PRÁCTICA DE LA PRONUNCIACIÓN DEL INGLÉS

STORIES FOR RETELLING 2024

STORY #1: The Listening King

Once upon a time there lived a king who liked to walk in disguise about the streets of the
city, listening at people’s doors. It was, in fact, his favorite amusement. Other kings of that
land had been fond of war or hunting or fishing or playing games, but there had never
before been one who liked to listen at doors. For this reason, he was called the listening
king. “It is the greatest fun I have,” he often said to his counselors. “Being a king would
be a stupid life if one didn’t have some diversion.” Now in that city there lived a man of
humble station who had three pretty daughters. One evening the king passed his house
and stopped at the door to listen. “Whom would you like to marry?” one of the girls was
asking. It happened to be the youngest one. “I’d like to marry the royal baker,” the eldest
sister replied. “Why?” asked the youngest one. “So that I might always eat fresh bread,”
was the reply. “Whom would you like to marry?” the youngest sister asked the middle
one. “I’d like to marry the royal meat cook so that I might always eat meat roasted just to
a turn,” was her answer. “Whom would you like to marry?” asked the eldest and the middle
sister together. “I’d like to marry the listening king himself,” was the reply which their
youngest sister made. “Silly! Silly!” cried her two sisters. “We have perhaps a chance of
getting our wishes, but what chance have you?” “If one wishes for nothing splendid one
never gets anything splendid,” replied the youngest sister with a blush which made her
look very charming to the king as he peeped through the keyhole. The king went away
with a shrewd smile upon his face. The next day he sent for the three sisters to come to
the palace. They were very much frightened. “Well,” said the king to the eldest girl, “do
you want to marry the royal baker?” “Yes, your majesty,” she replied. “I have no
objections.” The king turned to her sister and asked if she would like to marry the meat
cook. The sister agreed as well. The youngest girl was blushing like a rose and her heart
was thumping so that she could scarcely breathe. The king smiled. “Would you like to
marry the listening king?” he asked her gently. She said yes in a voice so low that the
king could hardly hear her. “Very well,” said the king. “I’ll have all these weddings
celebrated at once.” Thus it happened that the two eldest sisters got their wishes and
married the royal baker and the royal meat cook, while the youngest one, for wishing
something splendid, wedded the listening king himself.

STORY # 2: The Girl and the Snake

Once upon a time there was a girl who had to go to the wood and drive the cattle home;
but she didn’t find the herd and lost her way instead. She came to a great hill that had
gates and doors and she went in. There stood a table covered with all sorts of good things
to eat. And there stood a bed as well, and in the bed lay a great snake. The snake said
to the girl: "Sit down, if you choose! Eat, if you choose! Come and lie down on the bed, if
you choose! But if you don’t choose, then don’t do so." So, the girl did nothing at all. At
last, the snake said: "Some people are coming now and they want you to dance with
them. But don’t go along with them." Some people arrived and they wanted to dance with
the girl; but she wouldn’t pay attention to them. Then they began to eat’n drink; but the
girl left the hill and went home. The following day she went to the wood again and looked
for the cattle, didn’t find them, lost her way again, and came to the same hill. This time
she also entered, and found everything as it had been the first time, the well-spread table
and the bed with the snake in it. And the snake said to her, as before: "Sit down, if you
choose! Eat, if you choose! Come, and lie down in the bed if you choose! But if you don’t
choose, then don’t do so!. Now a great many more people are coming and they will want
to dance with you, but don’t go with them”. The snake had scarcely concluded before a
great many people arrived, who began to dance, eat’n drink; but the girl didn’t keep them
much company, instead she left the hill and went home. On the third day when she once
more went to the wood, everything happened exactly as on the first and second day. The
snake invited her to eat’n drink, and this time she did so, with great appetite. Then the
snake told her to lie down beside him and the girl obeyed. Then the snake said: "Put your
arms around me!" She did so. "And now hug me," said the snake, "but if you are afraid,
put your apron between us." The girl did so, and in a moment the snake was turned into
a marvellously handsome youth, who was a real prince, bewitched in the form of a snake
by magic spells, and now delivered by the girl's courage. Then both of them went away
and there was nothing further heard of them.

