8 h 27 minAudiobook15 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 8 h 27 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
Step into a Bengal of haunted trees, cunning foxes, and snakes that change their shape.
In Folk-Tales of Bengal, Lal Behari Day gathers fairy tales rooted in Bengali oral tradition. These are stories passed from elder to child and shared by village storytellers. Magic, humor, bravery, and wisdom meet in a world where heroic peasants and divine intervention belong beside the fears and hopes of daily life.
First published in 1883, the collection preserves stories that offer a glimpse of how generations of Bengalis understand justice, nature, and life’s mysteries. Follow their strange encounters and discover more than enchantment. Beneath the wonders lies a moral world, shaped by the questions and values that people carry from one generation to the next.
What you’ll discover
- Magic close to home Explore tales where haunted trees and shape-shifting snakes bring wonder into the world of village storytelling.
- Cunning and courage Meet cunning foxes and heroic peasants in stories alive with humor, bravery, and unexpected possibilities.
- Wisdom within the wonder Look beneath the magic to explore ideas of justice and the values woven through these tales.
- Nature touched by mystery Discover stories that express reverence for nature while making room for fear, hope, and enchantment.
- Stories passed between generations Enter a storytelling tradition carried from elder to child, with wisdom and wonder held together.
Who will love it
You will love this book if you enjoy fairy tales from other lands, clever tricksters, magic pots and talking birds, or the sound of a living oral tradition written down.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A secret told to a rival costs a life
- A jewel from a serpent leads to a lost wife
- Gifts from gods and demons test the poor
- Two brothers and a wife are scattered by luck
- Bad luck is outlasted by loyal partners
- Wishes and pride shape a merchant's family
- Cleverness saves a prince and tests two thieves
- Ghosts and spirits are tricked or befriended
- Birds, jewels and a jackal make fortunes
- Skulls, bones and a bald wife teach the law of tales
Who’s who
- Dalim KumarA prince whose life is bound to a gold necklace, and who lives by night and lies dead by day.
- The Duo queenA jealous stepmother who learns the secret of the prince's life and wants the king's love for herself.
- The minister's sonA loyal friend who pretends to be the madcap Phakir Chand and risks his life to protect a prince.
- Sahasra DalThe half-demon son of a Rakshasi, who proves a true friend and protector to his half-brother.
- Champa DalThe younger brother, a Brahman's son, who fights seven hundred Rakshasas and wants only to find his lost wife.
- SribatsaA wise man whom the god of bad luck curses for three years, and who wants to keep his wife safe.
- ChintamaniSribatsa's devoted wife, who refuses to leave his side and prays to the goddess of fortune for help.
- The hiramanA clever talking parrot who sells itself to the king and plans his quest for the most beautiful lady.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 15 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook and the audiobook open when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
Folk-Tales of Bengal
by Lal Behari Day · 1883
A prince dies every morning and wakes every night, and one bold bride sets out to free him.
Easy read5–10 hours to readItaliano
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
- Read or listen
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
In short
What if a prince died every morning and came back to life every night, while his own father mourned a corpse? Lal Behari Day, a Bengali teacher and writer who died in 1892, set down twenty-two tales in English and dated his preface in 1883.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A secret told to a rival costs a life
A king and his queen Suo have no children. A holy beggar promises Suo a son named Dalim Kumar, and warns that the boy's life lies in a gold necklace inside the heart of a boal fish in the palace pond.
The boy loves pigeons, and they keep flying into the rooms of the Duo queen, who hates him. She holds them back until he promises to learn his secret from his mother. After hearing his secret, she hides dry hemp stalks under her bed to crack like bones and claims to be gravely ill. A physician in league with her says the cure lies in the fish. When it is caught, the queen puts on the necklace and the boy dies.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Also in the Fairy Tales Book Set: Six Collections
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 15 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1883
- Language
- Italiano
- Level
- Easy read
Cite this edition
Day, Lal Behari. Folk-Tales of Bengal. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/folk-tales-of-bengal.
Day, L. B. (2026). Folk-tales of Bengal. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/folk-tales-of-bengal (Original work published 1883)
Day, Lal Behari. Folk-Tales of Bengal. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/folk-tales-of-bengal.
@book{day2026folktales,
author = {Day, Lal Behari},
title = {Folk-Tales of Bengal},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/folk-tales-of-bengal},
note = {First published 1883}
}
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Folk-Tales of Bengal
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is Folk-Tales of Bengal about?
It is a collection of twenty-two folk tales that Lal Behari Day heard from Bengali storytellers and translated into English. The stories feature princes, Rakshasas, ghosts, magic objects, talking animals and clever tricksters.
What is the Natiya thorn rhyme at the end of every tale?
It is a traditional closing formula about a thorn, a cow, a cowherd, a daughter-in-law, a child and an ant, ending with koot. Day says he does not know what it means and suggests it may be playful nonsense.
Where did Lal Behari Day get these stories?
He heard them in Bengali from a Bengali Christian woman, two old Brahmans, a barber and a servant. He remembered Sambhu's mother from childhood but needed new tellers, and translated each tale into English himself.
The author
Lal Behari Day
1824–1892 · Bengali folklorist and missionary
Lal Behari Day was a Bengali writer, journalist, and Christian minister of nineteenth-century India, best remembered for Folk-Tales of Bengal, a beloved collection that preserved the village stories of Bengal for readers around the world.
More like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
