Welcome to Easy Stories in English, the podcast that will take your English from OK to Good, and from Good to Great!
Learning a language is hard. With Easy Stories in English, you can learn English the natural way, without studying lists of vocabulary or complicated grammar rules. Every week, Ariel Goodbody, author and language teacher, will present a story adapted to your level of English. The stories will be hilarious, dramatic, and entertaining, but never too difficult. If you’re learning English and are tired of boring textbooks, then this is the podcast for you.
- All levels
- L1 - Beginner
- L2 - Pre-Intermediate
- L3 - Intermediate
- L4 - Advanced
The Shadow Club #11: Fighting Cats and Fighting Bulls
‘Here you go,’ I said, giving her the book. ‘Los Gatos Luchadores. You like cats, right?’ Willow looked up at the word ‘cat’, and then her eyes grew wide. ‘Fighting Cats!’ She grabbed the book out of my hands and immediately started reading it. It was a Spanish translation of a Fighting...
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The Tightrope Walker
The people began to shout and cheer: ‘You can do it!’ ‘He’s three quarters of the way across!’ ‘Just a bit more!’ Everyone’s hearts were open to the tightrope walker. They did not imagine him dying now. They imagined him making it to the end. They imagined the feeling,...
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The Shadow Club #10: An Easy Game
So Saturday came, and I woke up nice and early to go to the football match. Normally, I’d be excited, but today my stomach clenched and I felt tired before the game even began. ‘I just have to make it through this,’ I told myself. ‘It’s half term afterwards and...
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Misty the Snake
Why could nobody understand it? I loved Marmite, and so did my pet snake, Misty. Well, she wasn’t my pet. She was my ex-boyfriend’s. But I loved her more than him. And she loved me, too. As soon as that letter had come through the door, I knew it. I...
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The Shadow Club #9: Now We Know
A scream came from the school, interrupting her. I jumped off the wall. ‘That was Max!’ We ran inside and up the stairs to the library. I threw my bag off my shoulder, pulling out my golf club. I saw Larry taking out his boxing gloves and Bethany getting her boots...
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Big Peter and Little Peter
As Little Peter rode his horse, he held the basket so that the priest could not get out. ‘Help! Help!’ shouted the priest. ‘Shh!’ said Little Peter. ‘Do you hear that?’ They were by a river, and the priest listened to the water. ‘Most baskets do not talk, so if you can talk,...
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The Shadow Club #8: Ready to Fight
The door to the classroom opened, and we all turned around. Mr Burne stood there. Then he saw Bethany, who was still holding his notebook in the air like, well, like a weapon. She gasped, but it was like she couldn’t move. None of us could move. For a...
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The King’s New Clothes
‘My dear king,’ said the first brother. ‘We have travelled through the whole country, and we have heard all sorts of stories about your fantastic outfits.’ ‘You have?’ said the King, satisfied that his efforts were being seen. ‘How wonderful.’ ‘We have a proposal,’ said the second brother. ‘We wish to...
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The Shadow Club #7: A Group Project
Later on, in history class, Mr Pearson announced we were going to do a group project, to prepare for our coursework. These teachers just wouldn’t give us a break, would they? I knew that we were in year 10, but it wasn’t like our exams were tomorrow! ‘You’ll be working...
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Jack and the Beanstalk
In the morning, he noticed there was less light in his room than usual, and when he went to the window, he saw why. Overnight, a beanstalk had grown, and it was huge! It rose above him like a tower, thick as an oak, and reached far away into...
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The Shadow Club #6: Just a Stick
‘Y-yeah, I… Oh no!’ He turned around suddenly, and started shaking with fear. I looked where he was looking, and there it was. The shadow was long, tall and thin, like a snake standing on its tail.
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A Holiday Gone Wrong
I flew several feet into the air, still unable to scream, and I landed precisely on my right leg. CRACK Pain exploded through me, and now the screaming came. It felt like my leg had been torn apart, and when I looked down, I saw the white flash of bone. I...