STORY # 3: The story of Ghillie Dhu

Glasgow used to be surrounded by vast woods many years ago and in those woods there
lived a lone fairy, one who was exiled from the fairy court and abandoned in the forest:
his name was Ghillie Dhu.
On one warm afternoon in mid-summer, a young girl Jessie Macrae went wandering in
the nearby forest. She spent many hours adventuring and exploring the trees, but when
evening fell, she realized that she had lost her way. Fear began to descend upon the poor
girl as she attempted to find her way through the forest. An hour later, tired, hungry and
foot sore, she sat beneath a large fir tree and began to weep. Suddenly from behind the
tree, a calm voice said, “Why do you cry, girl?”
She jumped at the sound and looked round to see a strange elf-like creature standing
before her. The creature had long hair, black as a raven’s wing and hazel brown eyes
which Jessie described as soft and kind. With the creatures’ strange smile, she could see
it had hundreds of small sharp teeth. If Jessie had seen this creature at a distance, she
would have run screaming, but now up close, she could tell there was no malice in the
creature’s heart. Ghillie Dhu wore a great cloak of moss and leaves. He bore such a
resemblance to his background that Jessie thought he could be the very manifestation of
the forest itself.
When Ghillie Dhu asked “Why do you cry, girl?” one more time, Jessi answered, “I have
lost my way and night will soon be upon us”. Ghillie Dhu told the girl not to worry and
explained that the forest was his home and that he knew every path in it. Jessie told
Ghillie Dhu that she lived in the city of Glasgow to which the creature replied that she
would be home before the stars fell upon them.
As they walked through the forest, Jessie noticed that the trees moved their branches to
make way for them and thought of that as a sign of respect. When they reached the girl’s
village, she wanted to thank the stranger for his help, but didn’t know what to call him.
The creature said as he walked away, “I am Ghillie Dhu, the dark-haired servant of the
woods. If you are ever lost again, I shall come to your aid.”

STORY # 4: Kelpies in Inverness

Every lake in Scotland, however beautiful, has its dark cold depths and every lake in
Inverness has its kelpie, but it's easy to forget all those dangers on a sunny afternoon.
One sunny Sunday after lunch Fergus, one of the blacksmith's children, decided to invite
his brothers and sisters to play hide and seek by the lake near their village.
While Fergus was carving his initials on a tree; the youngest sister Flora covered her eyes
and counted, “ninety-nine… a hundred! Coming ready or not!” Flora felt confused when
found a beautiful white horse instead of her siblings.
Her sisters and brothers rushed out of their hiding places to look at the most perfect horse
they'd ever seen.”Who wants to go for a ride?” asked Fergus. They all said yes except for
Flora who was looking at wet prints on the dry ground.
Then Fergus lifted Marty then Magnus onto the gleaming horse’s back. “There's room for
more! This horse is bigger than I thought.” He lifted Agnes up. “There's still space! We
can all go for a ride.” Fergus lifted Archie up. “What about you, Flora?” But Flora said, “I
think that horse is getting bigger so you can all fit on comfortably.” “Oh, don't be daft!
Come and have fun with the rest of us!”
Flora shook her head, “I think that horse came out of the lake,” Flora informed the rest of
the crowd worried there might be something harmful about the horse. I think you should
all get off. The horse started to walk towards the lake. Fergus grabbed the mean to make
the horse move away from the water, but the horse ignored him and kept walking towards
the lake. Soon children noticed that they were all stuck, they couldn’t jump off the horse.
“I know what that horse is! It's a kelpie! It’s tricked you onto its back, but now he's taking
you into the lake to drown you and eat you!” As the horse splashed into the shallow water,
Flora’s brothers and sisters screamed. “Don't panic!” called Flora, “let me think!” When
Flora watched the horse carry her family steadily away, she took a deep breath and went
on the tall greased stone. Her hand touched the old carvings, she bent down the biggest
carving and discovered the kelpie secret weakness: it can't stand metal.
The infant yelled as loud as she could, “Do you have anything metal?” As the brothers
and sisters confessed they had all forgotten their pens and combs back home, Magnus
yelled, “I've got a key.” Soon the key hit the horse's flank. The kelpie screamed and reared
high in the air and Marty, Magnus, Agnes and Archie all fell off, but as the horse crashed
back down, Fergus was still stuck with his hands tangled in the mean.

