Hello!
Welcome to Stories Podcast.
I'm your host, Amanda Weldon.
Today's story is called The Bad Tiger, a Korean folktale adapted by Daniel Hines from the collection by Kim So-eun.
We have Stories Podcast merch available at storiespodcast.com slash shop.
We're also on Cameo for all of your personalized video message needs.
And don't forget to follow us on Instagram at storiespodcast.
If you send us a drawing of your favorite scene or character, we'll share it on our feed.
Now here's a word from our sponsors.
As parents with kids, I think we've all had those times when everyone in the family is off on their own personal devices.
Wouldn't it be great if you could find an activity that everyone will agree on?
Something that's both active and fun at the same time?
Imagine that.
I think we would all love this.
We've found an amazing new solution called Next Playground.
It's an active game system for families where your body powers the play.
It's 100% motion-driven gaming.
No controllers or wearables needed.
Just play naturally.
And the games are so great.
Get immersed in adventures like how to train your dragon dance with Barbie, pop bubbles in Gabby's dollhouse or master some moves with Kung Fu Panda.
Even better, Playground is kid-safe, with no ads, in-app purchases, or mature content.
Playground is your feel-good solution to bring the family together this fall.
Want to learn more?
Visit nexplayground.com.
That's N-E-X playground dot com to explore active family gaming today.
Thanks!
Enjoy the episode!
The Bad Tiger Once upon a time, in a quiet little old village, lived a loud little old woman.
She was just as sweet as you'd like, but she had no trouble telling people to get out of her way when they blocked her.
And when the local animals came sniffing around her garden, she'd chase them off with a scream and her trusty rake.
That's my food!
She'd scream at the wild scavengers digging up her prized radishes.
Get out!
And the out would be punctuated by the slap of the rake.
Her house was plain but beautiful.
The entire village was built to be part of nature, nestled in the woods, tucked among the rocks and little trickling waterfalls.
Their gardens were small but sprawling things, winding around their homes and the natural cliffs.
The only problem with living so perfectly and entirely in nature was that sometimes nature had plans of its own, as the old woman who we'll call Halmoni or Moni for short, came to learn.
One night, while the village was sleeping, a great beast prowled down from the mountains.
It was hulking, long as a cart and muscled like a strongman.
Its coat, the burning orange of a sunset slashed with white and black.
It was a monstrous tiger, who the villagers called the Stalking Fang, or just Fang for short.
Fang came down the first night pure quiet, like a house cat, despite his size and ate all the pigs in town.
He ate the fat pigs in their pens, he ate the skinny pigs in the gardens and he even ate a great big pumpkin.
That kind of looked like a pig if you squinted just right.
Everyone was mad, but they had more to eat, so they forgave the tiger and tried to move on.
But the second night he came back and ate all the vegetables too, from the rice and the patties to the cabbage and the dirt.
Worst of all, they ate all of Moni's radishes which she grew special because they were her favorite.
The townsfolk were all enraged, and they wanted to send some people out to hunt the tiger.
Halmoni warned them against it, though.
Don't go hunting that beast, she said.
It's a monster of the mountain and has no fear of you.
It weighs as much as a horse and has claws like butcher knives.
You best let me handle the tiger before you get hurt.
Ah, old moany, said Kim, the best hunter.
We've hunted tigers before.
We'll be just fine.
You've hunted young tigers, small tigers, Moni answered, shaking her finger.
This fang is an old tiger, maybe even a spirit of the mountain.
Your hunters won't be able to touch him.
Just relax, old woman, said Kim, showing her his broad bow and razor-sharp arrows.
The hunters are here.
Kim led his group of men away from Moni and the village.
They easily found the tiger's footprints, pressed heavy into the wet mud around the waterfalls.
Each pawprint was bigger around than your head.
The hunters eyed them nervously, but kept going.
They pushed deep into the woods, the thick jungle hot and wet and hard to breathe.
Snakes slithered around their boots and flying squirrels chittered overhead.
Another footprint was in the mud.
This one was still wet, with water oozing around the edges.
We're close, said Kim, motioning with his bow at the small group of hunters that had followed him.
We'll creep over this ledge and look.
The others nodded and followed as Kim got on his belly and wriggled up the slope.
When they got to the top and peered over, they gasped.
It's even bigger than they said, breathed one hunter in disbelief.
