The Story-Teller

The Story-Teller is a short story written by Saki (H. H. Munro) and first published in 1914.

The story takes place in a railway carriage, where an aunt is traveling with three restless children. After her attempts to entertain them with a dull moral tale fail, a fellow passenger decides to tell them a story of his own, creating a far more unusual and captivating tale.

His story concerns an extremely well-behaved little girl who is rewarded for her goodness with a visit to a beautiful park. There, however, she encounters a wolf, and the medals she has received for good behavior betray her hiding place and lead to a shocking ending.

The children are delighted, but their aunt is horrified by what she considers an improper story. Through its dark humor, The Story-Teller satirizes conventional moral lessons and unimaginative approaches to teaching children, suggesting that a memorable story can be more powerful than a predictable one.

"It was a hot afternoon, and the railway carriage was correspondingly sultry, and the next stop was at Templecombe, nearly an hour ahead. The occupants of the carriage were a small girl, and a smaller girl, and a small boy."