Short stories for kids

Short fairy tales for little listeners: quick to read and easy to love, free to read aloud with no account needed.

Five minutes is enough for a whole tale, ending included. We gathered the ones that used to be told in a single sitting, from Grimm and Andersen to the collectors who came later.

They suit the evening when there are a few minutes left before lights out, or a child who wants to read one alone and needs to reach the end while it is still going well. The shortest are about two minutes.

Each shows its reading time up front, so nothing is guesswork. The length also differs by language, since the same tale runs longer in one than in another.