animals

The Zoo that Bit Back I told you a story once before called The Monkey Who Loved Chocolate. Bertie has asked me to tell you what happened to Theo the Monkey. You may recall that he escaped to go in search of chocolate, but later returned to the zoo. He had trouble settling down again, but after not too long he slipped back into the old routine of zoo life. Life in the zoo was not as exciting as on the outside, but it had its attractions. The daily menus catered for everyone’s tastes. Some liked berries, others liked bananas. Some hungered for steak, others for fresh termites.

This story is called The Crocodile and the Monkey, a traditional story from India, retold by W.H.D. Rouse. This is a LibraryCall recording. Once upon a time, there was an enormous river that was both deep and wide. In this river there lived a crocodile. I don’t know whether you have ever seen a crocodile, but you should know that they’re very long, twice as long as your bed. They’re covered with hard green and yellow scales. They have flat, wide snouts, and huge jaws with hundreds of sharp teeth.

Este cuento se llama Los murciélagos y los coatíes escrito por Esopo. Esta es una grabación de LibraryCall. Un día, cayó un murciélago a tierra y fue apresado por un coatí hambriento. El coatí se humedeció los labios y se preparó para comerse el murciélago. Viéndose próximo a morir, el murciélago suplicó por su vida. “¡Por favor no me comas!” "No podría dejarte ir", dijo el coatí. "Desde que nací, he sido enemigo de los pájaros". “Pero no soy un pájaro sino un ratón”, replicó el murciélago. "¡Ah!" dijo el coatí. "No como ratones".

Este cuento se llama El lobo y el perro dormido, escrito por Esopo. Esta es una grabación de LibraryCall. Dormía plácidamente un perro en el portal de una casa. Pasó un lobo hambriento. Al ver al perro dormido, pensó: "Ahh, aquí está mi próxima comida". El lobo se abalanzó sobre el perro, listo para darse un festín. "Te ruego que no me comas", dijo el perro atrapado. “¡Mírame! En este momento no soy más que huesos. ¡Espera un poco! Mis dueños pronto celebrarán su boda. Durante la fiesta, comeré muchos alimentos ricos lo que hará que engorde rápidamente.

Este cuento se llama El león tonto y el conejo inteligente, una fabula moral de Panchatantra, originalmente escrito en sánscrito. Esta es una grabación de LibraryCall. Hace mucho tiempo, había una selva en la antigua India llena de hermosas plantas y árboles, flores y frutas. Muchos animales vivían felices allí. Había ciervos, monos, conejos y jabalíes en esta selva. También había un león feroz que había protegido a los animales en el pasado.

This story is called Henny Penny, a traditional tale adapted by Madeline Walton-Hadlock and read by Ryan Aoto. This is a LibraryCall recording. One hot, dull summer day, Henny-Penny was sitting under an oak tree in the shade when—whack!—an acorn fell from a branch and hit her smack on the head. “Ouch!” said Henny-Penny. Not seeing the acorn, she assumed the worst. “Uh-oh!” she said. “The sky is falling! I must go and tell the king!” So, she went along and she went along and she went along until she met Rooster-Wooster who was sitting on a fence, singing a lazy song.

This story is called The Fox and the Stork, a traditional fable by Aesop, read by Molly. This is a LibraryCall adaptation and recording. A long time ago, when animals lived in harmony, the Fox and the Stork were best friends. They spent many wonderful moments together. Some days, they set off on nature explorations, discovering hidden treasures in the forest. Other times, they gathered in the evening and sang lively tunes.

Este cuento se llama La zorra y el cuervo gritón escrito por Esopo. Esta es una grabación de LibraryCall. Un día, un cuervo robó a unos pastores un pedazo de carne y se retiró a un árbol. Un zorro lo vio, y queriendo apoderarse de esa carne, comenzó a halagar al cuervo, alabando sus elegantes proporciones y su gran belleza.

This is a story about a very unusual boy, and an even more unusual monkey. The boy was out of the ordinary as boys go, because he didn’t like chocolate. No, not at all. Not even one little bit. And I must say, I’ve never met a boy like that. Not in my entire life.

Once upon a time there was an old man, an old woman, and a little boy. One morning the old woman made some gingerbread in the shape of a man. She added icing for his hair and clothes, and little blobs of dough for his nose and eyes. When she put him in the oven to bake, she said to the little boy, "You watch the gingerbread man while your grandfather and I go out to work in the garden." So the old man and the old woman went out and began to dig potatoes, and left the little boy to tend the oven. And he started to day dream, and didn’t watch it all of the time.