Free bedtime stories for kids

156 illustrated bedtime stories for kids, free to read online — no account, no ads, and every one written to be read aloud. 173 stories.

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• The Banyan Deer4-6 min read · 13 pagesThe banyan deer, a Jataka tale to read aloud. The king hunts one deer a day, and one morning a mother is chosen who cannot go.
• The Blue Jackal4-6 min read · 12 pagesThe blue jackal, a Panchatantra tale to read aloud. He falls into a vat of dye and everyone in the forest decides he must be a king.
• The Boy Who Cried Wolf5-7 min read · 13 pagesThe boy who cried wolf, Aesop's fable to read aloud. Twice he shouts for fun and the village comes running. The third time is not for fun.
• The Brahmin and the Mongoose4-6 min read · 12 pagesThe brahmin and the mongoose, a Panchatantra tale to read aloud. He comes home, sees blood on its mouth, and does not stop to look in the cradle.
• The Bremen Town Musicians7-9 min read · 16 pagesThe Bremen town musicians, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. Four animals too old to be useful set off to become a band, and never arrive.
• The Bridge That Held Our Hearts6-8 min read · 19 pagesIn a green valley split by a wild, rushing river, two villages lived side by side yet stayed strangers for years.
• The City Mouse and the Country Mouse5-7 min read · 13 pagesThe city mouse and the country mouse, Aesop's fable to read aloud. One has plain food and quiet; the other has cake and footsteps in the dark.
• The Compass That Chose a Kind Heart8-10 min read · 18 pagesKai never expected a school trip to a crumbly old lighthouse to change everything.
• The Crow Count2-3 min read · 13 pagesThe crow count, an Akbar and Birbal story to read aloud. How many crows are there in the city? Birbal gives an exact number.
• The Dinosaur Who Could Not Roar5-6 min read · 14 pagesA dinosaur bedtime story: Rys can only squeak, and in the fog it turns out that a squeak is the one sound you can follow.
• The Elves and the Shoemaker5-7 min read · 12 pagesThe elves and the shoemaker, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. The shoes are finished every morning, and nobody has seen who does it.
• The Emperor's New Clothes7-9 min read · 16 pagesThe emperor's new clothes by Hans Christian Andersen, to read aloud. Two weavers sell him a cloth that only clever people can see.
• The Fisherman and His Wife6-8 min read · 16 pagesThe fisherman and his wife, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. The flounder grants what she asks for, and she keeps finding something else.
• The Four Friends6-8 min read · 16 pagesThe four friends, a Panchatantra tale to read aloud. A crow, a mouse, a tortoise and a deer, and the net that none of them could open alone.
• The Fox and the Crow4-6 min read · 13 pagesThe fox and the crow, Aesop's fable to read aloud. She has the cheese and he has nothing — so he starts telling her how well she sings.
• The Fox and the Grapes2-3 min read · 8 pagesThe fox and the grapes, Aesop's fable to read aloud. He jumps until he cannot jump any more, and then decides he never wanted them at all.
• The Frog King7-9 min read · 16 pagesThe frog king, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. He fetches her gold ball out of the well, and she promised him rather a lot for it.
• The Gingerbread Man5-7 min read · 12 pagesThe gingerbread man, the folk tale to read aloud. He comes out of the oven running, and everybody on the road wants to eat him.
• The Golden Goose7-9 min read · 16 pagesThe golden goose, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. Everyone who grabs at it sticks fast, and the line behind it gets longer.
• The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs2-3 min read · 9 pagesThe goose that laid the golden eggs, Aesop's fable to read aloud. One gold egg a day is not fast enough for the man who owns her.
• The Goose with the Golden Feathers4-6 min read · 12 pagesThe goose with the golden feathers, a Jataka tale to read aloud. One feather at a time is enough to live on, until somebody decides it is not.
• The Grand Old Duke of York1-2 min read · 2 pagesThe grand old Duke of York had ten thousand men — the full words, and the standing-up-and-sitting-down that goes with it.
• The Grandfather Clock That Kept the Peace6-8 min read · 16 pagesIn one big, loving family, the days were full of laughter, warm bread, and the happy noise of people who belong together — though even the best families squabble now and then.
• The Hare and the Tortoise4-6 min read · 13 pagesThe hare and the tortoise, Aesop's fable to read aloud. He is faster and he knows it — and that turns out to be the whole problem.
• The Hare Who Heard a Sound4-6 min read · 13 pagesThe hare who heard a sound, a Jataka tale to read aloud. A mango falls behind him, and within an hour the whole forest is running.
• The House Where Love Lives4-6 min read · 14 pagesIn a green little village between quiet rivers and tall oak trees, the Miller family shares everything — laughter, chores, and the coziest home for miles.
• The Itsy Bitsy Spider1-2 min read · 2 pagesThe itsy bitsy spider — the full words, the hand movements that go with them, and why the British call it the incy wincy spider.
• The Jungle Book10-12 min read · 17 pagesThe Jungle Book, retold for reading aloud. A boy raised by wolves, taught by a bear and a black panther, and hunted by a tiger who never forgot him.
• The Kite Who Flew Too Far5-6 min read · 12 pagesIn a little village tucked between green hills, a boy named Leo loves nothing more than flying his red kite on windy days.
• The Knight Who Lost His Sword7-9 min read · 13 pagesSir Cedric is a brave knight with a good and honest heart, and he sets out on a dangerous journey to save a village from a terrible dragon.
• The Lake That Held the Light6-8 min read · 19 pagesLeo the lion cub and Mia the mouse are the best of friends, and one golden morning they set off to find a lake that everyone says can grant a wish.
• The Library of Forgotten Dreams7-9 min read · 17 pagesNina is a girl with a heart full of pictures — she draws her dreams in the margins of her notebooks and imagines faraway worlds.
• The Lion and the Mouse5-7 min read · 13 pagesThe lion and the mouse, Aesop's fable to read aloud. He lets her go because she is too small to bother with — and then the ropes come.
• The Lion and the Rabbit5-7 min read · 14 pagesThe lion and the rabbit, a Panchatantra tale to read aloud. One animal a day is the deal, and the smallest of them arrives late on purpose.
• The Little Dinosaur's First Snow5-6 min read · 12 pagesA winter dinosaur bedtime story: far in the north, Kap comes out of the nest one morning and sees snow for the first time.
• The Little Garden of Friends6-8 min read · 13 pagesWhen two best friends set their hearts on a dream, even a forgotten forest clearing can bloom into something magical.
• The Little Match Girl5-7 min read · 14 pagesThe little match girl by Hans Christian Andersen, to read aloud. New Year's Eve, no shoes, and a box of matches nobody will buy.
• The Little Mermaid8-10 min read · 16 pagesThe little mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen, to read aloud. She trades her voice for legs, and Andersen never gives her a name.
• The Little Powerhouse: Inside a Battery8-10 min read · 14 pagesTucked inside an ordinary battery hides a whole world of science! Discover how a tiny metal capsule brings toys, flashlights, and clocks to life.
• The Little Star Who Wanted to Go Home4-6 min read · 10 pagesWhen a tiny star tumbles out of the night sky and lands right in their garden, Emma and her little brother Jack know exactly what to do — help it find its way home.