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The Shadow Club #5: Bullies or Heroes?
I did my best. If I didn’t know the answer to something, I just thought of my own name. I made some wonderful new elements: Rickium, Larrium and Maxium. I wasn’t going to get any marks for them, but at least I had some fun. As soon as we came...
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Why You Must Read (Introduction to my new book)
‘Why do I need to read in English?’ My students often ask me this. They think, ‘I go to classes, I do my homework, I watch films in English. Why should I read books?’ Actually, reading is the best way to improve your English. I will tell you why.
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The Shadow Club #4: Hunting for Shadows
‘Hey, what are you three losers up to?’ I turned around. Bethany was standing right next to us. She was the only girl in our team, and none of the other boys liked her very much. Sure, when we were on the field, we were a team, but it was...
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The Little Frog with the Big Mouth (Pre-Intermediate)
One day, the Little Frog with the Big Mouth woke up and thought, ‘I don’t feel like eating flies today. I have eaten flies every day of my life. How about a change?’ But the Little Frog with the Big Mouth had never eaten anything else before. He didn’t know...
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The Shadow Club #3: A Strange Kind of Club
‘Shadows,’ said Max. ‘Let’s call them shadows. They’re all dark, and they change shape. Just like a shadow.’ ‘Max,’ I said, ‘this isn’t a video game, you know.’ ‘I know, but we’ve got to have a name for them.’ ‘Ugh,’ I said. ‘Fine then. We’ll call them shadows.’
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The Shadow Club #2: Shadows and Lightning
‘What’s up, Coach?’ ‘Bad news, I’m afraid. Although the weather is lovely today, there’s a storm forecast for Saturday. A big one. A bit of rain might be OK, but a storm… Unless a miracle happens, I’m going to have to cancel the match.’ My stomach clenched again, and I felt...
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The Shadow Club #1: A Boring Life
Jemima started hissing. ‘I agree, Jemima. He’s being a real—whoa!’ I turned around and saw why Jemima was so angry. Next to her, there was something. It was big and had lots of black hair, sharp teeth and claws. They made Jemima look like a mouse. The monster was moving slowly...
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Butcher Boy George
As he walked through the shadows of the trees, he saw an orange glow in the distance, shining like a star. It was a fire, and at once he headed towards it, as his feet were cold and his belly was empty. ‘But wait!’ thought Butcher Boy George. ‘What if...
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Love Like Salt
Satisfied, he asked the third daughter, ‘How much do you love me, my dear?’ The third daughter was more creative than the other two. She often got into trouble by saying clever things. So she said, ‘I love you like fresh meat loves salt.’ Her father frowned. ‘You don’t love me at...
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The Tooth Fairy
‘Can you replace it this time?’ said Alex. ‘I know you did it last time, but I’m so tired.’ ‘I didn’t do it last time,’ said Kayla. ‘Huh?’ said Alex. ‘You did! Last time, I went and looked under the pillow, but the tooth had already been replaced.’ ‘I’m telling you, I...
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The Monsters Inside Us
Everyone thinks I’m crazy, and they don’t even know about the voices inside my head. Well, it’s just one voice, really. He’s called Cam, and he’s been with me all my life. He’s the little voice that tells me what I should be doing with my life. He tells me...
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The Most Wanted Woman in Town
‘The Most Wanted Woman in Town has decided to have a competition,’ he announced. The people all went quiet. ‘Lady Rae knows that you all want many things from her. But she will not give her prizes to any man or woman. You must win the key to her heart. And...
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Aldar Kose’s Magic Coat
One day, Aldar was riding through a field. He was wearing his cheap coat full of holes, and he was very cold. His hands and feet hurt, and his nose was blue. He shivered and shivered. He wanted to find a yurt. In the yurt it would be warm and...
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The Princess Who Carried a House
One day, the King and Queen had a beautiful daughter. Her birth was easy, but still, the room filled with shocked cries when she came out. Why? She had no scars, extra limbs or unusual marks, but in her tiny hand she held a wooden house, in the traditional...