STORY # 6: The Road to Castle Dracula

About seven years ago, some strange and terrible things happened to me. Many of my
dear friends were in danger, too. At last, we’ve decided to tell the story of that terrible
time. Part of my work is to find houses in England for rich people who live in foreign
countries. At the beginning of 1875, I received a letter from Transylvania, a country in
Eastern Europe. The letter was from a rich man called Count Dracula. He wanted to buy
a house near London. The Count asked me to find him an old house near London with a
large garden. The price of the house was not important. I found him a large, old house to
the East of London. I wrote to the Count and he agreed to buy it. There were many papers
which he had to sign. To my surprise, Count Dracula invited me to visit him in his castle
in Transylvania.” Bring the papers with you”, he wrote in his letter. I can sign them here. I
was very busy and did not want to go. Transylvania was far away and few English people
had been there. There was another reason, too. I was going to get married in the autumn
to my darling Mina. I did not want to leave England until we were married, but Mina said
that I should go. “The Count is a rich man”, she said. “You may be able to do more
business with him. You could travel most of the way by train. In two weeks you’ll be home
again”. So I accepted Count Dracula’s invitation. I left England at the end of April. Mina
gave me a book about Transylvania to read on the train. On the morning of May 4, I
reached Bistritz, a small town in Transylvania. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining
on the great Carpathian Mountains. Somewhere, high up on those mountains, was Castle
Dracula, where the Count lived. The coach from Bistritz would take me to the Borgo Pass.
There the Count’s carriage would meet me. The coach left from the inn in Bistritz at 3
o’clock. I had three hours to wait. I decided to have a meal. Nobody in the inn spoke
English but the inn-keeper spoke some German. He welcomed me and I was soon eating
a good meal. the inn was very crowded. I watched all the people in their brightly-coloured
clothes. There were speaking in languages I could not understand. I drank some more
wine and called the inn-keeper. “What can you tell me about Count Dracula”, I asked him.
“Have you ever seen his castle?” The inn-keeper walked away without answering my
questions. All the people in the inn stopped talking. They looked at me in fear and
surprise. Then, they all began to talk at the same time. I heard the name Dracula and
another word repeated several times. I looked at my dictionary. They were saying the
word “vampire”. Where had I read the word before? I opened the book that Mina had
given me. There are many old stories about the vampires in Transylvania, I read.
Vampires are men and women who never die. Vampires have long, sharp teeth. They
bite the throat of living people. Then, they drink their blood. Everyone in Transylvania
fears vampires. People often wear a cross to feel safe. I shut the book quickly. Did people
believe these stories? It was time for me to leave. I paid for my meal. Then I walked
outside and got into the coach. There was a crowd of people outside the inn. Suddenly,
the inn-keeper ran forwards and spoke to me through the coach window. “Must you go to
Castle Dracula”, he said. “Do not go to that terrible place”. “I have important business with
the Count”, I answered. “Then take this”, the inn-keeper said. “And may God help you”.
And he put a gold cross and a chain into my hand. As the coach began to move, strange
thoughts went through my mind. “Who was this man I was going to meet? Did Count
Dracula have strange powers? I could not believe it”. The coach began to move more
quickly. The stars shone on the trees and the water of little rivers. There was snow on the
tops of the highest mountains. What a beautiful country Transylvania was. The mountains
were closer to us now and the road went higher and higher. Shadows grew longer as the
shadows began to go down behind the mountains. Then, suddenly, the lights had gone.
The mountains and sky were dark. The coach went faster and faster. I could hear a terrible
sound. It was the howling of wolves. The moon was shining now. I could see dark shapes
near the road. The coach went higher and higher and now I could see a narrow road to
the right. The coach stopped. We were at the Borgo Pass. Down the narrow road, came
a small carriage pulled by four black horses. As the carriage stopped, its driver shouted:
“I’ve come from Castle Dracula, Where is the Englsihman?” “Here”, I replied. The driver
jumped down from the carriage. He took my bag and held me by the arm. In a moment I
was sitting beside him as the black horses were galloping along the narrow road. We
were going so fast that I had to hold on to the carriage with both hands. The driver
laughed. Then, suddenly, the journey was over. The driver pulled me down from the
carriage. He threw my bag beside me. In a moment, the carriage and the driver had
disappeared. I had arrived at Castle Dracula.

