The Wonderful Adventures of Nils by Selma Lagerlöf (i can read book club TXT) đ
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In The Wonderful Adventures of Nils, Selma Lagerlöf tells the story of Nils Holgersson, a young boy who is transformed into an elf after a set of misdeeds. Escaping with his familyâs farm goose he joins up with a flock of wild geese and travels with them across Sweden as they return to their annual nesting grounds in Lapland.
The story was originally written as a commission for the Swedish National Teachersâ Association to write a geography book for children and has become a firm favourite in the country. Itâs been adapted for screen many times, translated into over 30 languages and, until recently, was the artwork on the 20 krona banknote.
Although originally published in English in two volumesâthe second starting at âThe Story of Karr and Grayskinââhere they are presented as a single combined story.
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- Author: Selma Lagerlöf
Read book online «The Wonderful Adventures of Nils by Selma Lagerlöf (i can read book club TXT) đ». Author - Selma Lagerlöf
Gorgo scarcely raised his head. âDonât disturb me, Thumbietot,â he yawned. âIâm sitting here dreaming that I am free, and am soaring away up among the clouds. I donât want to be awake.â
âYou must rouse yourself, and see what goes on around you,â the boy admonished, âor you will soon look as wretched as the other eagles.â
âI wish I were as they are! They are so lost in their dreams that nothing more can trouble them,â said the eagle.
When night came, and all three eagles were asleep, there was a light scraping on the steel wires stretched across the top of the cage. The two listless old captives did not allow themselves to be disturbed by the noise, but Gorgo awakened.
âWhoâs there? Who is moving up on the roof?â he asked.
âItâs Thumbietot, Gorgo,â answered the boy. âIâm sitting here filing away at the steel wires so that you can escape.â
The eagle raised his head, and saw in the night light how the boy sat and filed the steel wires at the top of the cage. He felt hopeful for an instant, but soon discouragement got the upper hand.
âIâm a big bird, Thumbietot,â said Gorgo; âhow can you ever manage to file away enough wires for me to come out? Youâd better quit that, and leave me in peace.â
âOh, go to sleep, and donât bother about me!â said the boy. âIâll not be through tonight nor tomorrow night, but I shall try to free you in time for here youâll become a total wreck.â
Gorgo fell asleep. When he awoke the next morning he saw at a glance that a number of wires had been filed. That day he felt less drowsy than he had done in the past. He spread his wings, and fluttered from branch to branch to get the stiffness out of his joints.
One morning early, just as the first streak of sunlight made its appearance, Thumbietot awakened the eagle.
âTry now, Gorgo!â he whispered.
The eagle looked up. The boy had actually filed off so many wires that now there was a big hole in the wire netting. Gorgo flapped his wings and propelled himself upward. Twice he missed and fell back into the cage; but finally he succeeded in getting out.
With proud wing strokes he soared into the clouds. Little Thumbietot sat and gazed after him with a mournful expression. He wished that someone would come and give him his freedom too.
The boy was domiciled now at Skansen. He had become acquainted with all the animals there, and had made many friends among them. He had to admit that there was so much to see and learn there that it was not difficult for him to pass the time. To be sure his thoughts went forth every day to Morten Goosey-Gander and his other comrades, and he yearned for them. âIf only I werenât bound by my promise,â he thought, âIâd find some bird to take me to them!â
It may seem strange that Clement Larsson had not restored the boyâs liberty, but one must remember how excited the little fiddler had been when he left Skansen. The morning of his departure he had thought of setting out the midgetâs food in a blue bowl, but, unluckily, he had been unable to find one. All the Skansen folkâ âLapps, peasant girls, artisans, and gardenersâ âhad come to bid him goodbye, and he had had no time to search for a blue bowl. It was time to start, and at the last moment he had to ask the old Laplander to help him.
âOne of the tiny folk happens to be living here at Skansen,â said Clement, âand every morning I set out a little food for him. Will you do me the favour of taking these few coppers and purchasing a blue bowl with them? Put a little gruel and milk in it, and tomorrow morning set it out under the steps of BollnĂ€s cottage.â
The old Laplander looked surprised, but there was no time for Clement to explain further, as he had to be off to the railway station.
The Laplander went down to the zoölogical village to purchase the bowl. As he saw no blue one that he thought appropriate, he bought a white one, and this he conscientiously filled and set out every morning.
That was why the boy had not been released from his pledge. He knew that Clement had gone away, but he was not allowed to leave.
That night the boy longed more than ever for his freedom. This was because summer had come now in earnest. During his travels he had suffered much in cold and stormy weather, and when he first came to Skansen he had thought that perhaps it was just as well that he had been compelled to break the journey. He would have been frozen to death had he gone to Lapland in the month of May. But now it was warm; the earth was green-clad, birches and poplars were clothed in their satiny foliage, and the cherry treesâ âin fact all the fruit treesâ âwere covered with blossoms. The berry bushes had green berries on their stems; the oaks had carefully unfolded their leaves, and peas, cabbages, and beans were growing in the vegetable garden at Skansen.
âNow it must be warm up in Lapland,â thought the boy. âI should like to be seated on Morten Goosey-Ganderâs back on a fine morning like this! It would be great fun to ride around in the warm, still air, and look down at the ground, as it now lies decked with green grass, and embellished with pretty blossoms.â
He sat musing on this when the eagle suddenly swooped down from the sky, and perched beside the boy, on top of the cage.
âI wanted to try my wings to see if they were still good for anything,â said Gorgo. âYou didnât suppose that I meant to leave you here in captivity? Get up on my back, and Iâll take you to your comrades.â
âNo, thatâs impossible!â
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