Charlotte Sebag-Montefiore

Daniel and the Fiery Furnace

This is my adaptation of a Biblical story that appears in the Prophets section of the Old Testament. We had to leave Jerusalem, – it fell,we were not free.Thanks to our Lord Ha-Shem, three kingspreferred and favoured me. I started as a page at court.I could not eat the meat.nor indeed the fancy food,… it’sContinue reading “Daniel and the Fiery Furnace”

Sif and her Golden Hair

Sif was the wife of Thor and he was the son of Odin. Thor loved fighting with his hammer, and this meant he was often away from Asgard where the Norse gods live, as fighting was not allowed there. Norse gods had to go and fight somewhere else if they wanted to, and Thor didContinue reading “Sif and her Golden Hair”

The Cobbler and the Banker

There was a merry Cobbler oncewho sang from morn till night.‘T was joy to hear him sing his best,it was a lovely sight. His neighbour on the other handwas rarely into song.His clothes were pricey but alas,he couldn’t sleep for long. This man, a Banker, thought that sleepshould be like goods for sale,a market placeContinue reading “The Cobbler and the Banker”

It’s Hallowe’en

It was October, and the days were getting shorter. (Yes, I know that’s different in different places, and I don’t know where you are.) But that’s how it was where Susan lived. She didn’t live far from her school. Her mum and dad both worked, so Susan used to walk to and from school byContinue reading “It’s Hallowe’en”

When we dug the well

In our village there was a well. It had a chain: you lowered down the bucket to fill it up, and wound the chain round and round to bring the bucket back up again. That’s what we did when I was little, but I know that most of you will never have used a well. Continue reading “When we dug the well”

A Day in My Life – I’m a Swan

I’m very big. I like being big as other birds get out of my way! And I like being strong too! (That’s another reason to keep out of my way!) And I never miss a trick! (with my wonderful eyesight and hearing!) So you won’t get away with anything… especially as my memory is veryContinue reading “A Day in My Life – I’m a Swan”

Winter and Summer

Once upon a time, there was a girl called Persephone. The ancient Greeks believed she was the daughter of their chief god, Zeus. Her mother was Demeter, the goddess of the harvest. Persephone was very beautiful, and lots of gods wanted to marry her. So did Hades, who ruled the Underworld. It was gloomy andContinue reading “Winter and Summer”

The King who did not like Fighting Battles

Once upon a time there was a King who did not like fighting battles. As he said to his Queen, the soldiers expected him to be in front, it was very frightening, and he didn’t want to be there, As well as this, a lot of people would get killed and hurt, and a lotContinue reading “The King who did not like Fighting Battles”

Esther

This is based on a Biblical story. It has been approved by the late Senior Rabbi Dr. Abraham Levy PhD., and by Dayan Kada. It is central to the Jewish Festival of Purim, which is celebrated at this time. I was a poor and orphaned girlthank goodness I had kin.My uncle Mordecai was nicehe likedContinue reading “Esther”

How Loki was punished

My life was never easy. I didn’t really know if I was a god or a giant. (You see, my father was a giant, and my mother a goddess.) Being the god of fire didn’t help either: everyone knows that sometimes fire warms you up and sometimes it burns down your house and fields andContinue reading “How Loki was punished”