The enormous cultural richness of Latin America is not only reflected in its customs and traditions but also in the stories that pass from one generation to another. Therefore, a good way to bring children closer to Latin American culture is to read them those children’s stories that reveal the ways of life of their people, their beliefs and ideas. To make your work easier, in Stage Children we have compiled some of the short Latin American stories that every child should read at least once in their life.

Latin American children’s stories to read to children

1. The wedding rooster

Well, sir, this was a very clean and elegant rooster that went to his uncle Perico’s wedding. Along the way he found a pile of garbage and moved away so as not to get dirty. But in the middle of the dump he saw a grain of corn. The rooster stopped and thought:

– If I don’t pick, I lose the granite,
and if I pick,
I stain my pick
and I won’t be able to go
to my uncle Perico’s wedding.
What I do? Peak or no peak?

At last it stung, and the beak got dirty. So she went to ask the herb:

– Yerba,
clean my beak,
I won’t be able to go
to my uncle Perico’s wedding.

But the grass said:

– I do not want.

So he went to ask the sheep:

– Sheep,
eat the yerba,
who doesn’t want to clean my beak
to go to my uncle Perico’s wedding.

But the sheep said:

– I do not want.

So he went to ask the dog:

– Dog,
bite the sheep,
who doesn’t want to eat the grass,
who doesn’t want to clean my beak
to go to my uncle Perico’s wedding.

But the dog said:

– I do not want.

Then he went to ask the stick:

– Stick.
Hit the dog,
who doesn’t want to bite the sheep,
who doesn’t want to eat the grass,
who doesn’t want to clean my beak
to go to my uncle Perico’s wedding.

But the stick said:

– I do not want.

Then he went to ask the fire:

– Fire,
burn the stick,
who doesn’t want to hit the dog
who doesn’t want to bite the sheep,
who doesn’t want to eat the grass,
who doesn’t want to clean my beak
to go to my uncle Perico’s wedding.

But the fire said:

– I do not want.

Then he went to ask the water:

– Water,
put out the fire,
he doesn’t want to burn the stick,
he doesn’t want to hit the dog,
he doesn’t want to bite the sheep,
he doesn’t want to eat the grass,
he doesn’t want to clean my beak
to go to my uncle’s wedding Parakeet.

But the water said:

– I do not want.

Then the rooster looked at his friend the sun:

– Sun,
dry the water,
who doesn’t want to put out the fire,
who doesn’t want to burn the stick,
who doesn’t want to hit the dog,
who doesn’t want to bite the sheep,
who doesn’t want to eat the grass,
who doesn’t want to clean my beak
to go to my uncle Perico’s wedding.

And the sun said:

– Right now.

Then the water said:

– No, sorry, I’ll put out the fire.

And the fire said:

– No, sorry, I’ll burn the stick.

And the stick said:

– No, sorry, I’ll hit the dog.

And the dog said:

– No, sorry, I’ll bite the sheep.

And the sheep said:

– No, sorry, I’ll eat the yerba.

And the grass said:

– No, sorry, I’ll clean his beak.

And he cleaned it. Then the rooster thanked his friend the Sun with a long quiquiriquí. And he started running to get to the wedding on time and to get some of the sweets and wine from the party.

2. Baby and Mr. Pomposo

Baby is a magnificent boy, five years old. He has very blond hair, which falls in curls down his back, as in the picture of King Edward’s Children, which the roguish Gloucester had killed in the Tower of London, to make himself king. Baby is dressed like the little duke Fauntleroy, the one who wasn’t ashamed to be seen chatting in the street with poor children. They put on short shorts tight to the knee, and a blouse with a sailor’s collar, made of white denim like the pants, and red silk stockings, and flat shoes.

Since they love him very much, he loves others very much. He is not a saint, oh no: he rolls his eyes at his French maid when she won’t give her any more sweets, and once sat cross-legged on a visit, and broke a very beautiful vase one day, running after of a cat But as soon as he sees a barefoot child he wants to give him everything he has: he brings sugar to his horse every morning, and he calls it “horse of my soul”; He spends hours and hours with the old servants, listening to their tales of their land in Africa, of when they were princes and kings and had many cows and many elephants.

And every time Baby sees his mother, he puts his arm around her waist, or sits next to her on the sidewalk, to tell her how the flowers grow, and where the light comes from in the sun and, from what the needle with which she sews is made, and if it is true that the silk of her dress is made by worms, and if the worms make the earth, as that man in glasses said yesterday in the room. And the mother tells her yes, that there are some worms that make little silk houses, long and round, called cocoons; and that it is time to go to sleep, like the little worms, which get into the cocoon, until they come out made butterflies.

And then yes, Baby looks cute, at bedtime with her little saggy socks, and her pink color, like children who take a lot of baths, and her nightgown: the same as the little angels in the paintings, a little angel without at. He hugs her mother a lot, hugs her very tightly, with her head down, as if she wanted to stay in her heart. And he jumps and turns like a ram, and he jumps on the mattress with his arms raised, to see if he can reach the blue butterfly that’s painted on the ceiling.

