ReadWhy the Spruce and the Pine Stay Green
A little bird with a hurt wing looks for a place to winter: the proud trees send her away, but the spruce, the pine and the juniper take her in.
Short stories
Sometimes there are only a few minutes before lights out, or you are on the road, or your child can barely keep their eyes open. These short bedtime stories take up to 5 minutes to read aloud. Each one shows the age, so it is easy to choose for a toddler or an older child.
Stories
- Read
ReadThe Little Fox and the Pushy Wolf
A clever little fox swapped an empty pie for a calf, but a pushy wolf broke her sleigh, ate the calf and paid for it with the tip of his tail.
ReadTimko and the Letter to Saint Nicholas
Before his winter sleep, Timko the hedgehog draws a letter to Saint Nicholas and asks for a gift not for himself but for his little sister Lily.
ReadThe Cat and the Rooster
Cat goes off for firewood and begs Rooster not to look out of the window, but the fox sings so sweetly that Rooster cannot help it.
ReadThe Straw Ox
An old man wove a straw ox for his wife and smeared its side with tar, and a bear, a wolf, a fox and a hare stuck to it one after another.
ReadThe Starry Boat
Olesya does not want to sleep, so a moon-boat takes her sailing across the night sky, where the clouds, the stars and the breeze are already dozing off.
ReadRyaba the Hen
Ryaba the hen laid a golden egg. Grandpa and Grandma could not break it, but a mouse flicked her tail, and soon the whole village was sad.
ReadThe Princess and the Pea
A prince searched the whole world for a real princess, and it was the old queen who recognised her, with the help of one tiny pea.
ReadThe Turnip
Grandad Andrushka grows a turnip as big as his head but can’t pull it up alone, so he calls Granny, Minka, Finka, Varvarka and a mouse. Who won’t tumble?
ReadThe Wolf and the Seven Little Goats
The Wolf ate chalk and dusted his paw with flour so the kids would open the door, but the smallest hid in a clock, and Mother Goat saved them all.
ReadTimko and the Littlest One
Timko’s baby sister Lily is born, and he wishes Mom were only his. Then it turns out that Lily already knows her big brother.
ReadTimko and the Big Potty
Timko the hedgehog can use his small potty, but the big one, like Mom’s and Dad’s, scares him, until Dad takes out a piece of string.
ReadTimko Goes to Kindergarten
Little hedgehog Timko goes to Acorn Kindergarten for the first time: he is sad in the morning, but Mom promises to come after lunch and nap.
ReadTimko at the Doctor’s
Timko the hedgehog scares his little sister Lily with spooky tales about the doctor, then goes for a check-up and a vaccine with Doctor Beaver himself.
ReadGrandma’s Button
In Grandma’s box Mirko finds an old blue button with a chip in it, and with it the stories of his great-grandfather, his mum and one old secret.
ReadThe Boy Who Cried Wolf
Twice a shepherd boy calls the villagers to save his sheep from a wolf just for a joke, and when the wolf really comes, nobody believes him.
ReadKolobok, the Runaway Bun
Rosy Kolobok rolls away from Grandpa and Granny, the Bunny, the Wolf and the Bear, but the sly Fox catches him with sweet praise.
ReadThe Ants and the Grasshopper
All summer the ants carry grain, while the Grasshopper just plays his little fiddle. Then winter comes, and the hungry Grasshopper knocks at the anthill.
ReadRexik and the Lost Egg
Rexik finds a lonely egg by the river and guards it with Trika for many days, until he learns who is living inside.
ReadThe Three Billy Goats Gruff
Three goats called Gruff cross a bridge to a green mountain, while a hungry troll under the bridge waits for the biggest one.
ReadThe Bramble Goat
A fibbing goat takes over a hare’s little house, and no wolf, bear or ox can drive her out, until a tiny crayfish comes along.
ReadThe Lion and the Mouse
A Lion laughs at a tiny Mouse and lets her go, but later she chews through the ropes of a net and saves him.
ReadA Pillow for the Moon
The Moon just can’t fall asleep, so little Sonya and the animals sew him a soft pillow out of a little cloud.
ReadRexik and Trika
Noisy Trika asks Rexik to play hide-and-seek, but she just can’t find him, even though he’s standing right beside her the whole time.
ReadRexik, Trika and the Big Rain
Rexik’s and Trika’s dads compete to build the best rain shelter, but the best one turns out to be a bumpy rock that wasn’t there yesterday.
ReadThe Snail Who Carried the Moon Home
A little snail finds the Moon in a puddle and carries it through the night garden back to the sky, helped by a firefly, a cricket and a moth.
ReadThe Three Little Pigs
Three little pigs build houses of straw, sticks and bricks. When the wolf comes, only the brick one stands, so two brothers must build again.
ReadGoldilocks and the Three Bears
A little girl named Goldilocks wanders into a cottage in the woods, tastes the bears' porridge, breaks a little chair and falls asleep in someone else’s bed.
ReadThe Shoemaker and the Elves
Someone secretly makes boots for a poor shoemaker at night; before Christmas he and his wife discover who, and make the tiny helpers warm gifts.
ReadWhy the Bear Has a Short Tail
A sly fox teaches a bear to fish with his tail through a hole in the ice, and ever since, all bears have had stubby little tails.
ReadTimko and the First Snow
Timko the hedgehog has never seen snow, so Granny Owl promises to call him the moment the very first snowflake falls.
ReadThe Hare and the Hedgehog
A boastful Hare laughs at the Hedgehog’s short legs, but the clever Hedgehog and his wife beat him in a race.
ReadThe Little Cloud Who Lost Her Rain
A little cloud searches for her lost rain, and a breeze, a sunflower and a frog help her give a thirsty garden a drink.
ReadThe Fox and the Crane
The Fox serves the Crane porridge on a flat plate, the Crane serves her fish soup in a narrow jug, and each goes home hungry.
ReadSweet Porridge
A kind old woman gives a girl a magic pot, but her mother forgets the word that stops it, and porridge floods the whole town.
ReadThe Mitten
Grandpa drops a mitten in the forest, and the animals move in one by one, until a big bear comes along.
ReadThe Hedgehog and the Little Lantern
Little Timko the hedgehog is afraid of the dark, but one evening he has to walk home by himself with a little lantern.