Beauty and the Beast audio book for kids

Beauty and the Beast

Jeanne-Marie LePrince de Beaumont

There was once a very rich merchant, who had six children, three sons, and three daughters; being a man of sense, he spared no cost for their education, but gave them all kinds of masters. His daughters were extremely handsome, especially the youngest. When she was little everybody admired her, and called her "The little Beauty;" so that, as she grew up, she still went by the name of Beauty, which made her sisters very jealous.

The youngest, as she was handsomer, was also better than her sisters. The two eldest had a great deal of pride, because they were rich. They gave themselves ridiculous airs, and would not visit other merchants' daughters, nor keep company with any but persons of quality. They went out every day to parties of pleasure, balls, plays, concerts, and so forth, and they laughed at their youngest sister, because she spent the greatest part of her time in reading good books.

As it was known that they were great fortunes, several eminent merchants made their addresses to them; but the two eldest said, they would never marry, unless they could meet with a duke, or an earl at least. Beauty very civilly thanked them that courted her, and told them she was too young yet to marry, but chose to stay with her father a few years longer.

All at once the merchant lost his whole fortune, excepting a small country house at a great distance from town, and told his children with tears in his eyes, they must go there and work for their living. The two eldest answered, that they would not leave the town, for they had several lovers, who they were sure would be glad to have them, though they had no fortune; but the good ladies were mistaken, for their lovers slighted and forsook them in their poverty. As they were not beloved on account of their pride, everybody said; they do not deserve to be pitied, we are very glad to see their pride humbled, let them go and give themselves quality airs in milking the cows and minding their dairy. But, added they, we are extremely concerned for Beauty, she was such a charming, sweet-tempered creature, spoke so kindly to poor people, and was of such an affable, obliging behavior. Nay, several gentlemen would have married her, though they knew she had not a penny; but she told them she could not think of leaving her poor father in his misfortunes, but was determined to go along with him into the country to comfort and attend him. Poor Beauty at first was sadly grieved at the loss of her fortune; "but," said she to herself, "were I to cry ever so much, that would not make things better, I must try to make myself happy without a fortune."

When they came to their country house, the merchant and his three sons applied themselves to husbandry and tillage; and Beauty rose at four in the morning, and made haste to have the house clean, and dinner ready for the family. In the beginning she found it very difficult, for she had not been used to work as a servant, but in less than two months she grew stronger and healthier than ever. After she had done her work, she read, played on the harpsichord, or else sung whilst she spun.

The Gift of the Magi audiobook (a Christmas story)

The Gift of the Magi

by O. Henry
(update: Download audiobook story reads by Shep O'Neal from VOA learning English).

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This story was originally published on Dec 10, 1905 in The New York Sunday World as "Gifts of the Magi." It was subsequently published as The Gift of the Magi in O. Henry's 1906 short story collection The Four Million.
We created The Gift of the Magi Study Guide for this story to benefit teachers and students.

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One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies. Pennies saved one and two at a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the butcher until one's cheeks burned with the silent imputation of parsimony that such close dealing implied. Three times Della counted it. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas.

There was clearly nothing left to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl. So Della did it. Which instigates the moral reflection that life is made up of sobs, sniffles, and smiles, with sniffles predominating.

While the mistress of the home is gradually subsiding from the first stage to the second, take a look at the home. A furnished flat at $8 per week. It did not exactly beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the look-out for the mendicancy squad.

In the vestibule below was a letter-box into which no letter would go, and an electric button from which no mortal finger could coax a ring. Also appertaining thereunto was a card bearing the name "Mr. James Dillingham Young."

Jack and the Beanstalk story for kids

Jack and the Beanstalk

Old English Fairy Tale - Joseph Jacobs rewrote 

Once upon a time, there lived a widow woman and her son, Jack, on their small farm in the country.

Every day, Jack would help his mother with the chores - chopping the wood, weeding the garden and milking the cow.  But despite all their hard work, Jack and his mother were very poor with barely enough money to keep themselves fed.

"What shall we do, what shall we do?" said the widow, one spring day.  "We don't have enough money to buy seed for the farm this year!  We must sell our cow, Old Bess, and with the money buy enough seed to plant a good crop."

"All right, mother," said Jack, "it's market-day today.  I'll go into town and sell Bessy."

So Jack took the cow's halter in his hand, walked through the garden gate and headed off toward town.  He hadn't gone far when he met a funny-looking, old man who said to him, "Good morning, Jack."

"Good morning to you," said Jack, wondering how the little, old man knew his name.

A Christmas story

Christmas stories for kids

History shows that December 25 was popularized as the date for Christmas, not because Christ was born on that day, but because it was already popular in pagan religious celebrations as the birthday of the sun. But could December 25 be the date of Christ's birth?istory shows that December 25 was popularized as the date for Christmas, not because Christ was born on that day, but because it was already popular in pagan religious celebrations as the birthday of the sun. But could December 25 be the date of Christ's birth?

