ollie.html

OLLIE FORGOT

OLLIE FORGOT is based on an old English folk tale I found in a thick, dusty reference book at the library. I enjoyed the odd twist in the story--that whatever Ollie last heard became the next thing he said and it was always exactly the wrong thing to say at that moment. But in the original folk tale, the ending is not a happy one. You will recall that in my story, what Ollie says in the end helps a man save his house from burning. Ollie becomes a hero. But in the original tale, the boy is blamed for starting the fire because of what he is heard to say. He is sent to prison and condemned to die. Ouch! I think maybe folks told tales like that to children long ago as a way of encouraging them to do their best about remembering what they are told. What do you think?

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