And he begins to swim as in the bathroom; or pretend to brush the bed rail because he’s going to be a carpenter; or he rolls around the bed like a spool, his blond curls messed up with his red stockings. But tonight Baby is very serious, and he doesn’t do somersaults like every night, nor does he hang around his mother’s neck to keep her from leaving, nor does he tell Luisa, the French girl, to tell him the story of the big eater who died alone and ate a melon. Baby close your eyes; but he is not asleep. Baby is thinking.

The truth is that Baby has a lot to think about, because she is going on a trip to Paris, like every year, so that the good doctors can tell her mother the medicines that are going to get rid of her cough, that bad cough that Baby doesn’t he likes to hear: Baby’s eyes water as soon as he hears his mother cough: and he hugs her very hard, very hard, as if he wanted to hold her. This time Baby is not going to Paris alone, because he doesn’t want to do anything alone, like the man with the melon, but with a little cousin of his who has no mother.

His little cousin Raúl goes with him to Paris, to see with him the man who calls the birds, and the Louvre store, where they give balloons to the children, and the Guiñol theater, where the dolls talk, and the policeman takes The thief is arrested, and the good man hits the bad man on the head. Raúl goes with Baby to Paris. The two of them leave together on Saturday in the big steamer, with three funnels. There in the room is Raúl with Baby, poor Raúl, who doesn’t have blonde hair, nor is he dressed as a little duke, nor is he wearing red silk stockings.

Baby and Raúl have made many visits today: they have gone with their mother to see the blind, who read with their fingers, in some books with very tall letters: they have gone to the street of the newspapers, to see how the poor children who have no house to sleep in, buy newspapers to sell them later, and pay for their house: they have gone to an elegant hotel, with servants in blue coats and yellow pants, to see a very skinny and very stiff man, mom’s uncle, Mr. Pomposo. Baby is thinking about Mr. Pomposo’s visit. Baby is thinking.

With his eyes closed, he thinks: he remembers everything. How long, how long mom’s uncle, like telegraph poles! What a large and loose fob, like a skipping rope! What an ugly pedro, like a piece of glass, the pedro of the tie! And mom wouldn’t let her move, and she put a cushion behind her back, and she put a stool at her feet! And she talked to him like they say they talk to queens! Baby remembers what the old servant said, that people talk to mom like that, because her mom is very rich, and that mom doesn’t like that, because her mom is good.

And Baby thinks back to what happened during the visit. As soon as he entered the room, Mr. Pomposo shook hands with him, as men do with fathers; he put her little hat on the bed, as if it were a holy thing, and gave her many kisses, ugly kisses, that stuck to her face, as if they were stains. And he didn’t say hello to Raúl, poor Raúl, nor did he take his hat off, nor did he give him a kiss. Raúl was tucked into an armchair, with his hat in his hand, and with very large eyes.

And then Don Pomposo got up from the red sofa: “Look, look, Baby, what I have in store for you: this costs a lot of money, Baby: this is so that you love your uncle very much.” And he took out of his pocket a keychain with about thirty keys, and he opened a drawer that smelled like what Luisa’s dresser smells like, and he brought Baby a golden saber, oh, what a saber! oh, what a great saber! and he fastened the patent leather belt around her waist, oh, what a luxurious belt! and he told her: “Come on, Baby: look in the mirror; that is a very rich saber: that is only for Baby, for the child”. And Baby, very happy, turned his head to where Raúl was, who was looking at him, looking at the saber, with his eyes bigger than ever, and with a very sad face, as if he were going to die: oh, what an ugly saber! , so ugly! Oh what a bad guy! That’s all I was thinking about Baby. Baby I was thinking.

The saber is there, on top of the dresser. Baby raises his head little by little, so that Luisa doesn’t hear him, and he sees the fist shining as if it were the sun, because the light from the lamp hits the fist completely. That was how the sabers of the generals were on the day of the procession, the same as his. He too, when he grows up, is going to be a general, with a white denim dress, and a hat with feathers, and many soldiers behind him, and he on a purple horse, like the dress the bishop had on. He has never seen purple horses, but they will send him to do it. And who sends Raúl to make horses? No one, no one: Raúl doesn’t have a mom to buy him little duke dresses: Raúl doesn’t have long guys to buy him sabers.

Baby raises her head little by little: Raúl is asleep: Luisa has gone to her room to put on scents. Baby slips out of bed, goes to the dressing table on tiptoe, raises the sword slowly, so it doesn’t make a noise… And what does Baby do, what does Baby do? She goes laughing, the rogue goes laughing! her until she reaches Raúl’s pillow, and places the golden saber on his pillow.

3. The Stinky Bears

They say that once, a bear and a she-bear were arguing. The bear said that the bear smelled bad, and the bear, for her part, claimed that it was the opposite, and that it was the bear that smelled bad.

– Look what to say that barbarity, bear! If you are the one who sucks!

– No way, bear, you should smell yourself… you’re the one that smells bad!