It’s called the spirit of Christmas—the ringing of sleigh bells on a snowy night, Tiny Tim turning the heart of Scrooge in Charles Dickens’ famous novel A Christmas Carol, Santa Claus and flying reindeer.

For many, it seems, the birth of Jesus takes a backseat to mythology, packed shopping malls and greed. Every year, signs in front of neighborhood churches remind people to put Christ back into Christmas—or proclaim “Jesus is the reason for the season.”

But is He?

The story of Peter Pan

Peter Pan story for kids

by J. M. Barrie

In the nursery of the Darling home, a dog is the nurse, or nanny. Perhaps that is one reason there is so much joy there. Nurse Nana bathes the three children and gives them their suppers and in all ways watches over them. One night, Mrs. Darling, on Nana’s night off, sits with the children as they sleep. Drowsing, she is awakened by a slight draft from the window, and, looking around, she sees a strange boy in the room. She screams, and Nana, who has just returned home, lunges for the intruder, but the boy leaps out the window, leaving only his shadow behind. He had been accompanied also by a ball of light, but it too has escaped. Mrs. Darling rolls up the boy’s shadow and puts it in a drawer, thinking that the boy will come back for it sometime soon and thus may be caught.

When Mr. Darling is told of the incident he considers it a little silly; at present he is more concerned with finding a different nurse for the children. Believing that the dog, Nana, is getting too much authority in the household, Mr. Darling drags her out of the house and locks her up.

Thumbelina story for kids

THUMBELINA

Adapted by Sue Reid

Once there was a woman who longed for a child of her own. So she went to a witch to ask for help. ‘Old witch,’ she said. ‘I would dearly like to have a child of my own. Can you help me?’

‘Ah, that’s easy,’ said the witch. ‘Here’s a barleycorn for you. Take it home and plant it in a pot. Then wait and see what happens.’

‘Oh thank you,’ said the woman. She hurried home and planted the grain in a pot. At once a flower began to grow.

‘What a pretty flower,’ exclaimed the woman and she bent down to kiss the petals. As she did, the petals burst open.

There, sitting in the middle of the flower, was a little girl. ‘How tiny and delicate she is,’ said the woman. ‘Why, she is no bigger than the tip of my thumb. I will call her Thumbelina.’

Thumbelina was very contented. At night she slept under a rose petal in a polished walnut shell. By day she rowed herself across a bowl of water the woman had put out for her.

As she rowed she sang. She had the sweetest voice you’ve ever heard.

THE UGLY DUCKLING

                                             The Ugly Duckling audiobook for kids

                                 Tales  of Hans Christian Andersen

        Adapted by Jeff Capel

Summer had arrived in the countryside. The fields were green and the birds sang from morning until night. At the old manor house, the ducks spent their days dabbling about in the moat hoping that one of the children might arrive with some breadcrumbs or sitting by the water’s edge preening their feathers in the warm sunshine.

In a quiet place, hidden by long grass and leaves, a mother duck was welcoming her new babies into the world. One by one her eggs were hatching. She listened for the tap tap tap of little beaks against eggshell, then crack crack crack as the ducklings’ yellow heads peeped out, then ‘cheep’, ‘cheep’, ‘cheep’ as the youngsters looked around at their big new world. ‘You’re the prettiest ducklings I’ve ever seen,’ the mother said.

The Little Prince audiobook full

The Little Prince

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The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

The Little Prince Quotes (From www.goodreads.com)

“And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

tags: heart, importance, inspiration, secret, the-little-prince

6816 likes

“All grown-ups were once children... but only few of them remember it.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

tags: reminding

4221 likes

“What makes the desert beautiful,' said the little prince, 'is that somewhere it hides a well...”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

tags: inspirational

3596 likes

“It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

Download this audiobook: Link mediafire
Download ebook here
Watch more here: Youtube

THE BRAVE TIN SOLDIER

Hans Christian Andersen Audio books for children

Adapted by Sue Reid

Once there were twenty-five tin soldiers. They were all made out of the same tin kitchen spoon and were all alike – except for one. This soldier had only one leg. He was the last to be moulded and there had not been enough tin to give him two. But

he stood just as straight and proud as his brothers, in his smart red and blue uniform, his musket over one shoulder.

The soldiers were a birthday present for a little boy. The boy was very pleased with his soldiers and he took them out of their box and stood them up on a table. The

table was already covered with toys. The prettiest toy of all was a paper castle. It had little windows so you could see into the rooms and in front of it were tiny trees around a lake of glass. On its surface were little swans made out of wax. In the castle’s open doorway stood a girl.

THE WILD SWANS

THE WILD SWANS

Tales of Hans Christian Andersen

Adapted by Kate Stonham

In a far away land lived a king who had eleven sons and a daughter called Eliza. Bright and quick to learn, Eliza and her brothers worked hard at school, writing with diamond pencils on pages of gold. Life was peaceful and happy.

