TALES FROM READERS

• A Parrot and A Crow NEW
• Speaking Garden and Speaking Well NEW
• The Mysterious Voice NEW
• Be Helpful
• When Trees stopped speaking
• Gujarati Dhokala
• Village Leader and the Fallen Berries
• Lucky Pandit Tida Joshi
• The Coconuts story
• A Dream Saved the King!
• Lazy Pigeon
• A Scary Cold Water Drop
• Intelligent Merchants
• A Clever Old Woman
• Father, Son and a Crow
• The Mystery of Twin Town
• Miracle
• Bhola Bear Gets Honey
• Fear of LIZARD
• Rinku Rabbit Teaches A Lesson
• Every Tiger Has It's Day
• Mrs. Squirrel's Beachy Holiday
• Bella, Billu And The Billi
• A Suitable Match
• Chimpu- The Jungle Detective
  The Case of The Hidden Treasure
• Daring Sia and The Theft of The Twisted Candles
• Chimpu-The Jungle Detective
  The Case of The Stolen Honey
• The Princess of the Blue lotus
• Inspiration
• A Better Place to Live
• Sid And The Pirates 1
• Sid And The Pirates 2
• Sid And The Pirates 3
• Rinku
• Tula Wants To Grow Up!
• Shining In The Dark
• The Guru
• O.D.D.
• The Girl With X-Ray Eyes
• An Eerie Experience
• Scared Speechless!
• The Haunted House
• The Lily Pad(dle) Boat
• Little Tom And His Pets
• Deepa And The King of The Ocean
• Magic Rose
• Charlie's Pet Lion
• The Three Princesses
• The Ring
• Traitors You Can't Sustain!
• Friends And Enemies
• Bruno, The Sheep Dog
• Roses And Cacti
• Hardwork Pays
• No Pain, No Gain!
• The Magical Pond
• Everything For Something
• The Eavesdropper
• The Crow That Boasted
• The Golden Bird
• Asha And Aadesh In Frogindom!
• Moon's Magic
• Baby Tree Wants Ice Cream!
• Jackal And Birds
• Roll Model
• When The Teacher Became The King
• The Blind Beggar
• A Night of fun in the Desert Village
• The Blind Woman
• The Pirate's Mistake
• Team Work Wins
• Bobby Turns Brave
• The Two Princess
• God Everywhere
• The Mongoose And The Snake
• The Missing Sweetmeat
• The Mule
• The Wishing Tree
• The Magic Potion
• King And The Three Sons
• An Old Lady And The Lamp
• The Kindhearted Villager
• Christopher's Encounter With The Aliens
• The Mysterious School
• The Coconut Tree
• Count The Blessing Not The Curses
• Wonderful X'mas Gift
• Tikku and the Rats
• The Magic Hole
• A Mysterious Memory
• The Lost Ball
• Gundu and Mithu
• Home Alone
• Holidays
• Sleepovers
• The Secret of Work
• Little Friend
• Mr. Twinkle Transforms
• April Fool
• The Call
• The Thief Caught Atlast
• The Monkey And The Dolphin
• Toko Castle
• Elephant, Croc And Toad
• Vice of Dice!
• Laughter Is The Best Medicine
• My Meet With God
• The Impossible Magic!
• Encounter with the Friday Ghost
• The Last Wish
• A Fearful Event
• A King's Costly Mistake
• The Clever Pussy Cat
• The Dangerous Silky Bed!
• The Magical Ink
• The Magic Of The Map
• The Stormy Night with my Cousins

The Ring

The ball came almost near his feet. His entire concentration was on the spinning circle, spotted white and black. All he had to do now was to kick a side volley. He lifted the ball but missed! The ball sprang upwards. Jack fell down in exhaustion and despair.
Jack, aged 13, had joined the 'Comet Eleven' a year ago. He was the youngest member of the football team and presumed to be the worst player of the team. He hoped to prove himself in the coming final match.
"Hey, can anyone save Jack? He's going to die from exhaustion!" taunted Samuel, the senior-most and perhaps the best player of the team. Jack felt the gush of blood on his face.
"Concentrate, Jack!" his father advised him on the night before the match. "Don't get restless. I know you have difficulty in your back volley, side volley and juggling. I also know that your greatest difficulty is defying a ring of players and coming out of it. Try to create a tranquil ambience in the match tomorrow!"
"What's the point in being calm, Dad? I'm only a substitute in tomorrow's match!" retorted Jack.
The Comet Eleven had won the preliminary matches and were to play the finals with 'The Devastators'. The stadium was full the next morning. The game began. Both sides were tensed as an opponent entered the penalty box and scored a goal. Then Samuel scored a goal but the team couldn't rejoice because Samuel had been hit on the chest by the goalkeeper's elbow. As Samuel returned injured, the coach asked Jack to substitute for him.
Jack walked into the field, his heart hammering with excitement. The ball was passed on to him from the center. Quickly he passed it to the right wing. The right wing passed it to the striker but one of the opponents managed to get hold of the ball. As he was trying to push the ball to another player, Jack gave the slide and diverted the ball.
The ball went straight to the right wing, who passed it to the left wing. Seeing Jack close to the goal, the left wing passed it on to him. All of a sudden Jack found himself surrounded by a ring of players. Just as he was dreading his situation, he found a leak in the ring. Jack threw the ball upwards, juggled it and then with a triumphant side volley, he pushed it out of the ring.
"GOAL!" every one shouted. Jack couldn't believe his eyes! And though Samuel was given the 'Man of the Tournament' award, Jack knew that his sun had risen.

Contributed By:
Sambit Banerjee,
Std 6,
Bhavan's Gangabux Kanoria Vidyamandir, Kolkata