Since they could not reach any conclusion, they decided to find someone “impartial” who could tell which of the two was the smelly one.

– Look, bear- said the bear- There goes a fox let’s call him so he can say who is right.

The bears called the fox:

– Tell us, fox, which of the two is right? The bear says that I am the one who smells bad. And I, on the other hand, am sure that she is the one who sucks.

The fox, scared to death by the bear’s threatening gaze, sniffed him, and then the bear, and said:

– I think you’re right, bear… it’s her who smells bad.

As soon as he said this, the bear gave the fox such a tremendous blow that the poor man remained sitting in place.

– I don’t like that they lie, fox! – said the bear. Let’s see, let’s call another animal… There goes a gopher. Baby, come here!

The gopher came to the call of the bear.

– The bear says that I smell bad. I’m sure he’s the one who smells bad. What do you think?

The pocket gopher, after smelling them, said:

– Well, I think you’re right, bear… It’s the bear that smells bad.

And as soon as he said this, the bear gave the gopher a tremendous blow and left it badly injured next to the fox.

– We will have to ask for a third opinion- said the bear- Look, a coyote!

The coyote came to the call of the bears.

– You must tell us, coyote friend, which of the two smells bad…

But the animal noticed the fox and the gopher, still stunned by the blows.

– And what happened to the fox and the gopher?

– Ah… well, the fox said that it was me who smelled bad and I hit him, and the gopher said that it was the bear that was stinky and then he hit her, the bear explained.

The coyote was thoughtful. What could he do? If he said it was the bear that smelled bad, he would hit him. But if he said it was the bear, she would be the one to hit him. Then he had an idea:

– Well, notice that I’m sorry I’m not going to be able to help at all… I have a terrible constipation and I can’t smell.

And saying this, the coyote hurried away.

4. The man, the boy and the donkey

A man came along a road with his son, who was about 11 years old. They were also accompanied by a donkey that helped the man carry firewood every day. However, at that time the donkey was not carrying any weight on it and since the man was very tired, he got on the donkey.

After a while, they passed by a group of people, who stared at the man and the boy and said once they had passed:

– What a selfish man! He so comfortable on the donkey and the poor boy walking… What a cheek!

So the man, embarrassed, got off the donkey and told his son to get on. They walked like this for a good distance until they met another group of people who looked them up and down and murmured:

– What a spoiled child! His poor father, already old, walking and he so comfortable on the donkey…

So the man told the boy to get off the donkey and they began to walk, the two of them, behind the animal.

In this they meet another group of people who said:

– What a pair of fools! The two of them walking behind the donkey, which is very rested. Does it occur to anyone to go up to be more comfortable?

And the man decided that they should both ride on the donkey: his son in front and he behind. And so they walked for a while until another group of people said:

– That awful! Poor animal! Don’t you see how tired he is to carry both of them?

The man passed by, shrugged his shoulders and said to his son:

– You see, son. Never pay attention to what others say because you will never make everyone happy.

5. The Rabbit and the Tiger

One day, a small and docile rabbit was resting in a meadow when suddenly jumped on him, without his realizing it, a huge tiger.

The frightened rabbit only had time to shout:

– Don’t eat me, tiger!

The tiger was surprised, and said:

– Rabbit, I have been watching you for days, waiting patiently to choose the best moment. I’m hungry and I’m going to eat you.

The rabbit, far from giving up and even knowing that he was in serious trouble, tried the following:

– Tiger, haven’t you seen me? I’m very thin! If you eat me, I’ll barely serve you as an appetizer. Instead, I own a herd of very large and appetizing cows. Its meat is very tasty. If you spare my life, I’ll give you one so you’ll have food for several days.

The tiger then reconsidered. What if it were true? A cow would solve his problem of hunting for food for several days.

– Is what you tell me true, rabbit? Aren’t you cheating on me?

– No, no, Mr. Tiger. I wouldn’t dare deceive you. My cows are at the top of that slope, said the rabbit pointing to the top of a nearby hill. If you want, we can go there and I’ll show you.

The tiger and the rabbit headed towards the hill. When they were near the top, the tiger saw brownish lumps in the distance. The rabbit stopped and said:

– There they are, there they are! I’ll go up for them to come down. Wait here, tiger, and the cow will run down the slope. As soon as you get close to her, she grabs it.

The tiger liked the idea of ​​not having to climb the rest of the hill as he was already quite tired.

– Okay, rabbit, I’ll wait here for the cow. Be careful not to deceive me, I’ll be watching you.

The rabbit climbed to the top of the hill. But the bundles that the tiger believed to be cows were actually huge stones. The rabbit, with the help of a branch and as a lever, managed to roll one of the huge stones and shouted:

– Cow wow! Catch her, tiger!

The tiger, dazzled by the sun shining on the top of the hill, could only see an approaching shape, and when he finally realized that it was actually a stone, it was too late. He already had her on him! He started to run, but the stone went over him. He was so bruised that as soon as he could he ran away, scared, never to return.