You couldn't hurt it with a hundred arrows.
We'll see about that, said Kim.
He put an arrow to his bow and pulled it back, the wood creaking and the point of the arrow gleaming in the light.
See how you like this, tiger.
He let the arrow fly.
The bow snapped and the arrow thumped into Fang the great tiger, where it bounced off his thick fur, doing him no more damage than a bee sting.
Oh, oh no, said Kim, as Fang turned and looked at him and his hunters.
The tiger licked his lips and began to stalk towards them, lips peeling back from his long white teeth and terrible growl rumbling in his throat.
Run, shouted Kim, and his hunters turned and ran, throwing their bows at the tiger to buy them an extra second.
Back at the village, Moni was at her little house, tending to her prized radishes.
They had grown extra fat this year, and they were her absolute favorite to eat.
She was pulling them up and putting them in a little wicker basket she made when she heard the screams.
Tiger! shouted Kim, and Moni could hear the thunder of his footsteps approaching.
Tiger!
In here!
Moni shouted, opening her door and waving the hunters inside.
They waved her in and then dove through the door after.
Kim came in last and spun, slamming and barring the door just as the tiger burst into the village.
Easy now, said Moni.
I told you that's not just a tiger.
It's got the strength of the mountain.
You won't get it with arrows.
You need to be cleverer than that.
What's it doing now? asked Kim, picking himself up off the floor.
Moni looked out the window and let out a little cry of dismay, which means to be sad, especially about something surprising.
What's wrong? asked Kim.
That lousy tiger is digging up all my radishes.
It already ate the ripe ones and now it's eating the new ones and even the seeds.
This tiger is no good.
What do we do? said Kim.
Moni, we should have listened and not gone hunting.
But what now?
The beast can't be hurt by arrows or spears.
It's too tough.
I already told you once, said Moni, pouring cups of tea for the shaken hunters as the tiger ate the radishes and disappeared back into the woods.
I can handle this.
How can you handle it? asked Kim.
He was genuinely curious.
It's huge and strong and hungry.
I've lived here among nature since I was a little girl, Moni said.
I'm old now, but I learned a lot when I was young, including the language of the tigers, as they roared and purred back and forth.
I know how to talk to them.
So you can convince the tiger to leave us alone? asked Kim, taking a sip of his tea gratefully.
Oh, definitely not, said Moni.
A big tiger like that already ate our food?
He thinks he's king of the village.
He might as well be, grumbled a hunter.
For now, said Moni, but tigers have their weaknesses too.
You follow my lead and we'll handle this tiger problem once and for all, okay?
Kim looked around at the hunters and they all nodded or shrugged.
It seems crazy, but we trust you, Moni.
Just tell us what to do.
Now for a quick ad break.
We'll be back with the rest of the story after this.
If you'd like Stories Podcast and other favorite kid podcasts ad-free, subscribe to Wondery Plus Kids on Apple Podcasts.
Moni told them about her plan, and then the hunters went away to prepare.
Meanwhile, Moni bustled around her house making some strange preparations.
First, she took a big metal fire pit she had out back for cooking and built a big blaze.
She kept adding wood and charcoal until it was red hot, and then let it burn down to a loose pile of ash and embers.
Then, she took the jug of clean, clear water on her counter.
Everyone in the village had a jug like it for getting fresh water from the well.
She took a pinch of her spiciest red-hot pepper flakes and stirred them into the water and let them steep.
Perfect, she said, taking a little taste.
After that, she went to her hand towels in the kitchen and stuck in her sewing needles.
She put the needles back and forth, up and down the towel, so they were hidden, except for their gleaming little points.
Finally, she spread oil on the floor near her back door and laid out a giant straw mat in her backyard.
Her preparations finished, she dusted her hands off and then opened her front door wide.
Hello, she called in the language of the tigers.
Fang, I see you finished all of the radishes in my garden.
I have a few more inside I was going to roast if you'd like to have them.
I'd rather serve you than have you as my enemy.
The tiger was still prowling nearby and his orange ears perked up when he heard the old woman speaking tiger.
It had been a long time since a human had known his language.
Come, oh great tiger, Moni said.
Come and eat the radishes.
Fang decided.
She seemed trustworthy and even if she tried something, she was an old woman and he was a tiger.
What could she do?
Okay, he called, prowling into her yard, his tail swaying.
Here I am.
May I come inside?