STORY # 6: How the Kiwi Lost his Wings

A long time ago, in Aotearoa, Tanemahuta was walking through the forest. He looked up
at his children, the trees, reaching for the sky and he noticed they were starting to grow
sick.
Bugs were eating the roots of the trees, so he asked his brother, Tanehokahoka, to call
all his children, the birds of the air, together.
Tanemahuta spoke to them: “Bugs are eating my children and making the trees ill. I need
one of you to come down from the forest roof and live on the floor, so that my children
can be saved, and your home can be saved. Who will come?" All was quiet, and not a
bird spoke. Tanehokahoka turned to the birds in his land and, one by one, they all turned
him down: Tui said he was scared of the dark; Pukeko said that he didn’t want to get their
feet wet, and Pipiwharauroa answered that he was too busy making his nest.
And Tanehokahoka was saddened, for he knew that if one of his children did not come
down from the forest roof, not only would his brother lose his children, the trees, but the
birds would have no home. So Tanehokahoka turned to Kiwi: ”Will you come down from
the forest roof?" Kiwi looked up at the trees and saw the sun dancing through the leaves.
Then he looked at the dark, damp earth. Looking around once more, Kiwi turned to
Tanehokahoka and said, "I will."
Great was the joy in the hearts of Tanehokahoka and Tanemahuta, for this little bird was
giving them hope. But he felt that he should warn kiwi of what would happen. "E kiwi, do
you realize that if you do this, you will have to grow thick, strong legs so that you can rip
apart the logs on the ground to find the bugs and you will lose your beautiful coloured
feathers and wings so that you will never be able to return to the forest roof. You will never
see the light of day again." Kiwi took one last look at the sun filtering through the trees
and said, "I will."
Then Tanehokahoka turned to the other birds and said, "E Tui, because you were too
scared to come down from the forest roof, from now on you will wear two white feathers
at your throat so everyone will know you are a coward.
Pukeko, because you didn’t want to get your feet wet, you will live forever in the swamp.
And Pipiwharauroa, because you were too busy building your nest, from now on you will
never build another nest again. You will have to lay your eggs in the nests of other birds.
But you, Kiwi, because of your great sacrifice, you will become the most well known and
most loved bird in this land.

STORY # 7: The origins of Roquefort

The origins of Roquefort can be traced back with some degree of certainty to the fifteenth
century. It owes its existence to a shepherd who was sent to look after the flock. Towards
midday, while the animals were grazing freely, he felt hungry and decided to have lunch.
From his bag, he took some bread and cheese made from the ewe’s milk and started to
eat. Suddenly, he caught sight of a beautiful girl in the distance. He felt so attracted to her
that he left his dog to guard the flock and hastily placed his lunch in the nearby caves to
keep it cool and to protect it from the scorching hot day. The shepherd was away for days,
looking for his maiden, but unfortunately, he never found her. Disappointed, he returned
to his sheep, tired and hungry. When he took his lunch out of the caves, he found that the
bread and cheese were mouldy. As he was starving, he didn’t hesitate and took a bite of
his food. He was pleasantly surprised to find that his mouldy lunch tasted quite delicious!
That day Roquefort was born.

STORY # 8: The ghost of Tokai

Deep in the Tokai Forest Plantation in Cape Town's southern suburbs, lies the well-known
Tokai Manor. This house was completed in 1796 and in the early 1800s was owned by
Hendrik Eksteen, an exuberant and indulgent man.
Hendrik and his son were both fond of entertaining and New Year's Eve was an especially
big night at Tokai Manor. The house's flights of steep steps were overflowing with guests.
The vintage wine was flowing and it wasn't long before things got out of hand.
Hendrik's son, Petrus was prone to bragging, and was deep into describing what a fine
rider he was when someone urged him to prove it. The young man was required to ride
his horse up the steep steps, into the dining room.
Petrus completed the task in few minutes and with no difficulty, but as he began to
celebrate, the horse took fright and bolted, slipping on the steep steps and both man and
horse plunged to their deaths.
Years later, News Year’s Eve remains a frightening time to be in Tokai Manor. Drunken
laughter and the neighing of horses can often be heard, carrying on the breeze from the
nearby forest. Some even claim to have heard loud sounds of thudding horse hooves and
a sudden, high-pitched whinny before the air falls deadly silent.
The only tangible evidence left of Petrus and his horse is one solitary hoof print ingrained
in the dining room floor.