Ages 9-12
Stories suggested for ages 9–12, with longer journeys, competing motives and difficult choices. Some contain frightening scenes or violence described in the page’s guidance. These age suggestions support selection and discussion; they do not make every traditional story equally suitable for every reader.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Ten Thousand Devils
Kept for New Year by Prince Han, a poor and awkward relative reveals that he must call the roll of every evil spirit in Korea, and holds it in the guest hall.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
The Awful Little Goblin
An uninvited, silent boy appears at a Seoul nobleman's feast. When the guests try to force him out, even ten strong men cannot move him.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Pigling and Her Proud Sister
Bullied by her stepmother and called Pigling, a magistrate’s daughter gets help from pigeons, a sooty imp and a kindly black cow when given impossible tasks.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Old White Whiskers and Mr. Bunny
Caught on the frozen river by the proudest tiger in Korea, a hungry rabbit promises him a royal dinner if he will just lie still with his eyes shut.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Old Timber Top
A stingy lumber dealer who wasted his fortune flattering a rich relative in Seoul is turned into a bull at a country inn by four sticks the fairies left there.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Haunted Houses
A poor man in old Seoul tests two haunted houses with his brothers and meets ghostly harp music, a glowing blue blade and red-eyed dogs leading demons.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Fancha and the Magpie
A Manchu emperor who wants heavenly ancestors hears an old storyteller’s tale of three sky maidens, a magpie’s red fruit and a boy saved in a forest.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
East Light and the Bridge of Fishes
A boy saved as a baby by pigs and mares grows into a great archer, and when a jealous king hunts him, the fish of a river form a bridge for him.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Cursed by the Snake
When servants kill a giant snake found coiled in a flour jar and burn its body, deadly smoke fills a minister’s mansion and leaves the land cursed.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Cheung Puk-chang, the Seer
A brilliant scholar who learns any language at a hearing tells his worried aunt exactly where her overdue servant is, and why he is being beaten.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Cat-Kin and the Queen Mother
A farmer’s daughter named for a pussy willow calls up the Heavenly Queen Mother, who carries her by dragon chariot to the Island of Gems.
Korean Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
A Visit from the Shades
A palace secretary dreams of his dead mother visiting a shaman's ceremony. A servant's matching account convinces him to change his offerings.