Of course, said old Moni with a smile.
Come in out of the cold and dark.
The tiger prowled into the house looking for hidden hunters, but there was no trap, only a pot over the fire with delicious, fragrant radishes inside.
Seeing it was safe, Fang smiled and curled up on Moni's rug, waiting to be fed.
Oh, but it's getting a little cold outside, Moni said after a bit.
I have a fireplace outside going.
Would you be a dear and bring it in for me?
Normally, Fang would have said no.
Well, normally he wouldn't have understood a human at all, but since the old lady had learned his language and was feeding him, it seemed like bringing in the fire would be an easy thing to do.
He prowled out back and then saw the fire with only a few embers glowing.
In the dark, he couldn't tell how deep the ashes were or how hot.
Old woman, he growled.
Your fire is almost out.
Oh, that's okay, called Moni from the kitchen.
Just blow on the coals nice and hard.
They'll flare back up.
The tiger nodded and put his snout right up to the embers and took in a deep breath and then let it out with a poosh.
Fang blew so hard that all the piled-up red-hot ash flew up and into his face.
He yelped and rubbed at his eyes, but the more he rubbed, the deeper the ash and coals went.
Hurry, said Moni, and Fang followed her voice back inside.
Put your face in my water pitcher, quick!
The tiger stumbled in and his big paws found the edges of the water pitcher.
With a growl, he plunged his fuzzy face deep into the water.
But remember what Moni had added?
The pepper flakes!
Suddenly, the burning in his eyes spread to his nose and mouth too, and Fang the tiger felt like his whole face was on fire.
It's hot! he roared.
Wah!
It's hot!
Quick wipe it off with this towel.
Moni said, handing the tiger the towel she had sewed her needles into.
The tiger snatched the towel and tried to wipe off his tongue first.
Big mistake.
The hidden needle scratched his tongue and now he couldn't see and could barely talk.
Suddenly, he realized all of this had been a trick by the old woman.
Why are you doing this? he roared.
Why did you steal all our food?
Moni shot back.
If we let you keep going, we would starve.
That was a good point, but Fang didn't want to hear it at the moment.
What he wanted was to escape from the wicked old woman and her nasty tricks.
So the tiger spun and ran towards the back door, where he slipped on the oil Moni had poured.
Whoa, whoa, whoa!
Fang shouted, slipping and spinning into the yard and landing on the giant bamboo mat.
No, boys, shouted Moni.
Come on, everyone, roll, came the voice of Kim, the hunter.
Kim and his posse leapt out of the bushes and barrels where they'd been hiding and grabbed one end of the big mat.
Quick as they could, they rolled it up tight with the tiger stuck in the middle.
No matter how much Fang wriggled and wiggled, he was stuck too tight.
We got him, said Kim.
Moni, you were right.
Of course I was, said Moni with a gentle smile.
Now why don't you take this tiger down to the water and get rid of it?
I have a feeling we don't want him living around here anymore.
Yes Moni, said Kim.
And then he and the hunters bundled the tiger and rug into a wheelbarrow and wheeled it down the road to the ocean.
There, they traded the tiger, rug, and cart to a traveling merchant.
In exchange, they got a handful of pigs to replace the ones they'd lost.
They went back to town and shared out the pigs, and Moni finished her radishes and they all had an excellent dinner.
And Fang?
The tiger was taken deep into the jungle and set free where he could eat all he wanted without having to steal from people.
And they all lived happily ever after.
The End.
Today's story, The Bad Tiger, was a Korean folktale from the collection by Kim So-eun, adapted for you by Daniel Hines.
It was edited and produced by Ellie Hines and performed for you by me, Amanda Weldon.
If you would like to support Stories Podcast, you can leave us a 5-star review on iTunes.
Check out all of our merch available at storiespodcastcom.
Slash shop commission.
A special video on Cameo.
Follow us on Instagram, at storiespodcast, or simply tell your friends about us.
Thanks for listening!
Hey, parents.
We make stories podcast for your child and you.
And that means we'd like to know more about what your child listener thinks about our podcast.
And we'd like to know a little bit more about you, the parent.
So we're asking you to fill out a short survey with your child.
As a thank you, we'll send you a chance to win one of three $100 Amazon gift cards.
Fair deal?
Check out the survey at StarGlowSurvey.com.
That's StarGlowSurvey.com.
