The Ugly Duckling

This story is called The Ugly Duckling, written by Hans Christian Anderson, and read by Corrie Legge. This is a LibraryCall adaptation and recording. The countryside was lovely just then. It was summer and the wheat was golden, and the oats were still green. Around the field and meadow lay great woods and a deep lake. Under the dock, in a cozy little spot among the reeds, a duck was sitting on her nest. Her ducklings were just about to hatch, but she was getting tired of sitting, for she’d been there such a long time. And she had very few visitors, as the other ducks liked swimming around in the lake better than waddling up to sit under the dock and talk with her. At last, one egg after another began to crack. “Cheep, cheep!” they said. All the chicks had come to life, and were poking their wet little heads out of their shells. “Quack! quack!” the mama duck responded. “Wow, what a big world!” said the ducklings. They now had much more room to move about than when they were inside their eggshells. “And this is just a small part of the world!” said the mama duck. “It stretches a long way on the other side of the garden, but I have never been as far as that!” She took a good look at the nest. “Has everyone hatched?” No, the biggest egg was still there. “How long will this take?” thought the duck, settling herself on the nest again. “Well, how are you getting on?” said an old duck who had come by to pay her a visit. “This one last egg is taking a long time,” answered the mama duck, “the shell won’t crack. But look at the others! Aren’t they the most beautiful ducklings you’ve ever seen!” “Let me look at the egg that won’t crack,” said the old duck. “It may be a turkey’s egg! Let me see it! Yes, it is a turkey’s egg! You just leave it alone and teach the other children to swim.” “I will sit on it a little longer.I’ve sat so long already.” “Suit yourself,” said the old duck, and she went away. At last, the big egg cracked. “Cheep, cheep!” said the young one as he tumbled out. How big and strange looking he was! Mama duck looked carefully at him. “That is a monstrously big duckling,” she said. “None of the others look like him at all. Could it really be a turkey chick? Well, we’ll soon find out when I teach the children to swim.” The next day was glorious. The mother duck and her whole family went down to the lake. She jumped into the water. “Quack, quack!” she called, and one after the other, each duckling plopped in after her. The water dashed over their heads, but they came up again and floated beautifully. Even the big gray one swam around easily. “That’s no turkey,” thought the mama duck. “He swims just fine.” “Quack, quack!” called the mama duck. “Now come with me and I will take you to the duck yard where we eat. Keep close to me at all times so you don’t get trampled, and beware of the cat!” When they arrived at the duck yard, they followed their mama’s orders. But the other ducks looked at them and said in loud voices, “Look over there! Look how ugly that big duckling is!” One of the meaner ducks flew at him and bit him in the neck. “Leave him alone,” said the mama. “He isn’t doing any harm. He may look a bit strange, but he’s gentle, and he swims as beautifully as any of the others. It’s just that he stayed in his egg too long.” She patted his neck. “I believe he will be very strong and make his way in the world.” But things in the duck yard only grew worse and worse. The poor duckling was chased, pecked, and harassed by all of them, even by his brothers and sisters, and sometimes even by his mother. One day, when he could take no more, he decided to fly right over the hedge and away from the duck yard.. After flying for a while, he came to a rest in a vast marsh where wild ducks lived. He curled up among the tall grass, and cried himself to sleep. In the morning, the wild ducks flew up to inspect their visitor. “What sort of duck are you?” they inquired, as the duckling turned from side to side and greeted them as well as he could. “You don’t look quite right,” said the wild ducks; “but that doesn’t matter much to us.” And they left him alone. The duckling hid away in the marsh for two days. Finally, on the third day, he thought, “I can’t hide here forever. It’s time for me to be brave and go out into the wide world.” So away he went. He floated on water and flew through the sky, and everywhere he went, the other creatures avoided him. Soon it was autumn, and the leaves in the woods turned yellow and brown, danced in the wind, and fell to the ground. Then winter arrived, and the clouds hung heavy with snow and hail. The poor duckling shivered. One cold evening, when the sun was just setting in its wintry splendor, the duckling saw a flock of large, graceful birds appear from out of the bushes. He had never seen anything so beautiful. Their long white necks shone in the last rays of sunlight. They were swans! Giving a peculiar cry, they spread their magnificent wings and flew away, headed to warmer lands and open seas. The ugly duckling's heart was filled with a strange feeling as he circled around in the water, his eyes fixated on the magnificent birds above him. In a sudden and unexpected moment, a cry escaped from his mouth, a sound so piercing that he startled himself. It was as if something deep within him was calling to those amazing creatures. But away they flew. Time passed, and at last, the sun began to shine warmly again. It was spring! The ugly duckling was in the marsh, floating among the rushes. He raised his wings to welcome the sun, and he was surprised to find that they flapped with much greater strength than he expected. Before he knew it, he had flown a great distance. He found himself flying over a large garden around a small lake, where the apple trees were in bloom, and the air was scented with lilacs. In the distance ahead, he saw three stunning swans coming out of a thicket. With rustling feathers, they swam lightly over the water. The duckling recognized the majestic birds, and he was overcome with sadness. “They’re so beautiful, and I am so ugly. If they see me, they’ll probably try to peck me to pieces. Yet I feel drawn to them. Why do I want to join them? I can’t help it.” So he landed in the water and not far from the swans, but hesitated, feeling both eager and afraid. They saw him, and started to swim towards him. He bowed his head toward the lake and waited to be bullied by the swans. But as he looked down he saw his own reflection in the water, and was shocked by what he saw. He was no longer a clumsy, awkward gray bird. He had grown into an elegant swan! The other swans swam around him and greeted him happily, inviting him into their flock. At first a sense of shyness overcame him, and he hid his head under his wing. He had never felt kindness and acceptance before, and he didn’t know what to do. But the warm sun shone down on him and he gathered his courage. He fluffed his feathers, raised his slender neck, and cried joyfully from the depths of his heart, “I never dreamed of such happiness, when I thought I was an ugly duckling.” This has been The Ugly Duckling. Written by Hans Christian Anderson, and read by Corrie Legge. This has been a LibraryCall adaptation and recording.