Magpie Tales

Magpie Tales» — a collection of short tales by Alexei Nikolaevich Tolstoy for children, based on folkloric motifs.

The plots are united by the image of the storyteller magpie — an observant, talkative, and somewhat cunning bird. Through her «retellings», the reader enters a world of simple, yet instructive stories: about animals, people, ingenuity, greed, foolishness, and kindness.

The heroes find themselves in everyday and fairy-tale situations, where their characters are revealed. Often, it is not strength or cunning that triumphs, but common sense and resourcefulness. The stories are short, with a clear moral and a lively language close to folk speech.

This edition presents «Magpie Tales» by Russian writer Alexei Nikolaevich Tolstoy (1883–1945). First published in the early last century, they remain relevant to this day. Light and amusing stories, written in a vivid and imaginative language, teach young readers kindness, sincerity, and friendship. Wonderful colorful illustrations for the tales were created by the talented artist Evgenia Nikolaevna Lotsmanova (1989).