| Once upon a time, there was a duck that was brooding. One day her eggs began to hatch. One by one they opened up, except one that was still in the nest unhatched. |
| Mother Duck brooded the big egg many days. Finally, it opened up. The bird that came out was different from the other ducklings. It was a big, grey bird. Mother Duck was very disappointed, but she tried to love him as much as she loved her other ducklings. |
| As usual, Mother Duck took her ducklings to the poultry yard to meet the other birds. But, all the birds rejected the ugly duckling. Everybody thought he was too ugly. |
| Poor ugly duckling was very sad, and escaped from the yard. He flew many hours until he reached a lagoon. He spent many days there, bearing the insults and bad jokes of a flock of wild ducks. One day a group of hunters came and killed many of the wild ducks. Ugly duckling was very lucky and managed to escape. |
| The ugly duckling flew over fields and hills, and late at night reached a poor hut. The peasant, the cat and the hen that lived there also rejected him. |
| The ugly duckling felt like swimming and flying. He wanted to feel the water over his feathers. He flew away from the hut, and found a beautiful lake with blue water. He spent many lonely months there. The few birds that passed by never wanted to become his friend. |
| The ugly duckling managed to survive the freezing winter. Spring slowly came. He was happy to see the sunshine again. Three white, royal birds came out of the forest. They were three magnificent swans. The poor ugly duckling expected to be mocked once again. As he swam towards them, he saw his image reflected in the water. He was amazed: he was a beautiful swan just like them. |
