Usborne Young Reading: The Maggic Pear Tree

This story is about selfish Shen, a hungry beggar, a kind woman, some YUMMY pears and a little bit of magic. Shen lived in a little house with a big garden. There was a tree in the garden. The tree grew sweet, golden pears. There were too many pears for Shen. But he didn't want to share them. "I'll sell them at the market,"he thought."I'll make lots of money." So Shen took a box of pears to the market. "Pears for sale!" A beggar stopped to look. "Please may I have a pear?"he said. "Can you pay?"asked Shen. "I don't have any money,"said the beggar. "Then go away!"shouted Shen. "How mean!" A kind woman heard Shen shouting. "Can't you give away one pear?"she asked Shen. "That man is hungry and you have enough to share." "No!"shouted Shen. "Then I'll buy a pear and give it to him myself,"said the woman. "Thank you,"said the beggar. "That's kind of you." He ate the pear quickly. He spat out the seeds. "Mother, yummy,"he said happily. "Now, it's my turn to give you a pear." "Aha!"cried Shen. "You DO have money!" "No,"said the beggar. The woman shook her head."How will you get another pear?" The beggar smiled."I'll show you,"he said. A crowd came to watch. The beggar dug a hole and dropped in the seeds. "May I have some hot water?"he said. A tea-seller gave him a teapot. The beggar poured hot tea into the hole...The crowd gasped."Look, a shoot!" The shoot grew and grew."It must be magic!" It grew into a tree, with green leaves and golden pears. The beggar picked a pear and gave it to the woman. "Mother, yummy,"she said happily. The beggar turned to the crowd,"Does anyone else want a pear?" "Me!me!me!" they shouted. The beggar picked pear after pear. Soon the tree was bare. Everyone got one-even selfish Shen. Now no one was watching the beggar. He chopped down the tree and strolled away. Suddenly, Shen looked around. All his pears had gone! And their wooden box was chopped to pieces. "It was a trick,"he yelled. "Those pears the beggar picked - they were mine! The beggar turned my box into a tree by magic." But the crowd just laughed. "Next time, perhaps you'll be less selfish,"they said.