Indian Fairy Tales
Joseph Jacobs drew on the Jatakas, the Panchatantra, the Kathasaritsagara, and other ancient sources to gather twenty-nine folk tales from the Indian tradition. Talking animals, clever princes, demons, and moral fables sit side by side, many of them ancestors of stories that later traveled west into Aesop and the collections of the Brothers Grimm. Jacobs, a serious folklorist, arranged the book for young readers while adding notes on where each tale came from and how it spread across cultures. John D. Batten’s illustrations accompanied the original 1892 edition. The result is a friendly gateway into one of the world’s oldest storytelling traditions, suitable for reading aloud or alone. Free PDF and EPUB editions are available here.
About the Author
Joseph Jacobs (1854-1916) was an Australian-born folklorist, literary critic, and historian who spent much of his career in England. He edited English Fairy Tales, Celtic Fairy Tales, and other collections, becoming one of the most influential compilers of folk stories in the English language.
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Listen to Indian Fairy Tales Audiobook Free
Listen to Indian Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs free online. The full audiobook (6 hr 38 min, 30 chapters, read by volunteer narrators) streams free on this page.
Indian Fairy Tales (1892) is a public domain work.
| # | Chapter | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 00 - Preface | 10:41 | |
| 2 | 01 - The Lion and the Crane | 3:09 | |
| 3 | 02 - How the Raja's Son won the Princess Labam. | 22:34 | |
| 4 | 03 - The Lambikin | 5:09 | |
| 5 | 04 - Punchkin | 27:46 | |
| 6 | 05 - The Broken Pot | 2:49 | |
| 7 | 06 - The Magic Fiddle | 9:53 | |
| 8 | 07 - The Cruel Crane Outwitted | 8:06 | |
| 9 | 08 - Loving Laili | 32:02 | |
| 10 | 09 - The Tiger, the Brahman, and the Jackal | 7:00 | |
| 11 | 10 - The Soothsayer's Son | 32:52 | |
| 12 | 11 - Harisarman | 9:52 | |
| 13 | 12 - The Charmed Ring | 19:41 | |
| 14 | 13 - The Talkative Tortoise | 4:28 | |
| 15 | 14 - A Lac of Rupees for a Bit of Advice | 15:32 | |
| 16 | 15 - The Gold-giving Serpent | 3:18 | |
| 17 | 16 - The Son of Seven Queens | 23:26 | |
| 18 | 17 - A Lesson for Kings | 6:01 | |
| 19 | 18- Pride goeth before a Fall | 5:17 | |
| 20 | 19 - Raja Rasalu | 28:38 | |
| 21 | 20 - The Ass in the Lion's Skin | 2:24 | |
| 22 | 21 - The Farmer and the Money-lender | 5:17 | |
| 23 | 22 - The Boy who had a Moon on his Forehead and a Star on his Chin | 35:00 | |
| 24 | 23 - The Prince and the Fakir | 9:07 | |
| 25 | 24 - Why the Fish Laughed. | 11:31 | |
| 26 | 25 - The Demon with the Matted Hair | 8:11 | |
| 27 | 26 - The Ivory City and its Fairy Princess | 37:56 | |
| 28 | 27 - How Sun, Moon, and Wind went out to Dinner | 3:40 | |
| 29 | 28 - How the Wicked Sons were Duped. | 2:22 | |
| 30 | 29 - The Pigeon and the Crow | 4:24 |
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