YELLOW GIRAFFE
Yellow Giraffe´s Animal Stories
Poets and short storylines 1 -7 - 8 -14 - 15 -26
The Sun is a Yellow Giraffe - Poets and short storylines 1- 5 , 6 -10
YELLOW GIRAFFE'S ANIMAL STORIES
Poets and short storylines 15 -26
15. THE SEASHELL
A story to Federico García Lorca’s poem “Caracola” (Spain)
Soledad lives in a small village on the shore of a great ocean. “The sea is Granny’s only field,” is what Granny always says when she and Soledad go fishing. If they caught big fish, Soledad would get shiny shoes and Granny a new outboard engine for her boat.
16. THE UNEXPECTED GUEST
A story to Sergei Mikhalkov’s poem ”??????”(Runaway) (Russia)
Nina’s cat, Sasha, has befriended a stray cat that hangs about the yard. One day, the stray disappears mysteriously. And then an eagle flies onto Nina’s window ledge! Nina helps the eagle and in return he takes her to Sasha and the lost stray.
17. MOTHER DOESN´T WANT A DOG
A story to Judith Viorst’s poem “Mother Doesn’t Want a Dog”
Everybody except Susie has a pet. She brings home candidates, each sweeter than the one before, but her mother doesn’t like any of them and so they have to go. She’s not going to give up: the world is full of animals and one of them will be hers!
18. THE SEPTEMBER RABBIT
A story to Michel Luneau’s poem “Le lapin de septembre” (France)
One evening when Hopsy is dining as is his custom in the backyard of the ’Little Rabbit’ restaurant, a country man happens to pass by. The smells lead Hopsy to a small country village and a lush kitchen garden. Henry, however, who owns the garden, has bitter experience of rabbits.
19. THE FOAL
A story to Ferenc Juhász’s poem “Csikóellés” (Hungary)
As the neighbour’s Billy goat refuses to pull a cart, János heads for the village to buy a workhorse. At the market he sees Alma, a lame old hack of a horse. She’s in such a pitiful state that János just has to buy her. But she does have a huge appetite and keeps getting fatter and fatter.
20. THE HERD BOY´S SONG
A story to Chen Shan-Shih’s poem “The Herd Boy’s Song” (China)
Bin is off to spend summer in the country. He is frightened of all animals, big or small, and refuses to spend one moment alone with them. Grandfather is at his wit’s end. He doesn’t know what to do. Fortunately, Tao the buffalo has a solution to the problem.
21.
THE ELEPHANTS
A story to Charles-Marie Leconte de Lisle’s poem “Les Éléphants” (France)
The old elephant is too weary to join in the young elephants’ fun and games. She prefers to spend her days leaning against a tree in the shade, dozing and dreaming and reliving her past. Once again she is with her childhood herd wandering through the desert to the long lost spring pastures.
22. THE CROW AND THE NIGHTINGALE
A story to Naoko Kudo’s poem “I am me. Eizo, Crow.” (Japan)
The nightingale is an admirer of Eizo the crow. Nowadays, however, Eizo isn’t even aware of the nightingale’s existence. He has eyes only for the peacock, whose magnificent train has him totally spellbound. He’s even ready to abandon his old companion for the peacock.
23. MOUSE IN THE SUPERMARKET
A story to Annie G. Schmidt’s poem “Muis in de supermart” (Holland)
Bingo the Mouse has a hard life. Everywhere he goes there are mousetraps and rat poison. Fortunately, Yellow Giraffe knows a kind-hearted shopkeeper who always has room for a homeless creature. There’s trouble ahead though, because not everybody likes having a mouse among their shopping.
24. THE CORN SCRATCH HEN
A story to Julie Holder’s poem “The Corn Scratch Kwa Kwa Hen”` (Great Britain)
One day the henhouse door was left open by mistake and Corn Scratch Kwa Kwa escaped. She’d heard of a place where hens run free and the rich soil abounds in plump worms. But the occupants of that henhouse are anything but friendly; they have no wish to have a stranger among them.
25. THE KANGAROO
A story to Robert Gray’s poem “The Dusk”(Australia)
Something has frightened a mother kangaroo into flight. She hides her little one in a thicket where he’ll be safe until she returns. Evening comes, then night, but there’s no sign of the mother kangaroo. In the morning Yellow Giraffe and Willy the shearer find the little one. Do-Do, the cockatoo, is sent to look for his mother.
26. SONG TO THE FREEWHEELING PIGS
A story to Thorstein Thomsen’s poem “Sang til de fritgående svin” (Denmark)
The old sow Hula-Hula knows only too well what it will mean when “Mr Sausage and choice goodies” and van appear at the door of the piggery. A sensible pig doesn’t wait for her fate. She puts her best trotter forward and runs towards a better future.
Copyright©Epidem ZOT 2006
Epidem ZOT
Sepänkatu 15 B, 00150 Helsinki, Finland
Tel +358 9 6846612 Fax +358 9 6846614 E-mail: wahlforss at epidem.pp.fi
Copyright:Epidem ZOT 2007