Until one day, everything changed. The castle bells rang out, for the King was getting married to a new wife. ‘My dears, do have some wedding cake,’ said the new Queen with a horrid smile. But the children’s plates were covered not with cake, but sand. From that moment, Eliza and her brothers knew that the Queen was wicked – and wanted to get rid of them.

Just one week later, the Queen sent Eliza to live with a poor peasant and his wife. As for the brothers, she told such dreadful lies about them that the King decided they must leave the castle at once.

‘You are doomed to spend the rest of your lives as great, ugly, silent birds!’ cried the
Queen. ‘Now fly away and be gone with you!’

The Gingerbread Man story for kids

The Gingerbread Man

ONE day, the cook went into the kitchen to make some gingerbread. She took some flour and water, and treacle and ginger, and mixed them all well together, and she put in some more water to make it thin, and then some more flour to make it thick, and a little salt and some spice, and then she rolled it out into a beautiful, smooth, dark-yellow dough.

Then she took the square tins and cut out some square cakes for the little boys, and with some round tins she cut out some round cakes for the little girls, and then she said, “I’m going to make a little gingerbread man for little Bobby.” So she took a nice round lump of dough for his body, and a smaller lump for his head, which she pulled out a little for the neck. Two other lumps were stuck on beneath for the legs, and were pulled out into proper shape, with feet and toes all complete, and two still smaller pieces were made into arms, with dear little hands and fingers.

THE TWELVE DANCING PRINCESSES

THE TWELVE DANCING PRINCESSES

ONCE upon a time there lived in the village of Montignies-sur-Roc a little cow-boy, without either father or mother. His real name was Michael, but he was always called the Star Gazer, because when he drove his cows over the commons to seek for pasture, he went along with his head in the air, gaping at nothing.

As he had a white skin, blue eyes, and hair that curled all over his head, the village girls used to cry after him, `Well, Star Gazer, what are you doing?' and Michael would answer, `Oh, nothing,' and go on his way without even turning to look at them.
The fact was he thought them very ugly, with their sun-burnt necks, their great red hands, their coarse petticoats and their wooden shoes. He had heard that somewhere in the world there were girls whose necks were white and whose hands were small, who were always dressed in the finest silks and laces, and were called princesses, and while his companions round the fire saw nothing in the flames but common everyday fancies, he dreamed that he had the happiness to marry a princess.

The Little Mermaid audiobook for kids

The Little Mermaid

Hans Christian Andersen

(1836)

Download Audiobook: https://goo.gl/YLCVM1 (link mediafire no skip ads, URL shortener by Google)
Far out in the ocean, where the water is as blue as the prettiest cornflower, and as clear as crystal, it is very, very deep; so deep, indeed, that no cable could fathom it: many church steeples, piled one upon another, would not reach from the ground beneath to the surface of the water above. There dwell the Sea King and his subjects. We must not imagine that there is nothing at the bottom of the sea but bare yellow sand. No, indeed; the most singular flowers and plants grow there; the leaves and stems of which are so pliant, that the slightest agitation of the water causes them to stir as if they had life. Fishes, both large and small, glide between the branches, as birds fly among the trees here upon land. In the deepest spot of all, stands the castle of the Sea King. Its walls are built of coral, and the long, gothic windows are of the clearest amber. The roof is formed of shells, that open and close as the water flows over them. Their appearance is very beautiful, for in each lies a glittering pearl, which would be fit for the diadem of a queen.

The Secret Garden audiobook for children

The Secret Garden

by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Brunett created an inspirational tale of transformation and empowerment. Mary Lennox, a sickly and contrary little girl, is orphaned to dim prospects in a gloomy English manor - her only friend is a bed-ridden boy named Colin whose prospects may be dimmer than hers. But when Mary finds the key to a Secret Garden, the magical powers of transformation fall within her reach.

Download audiobook: (Link mediafire)

The Little Match - Seller

The Little Match-Seller

by

Hans Christian Andersen

(1846)

Audiobook free download: Link mediafire

IT was terribly cold and nearly dark on the last evening of the old year, and the snow was falling fast. In the cold and the darkness, a poor little girl, with bare head and naked feet, roamed through the streets. It is true she had on a pair of slippers when she left home, but they were not of much use. They were very large, so large, indeed, that they had belonged to her mother, and the poor little creature had lost them in running across the street to avoid two carriages that were rolling along at a terrible rate. One of the slippers she could not find, and a boy seized upon the other and ran away with it, saying that he could use it as a cradle, when he had children of his own. So the little girl went on with her little naked feet, which were quite red and blue with the cold. In an old apron she carried a number of matches, and had a bundle of them in her hands. No one had bought anything of her the whole day, nor had anyone given her even a penny. Shivering with cold and hunger, she crept along; poor little child, she looked the picture of misery. The snowflakes fell on her long, fair hair, which hung in curls on her shoulders, but she regarded them not.