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The Mermaid of Zennor
One day, the mysterious woman noticed Mathew. After church ended, she smiled at him, and looked at the door. He followed her, and this time she walked slowly, so that he did not lose her. However, he could still not work up the courage to walk beside her. Finally, she...
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Beelzebuddy, the Cleaning Demon Chapter 2
There was a knock at the door, and Rhiana slowly climbed down the stairs. She didn’t have high hopes for Beelzebuddy’s success, but she certainly wasn’t expecting to open the door and find her ex-lover standing there. Panic seized her stomach. She felt like she was going to be sick. ‘Go...
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Beelzebuddy, the Cleaning Demon Chapter 1
‘Why, hello there! I’m Beelzebuddy, or “Buddy” for short! And I am very short… At your service. No spill, no stain, no mess is too much for me to clean! Just give me a cloth and a bucket and I’ll get right to work!’ ‘What are you talking about?’ said...
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The Singing Widow
Life cannot continue in such a way, floating on a sea of misery. So one day, the widow cried her final tear, closed her eyes, and never woke up again. That is, she never woke up in the human world. Of course, she went to the land of the dead,...
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A Rather Large Cat
‘Kitty, pretty kitty!’ cried one of the trolls. ‘Does kitty want a sausage?’ The “kitty” did not want a sausage. The kitty wanted to get a good night’s sleep, after so much travelling, and had no plans of eating anyone. But when he turned over and saw the troll holding...
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Taken by the Fairies
’Will you marry me?’ The beautiful man laughed. ‘You don’t even know my name.’ ‘What is your name?’ ‘Jasper.’ Harold sighed. ‘A wonderful name. So, Jasper, will you marry me?’
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Head in the Clouds
One day, Dai received a gift from his sister: it was a pot of lamp oil. Over the next few weeks, as Dai used the pot, he noticed it had a strange quality. No matter how much oil he used, the pot was always full the next day. That night,...
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The Raven’s Heart
But there was one thing that Zelda could never do. Morg had felt her confusion, as they had shared the kiss. The magic could change Morg’s appearance, but it could not change the way her body felt. Zelda had felt her heavy arms, her sharp bones and rough skin,...
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Dear Heart Chapter 5
‘Fergus.’ She took my chin and pulled my face towards hers. ‘There’s a simple way to get around all this. I don’t want to fire Cassandra, of course.’ She was moving closer. Her breath smelt of whisky and cigarettes. My heart screamed at me to get out. ‘So just...
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Dear Heart Chapter 4
Our classes are over. Clearly, you’re doing fine without me, and I’ll just break your ‘nice pen’ if you try to help me. We’re colleagues, anyway. Let’s keep it that way. The handwriting was completely different, back to being a drunken spider, and it only got messier as my tears...
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Dear Heart Chapter 3
‘Now,’ she said, pulling off her gloves. ‘You still have to teach me about poetry. I really don’t know very much. Do we write with a pen, or our bodies?’ I grinned. ‘We can use both.’ And we did.
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Dear Heart Chapter 2
‘You have such soft hands,’ she said. ‘You like that?’ ‘Yes.’ She moved her thumb over the back of my hand, but she continued to look in my eyes. ‘And your lips are, too…’ I leant forward, ready to kiss her. And then the door to her apartment flew open.
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Dear Heart Chapter 1
And there it was: PING! Attraction. Here’s the thing. When I told you that I don’t wear makeup and lift weights, you probably assumed I only liked women. And you wouldn’t be wrong, 99% of the time. But that 1% of the time, I see men who just have something...
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Cacica Gaitana, an Indigenous Hero
Pedro de Añasco was a coward. He didn’t know how he had gotten here, in the hills of South America, almost 5000 miles from his home in Spain, but here he was, standing outside the perfectly-white house of Sebastián de Belalcázar.
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