Little Red Riding Hood

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who always wore a red cape with a red hood. Her grandmother had sewn it for her, and she loved it so much that everyone called her Little Red. One morning her mother said, "Grandmother has a cold. Please take her this basket of fresh bread and honey. Stay on the path, and don't stop to talk to strangers." "I promise," said Little Red, and she set off with a hop and a skip.

The path wound through the forest, under tall green trees. Birds sang. Butterflies danced. Little Red hummed a little song. Then, from behind a tree, out stepped a big grey wolf with a long nose and a sly smile. "Good morning, little girl," he said, in his sweetest voice. "Where are you going with that lovely basket?" Little Red forgot her promise. "To my grandmother's house, at the end of this path," she said.

"How nice," said the wolf. "But look at all these beautiful flowers! Wouldn't your grandmother love a bunch?" Little Red looked. Red poppies, blue cornflowers, yellow buttercups! "Oh, she would," said Little Red. So she stepped off the path to pick them. And while she was picking, the wolf ran off, quick as the wind, by the shortest way to Grandmother's house.

Knock, knock! "Who is there?" called Grandmother. "It's Little Red," said the wolf, in a squeaky voice. But Grandmother was a clever old lady. She peeped through the window and saw a big grey tail. "That is no little girl!" she whispered. Quick as she could, she hid in the big wooden wardrobe. The wolf came in, found the bed empty, and put on Grandmother's nightcap and glasses. Then he climbed into the bed and pulled the blanket up to his nose.

Soon Little Red arrived with her flowers. "Grandmother?" she said. "Come closer, my dear," said a deep voice from the bed. Little Red came closer. "Grandmother, what big ears you have!" "All the better to hear you with." "Grandmother, what big eyes you have!" "All the better to see you with." "Grandmother, what big teeth you have!" And just then, Little Red saw the big grey tail sticking out from under the blanket.

"You're not my grandmother!" cried Little Red. "Help!" At that very moment, the wardrobe door flew open. "Help!" called Grandmother too. A woodcutter who was passing by heard them and ran inside. "Out you go, wolf!" he shouted, in a great big voice. The wolf was so surprised that he jumped right out of the window, nightcap and all, and ran away into the deep forest. He never came back again.

Grandmother came out of the wardrobe and hugged Little Red tight. "Are you all right, my darling?" "Yes, Grandmother. Are you?" "I am now," said Grandmother, laughing. They thanked the kind woodcutter, and they all sat down together. They ate the fresh bread with sweet honey and drank warm tea. And Grandmother put the flowers in a jar, where they looked very pretty indeed.

When it was time to go home, Little Red walked along the path, and she did not step off it once. "From now on," she said to herself, "I will always remember my promise, and I won't tell strangers where I'm going." When she got home, her mother gave her a big hug. And that night, Little Red fell asleep in her cosy bed, safe and sound, dreaming of flowers and honey. Good night.