’re looking for. If you can find the witch’s treasure and give it to me, it will break the spell that keeps me a prisoner in the palace. I hope you find the treasure.’

  ‘So do I,’ said Perina. She waved goodbye to the prince and began to walk.

  She walked and she walked until she was tired. She came to an apple tree, but she didn’t stop. She came to a cherry tree, but she didn’t stop. She came to a pear tree. She climbed up into the branches and went to sleep. When she woke up, a little old woman was sitting under the tree.

  The old woman said, ‘I know what you’re looking for. If you find the witch’s treasure and give it to the prince, it will make him free. I will help you find the treasure. You will need three things and a spell to help you on your way. Here are the three things you will need.’ She gave Perina a broom, a loaf of bread and a pack of butter. Then she taught her a spell and told her when she would need to use it.

  Perina thanked her and went on her way. She came to a bakery. Three women were trying to clean it. They were sweeping the crumbs and flour out of the oven. They were sweeping with their hair.

  ‘Why are you sweeping with your hair?’ asked Perina.

  ‘Because we haven’t got a broom,’ they said.

  ‘I’ve got a broom,’ said Perina. ‘You can have it.’

  ‘Oh, thank you!’ they said. ‘That is really helpful.’

  Perina gave them the broom and went on her way. She came to a fierce red river. There was no bridge and the river was too fast and too deep to swim.

  She knew she needed to cross the river, so she used the old woman’s spell.

  She said:

  Red river so fine,

  I must hurry along.

  Or else I would stop

  To hear your song.

  The river stopped running, and she was able to cross, without even getting her feet wet. When she reached the other side she turned and said:

  Red river so fine,

  You’ve been very kind.

  But now I must go

  There’s a treasure to find.

  The river started to run again and she went on her way. She climbed a hill and came to a grand gate at the beginning of a long path. Three fierce guard dogs were chained to the gate. They barked and growled at her.

  ‘Why are you barking and growling?’ asked Perina. The dogs didn’t answer in words, but she could see that they were hungry. ‘I’ve got some bread,’ said Perina. ‘You can have it.’ She broke the loaf of bread into three pieces and threw it to the dogs.

  They gobbled it all up and wagged their tails to say ‘Thank you’.

  She went on her way and followed the path. It led to a magnificent house. The door of the house was slamming shut and bursting open, over and over again. It looked really dangerous. It was making a horrible squeaking noise.

  ‘Why are you squeaking so loudly?’ asked Perina. The door didn’t answer, of course, but she could hear that the hinges needed greasing. ‘I’ve got some butter,’ said Perina. ‘You can have it.’

  She rubbed the butter on the door hinges until the door stopped slamming and banging and squeaking. It opened quietly and just stayed like that.

  Perina went in. In the middle of the room was a treasure chest. She picked it up and turned to go. The treasure chest started shouting, ‘Door, door, slam on her. Don’t let her get away!’

  ‘I won’t stop her,’ said the door, ‘because she greased my hinges, that no one’s looked after since goodness knows when.’

  Perina ran down the path and came to the gate. The treasure chest started shouting, ‘Dogs, dogs, bite her. Don’t let her get away!’

  ‘We won’t stop her,’ said the dogs, ‘because she gave us bread, when no one has fed us since goodness knows when.’

  Perina ran down the hill and came to the river. The treasure chest started shouting, ‘River, river, drown her. Don’t let her get away!’

  ‘I won’t stop her,’ said the river, ‘because she called me “Red river so fine”, which no one has said since goodness knows when.’

  The river stopped running, and she was able to cross without even getting her feet wet.

  She came to the bakery. The treasure chest started shouting, ‘Women, women, catch her. Don’t let her get away!’

  ‘We won’t stop her,’ said the women, ‘because she gave us a broom, the first one we have had since goodness knows when.’

  After that, the treasure chest didn’t say any more.

  When she was nearly home, Perina started wondering what was in the treasure chest. Even though she knew she shouldn’t, she opened the lid to have a peep. Out came a hen with all her golden chicks.

  Before Perina knew it, they had all got away, too fast for her to catch them. She set out to look for them. She passed the apple tree. They weren’t there. She passed the cherry tree. They weren’t there. She came to the pear tree, and there was the little old woman throwing corn to the hen and the golden chicks.

  ‘Shoo, shoo!’ said the old woman, and the hen and all her chicks went back into the treasure chest. Perina closed the lid to keep them safe.

  When Perina got back to the palace, the prince was waiting by the gate. He said to her, ‘When my father asks you what you want for a r
eward, ask for the box of coal in the cellar.’

  The king and all the servants were standing on the doorstep. Perina gave the king the chest with the hen and chicks.

  ‘Ask for whatever you want as your reward,’ said the king.

  ‘I would like the box of coal in the cellar, please,’ said Perina.

  They brought the box of coal. When she opened it, the prince jumped out.

  ‘Now the spell on me is broken and I can go wherever I want!’ he cried. ‘Thank you for rescuing me, Perina.’

  And they both lived happily ever after.

  A TALE FROM NIGERIA

  Ibanang lived in a little village with her mother and father, near to the edge of the forest. They always kept a close eye on her and wouldn’t let her play out on her own, even though she said to them, ‘I’m old enough now. All my friends are allowed. Why can’t I? I will be careful.’

  They wouldn’t tell her why.

  But this was the reason: they were afraid she would get lost in the forest.

  One day, Ibanang’s mother was at her market stall, selling vegetables. Her father came home from working in their fields, and he sat down to rest in the shade by the front door.

  Ibanang said, ‘Dad, can I play out?’

  He said, ‘Yes, you can play at the front of the house. I will watch you from here.’

  Soon, Ibanang could see that her father was feeling sleepy. He had been working hard, and it was hot. After a while, she heard him start to snore.

  She thought, ‘This is my chance to explore!’ She quietly opened the gate and went through the village. She crossed the fields. Her friends were playing there.

  They called to her, ‘Ibanang, come and play,’ but she didn’t stop. She thought, ‘I don’t know when I will get another chance to explore. I want to go further.’ She went across the fields and came to the edge of the forest.

  Two paths led into the forest. She looked at them. The one that went to the right looked hot and dusty. The one to the left seemed cool and shady. She took the left-hand path. She followed the path into the forest, and then she came to a bend. When she had gone round the bend, she saw a very strange thing. A tiny little drum was running towards her! It was beating itself with a tiny little stick and singing in a tiny little voice: