The wonderful adventure of Nils with the wild ones. School encyclopedia

Nils' adventures began when a dwarf bewitched him, turning him into a tiny boy.

Nils went in search of the gnome and ended up in a poultry yard. Here he discovered that he understood the language of birds and animals.

Wild geese flew north over the poultry yard and carried Martin's pet goose with them. Trying to hold him, Nils wrapped his arms around his neck, and soon they were high in the sky.

During the journey, Fox Smirre wanted to kidnap Martin, and Nils saved him. For this, a flock of wild geese allowed him to stay with them, and the boy continued his journey.

Akki Knebekaise's flock went to Glimmingen Castle. From the stork Ermenrich, the geese learned that the castle was in danger: rats had occupied it, displacing the former inhabitants. Nils, with the help of a magic pipe that belonged to the Dwarf, carries the rats into the water and frees the castle from them.

On the day of the great gathering of birds and animals, Nils saw a lot of interesting things. On this day, birds and animals make a truce with each other. Nils saw the games of hares, heard the singing of wood grouse, the fight of deer, and the dancing of cranes. He witnessed the punishment of the fox Smirra, who broke the law of the world by killing a sparrow.

Smirre the fox still pursues them. He offers Akka to leave the pack alone in exchange for Nils. But the geese do not give up the boy. The boy is kidnapped by crows, he helps save their silver from Smirre, and the crows release him. As the flock flies over the sea, Nils meets the inhabitants of the underwater city. The boy gets acquainted with the nature of Lapland and the way of life of the country's inhabitants.

He learns from the eagle how to break the spell.

Returning home, Nils removes the spell from himself, passing it on to the gosling Uxie, who dreams of remaining small forever, and again becomes the same boy. He says goodbye to the pack and starts going to school. Now he only has good grades in his diary.

Chapter I. Forest gnome

1

In the small Swedish village of Vestmenheg, there once lived a boy named Nils. In appearance - a boy like a boy.

And there was no trouble with him.

During lessons, he counted crows and caught twos, destroyed birds' nests in the forest, teased geese in the yard, chased chickens, threw stones at cows, and pulled the cat by the tail, as if the tail was a rope from a doorbell.

He lived like this until he was twelve years old. And then an extraordinary incident happened to him.

That's how it was.

One Sunday, father and mother gathered for a fair in a neighboring village. Nils couldn't wait for them to leave.

“Let’s go quickly! – Nils thought, looking at his father’s gun, which was hanging on the wall. “The boys will burst with envy when they see me with a gun.”

But his father seemed to guess his thoughts.

- Look, not a single step from the house! - he said. - Open your textbook and come to your senses. Do you hear?

“I hear you,” Nils answered, and thought to himself: “So I’ll spend Sunday studying!”

“Study, son, study,” said the mother.

She even took out a textbook from the shelf herself, put it on the table and pulled up a chair.

And the father counted out ten pages and strictly ordered:

“So that he knows everything by heart by the time we return.” I'll check it myself.

Finally, father and mother left.

“It’s good for them, they walk so merrily! – Nils sighed heavily. “I definitely fell into a mousetrap with these lessons!”

Well, what can you do! Nils knew that his father was not to be trifled with. He sighed again and sat down at the table. True, he was looking not so much at the book as at the window. After all, it was much more interesting!

According to the calendar, it was still March, but here in the south of Sweden, spring had already managed to outdo winter. Water ran merrily in the ditches. The buds on the trees have swelled. The beech forest straightened its branches, numb in the winter cold, and now stretched upward, as if it wanted to reach the blue spring sky.

And right under the window, chickens walked with an important air, sparrows jumped and fought, geese splashed in muddy puddles. Even the cows locked in the barn sensed spring and mooed loudly, as if asking: “You-let us out, you-let us out!”

Nils also wanted to sing, and scream, and splash in puddles, and fight with the neighboring boys. He turned away from the window in frustration and stared at the book. But he didn't read much. For some reason, the letters began to jump before his eyes, the lines either merged or scattered... Nils himself did not notice how he fell asleep.

Who knows, maybe Nils would have slept all day if some rustling had not woken him up.

Nils raised his head and became wary.

The mirror that hung above the table reflected the entire room. There is no one in the room except Nils... Everything seems to be in its place, everything is in order...

And suddenly Nils almost screamed. Someone opened the lid of the chest!

The mother kept all her jewelry in the chest. There lay the outfits that she wore in her youth - wide skirts made of homespun peasant cloth, bodices embroidered with colored beads; starched caps as white as snow, silver buckles and chains.

Mother did not allow anyone to open the chest without her, and she did not let Nils come close to it. And there’s nothing to even say about the fact that she could leave the house without locking the chest! There has never been such a case. And even today - Nils remembered this very well - his mother returned from the threshold twice to pull the lock - did it click well?

Who opened the chest?

Maybe while Nils was sleeping, a thief got into the house and is now hiding somewhere here, behind the door or behind the closet?

Nils held his breath and peered into the mirror without blinking.

What is that shadow there in the corner of the chest? Here it moved... Now it crawled along the edge... A mouse? No, it doesn't look like a mouse...

Nils couldn't believe his eyes. There was a little man sitting on the edge of the chest. He seemed to have stepped out of a Sunday calendar picture. On her head is a wide-brimmed hat, a black caftan is decorated with a lace collar and cuffs, stockings at the knees are tied with lush bows, and silver buckles glitter on red morocco shoes.

“But it’s a gnome! – Nils guessed. “A real gnome!”

Mother often told Nils about gnomes. They live in the forest. They can speak human, bird, and animal. They know about all the treasures that were buried in the ground at least a hundred or a thousand years ago. If the gnomes want it, flowers will bloom in the snow in winter; if they want it, the rivers will freeze in the summer.

Well, there’s nothing to be afraid of the gnome. What harm could such a tiny creature do?

Moreover, the dwarf did not pay any attention to Nils. He seemed to see nothing except a velvet sleeveless vest, embroidered with small freshwater pearls, that lay in the chest at the very top.

While the gnome was admiring the intricate ancient pattern, Nils was already wondering what kind of trick he could play with his amazing guest.

It would be nice to push it into the chest and then slam the lid. And here's what else you can do...

Without turning his head, Nils looked around the room. In the mirror she was all there in front of him in full view. A coffee pot, a teapot, bowls, pots were lined up in strict order on the shelves... By the window there was a chest of drawers filled with all sorts of things... But on the wall - next to my father's gun - was a fly net. Just what you need!

Nils carefully slid to the floor and pulled the net off the nail.

One swing - and the gnome hid in the net like a caught dragonfly.

His wide-brimmed hat was knocked to one side, his feet were entangled in the skirts of his caftan. He floundered at the bottom of the net and waved his arms helplessly. But as soon as he managed to rise a little, Nils shook the net, and the gnome fell down again.

“Listen, Nils,” the dwarf finally begged, “let me go free!” I'll give you a gold coin for this, as big as the button on your shirt.

Nils thought for a moment.

“Well, that’s probably not bad,” he said and stopped swinging the net.

Clinging to the sparse fabric, the gnome deftly climbed up. He had already grabbed the iron hoop, and his head appeared above the edge of the net...

Then it occurred to Nils that he had sold himself short. In addition to the gold coin, he could demand that the dwarf teach his lessons for him. You never know what else you can think of! The gnome will now agree to everything! When you're sitting in a net, you can't argue.

And Nils shook the net again.

But then suddenly someone gave him such a slap in the face that the net fell out of his hands, and he rolled head over heels into a corner.

2

For a minute Nils lay motionless, then, groaning and groaning, he stood up.

The gnome is already gone. The chest was closed, and the net hung in its place - next to his father's gun.

“I dreamed all this, or what? – thought Nils. - No, my right cheek is burning, as if an iron was passed over it. This gnome hit me so hard! Of course, father and mother will not believe that the gnome visited us. They will say - all your inventions, so as not to learn your lessons. No, no matter how you look at it, we must sit down to read the book again!”

Nils took two steps and stopped. Something happened to the room. The walls of their small house moved apart, the ceiling went high, and the chair on which Nils always sat rose above him like an impregnable mountain. To climb it, Nils had to climb the twisted leg, like a gnarled oak trunk. The book was still on the table, but it was so huge that Nils could not see a single letter at the top of the page. He lay down on his stomach on the book and crawled from line to line, from word to word. He was literally exhausted while reading one phrase.

- What is this? So you won’t even get to the end of the page by tomorrow! – Nils exclaimed and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

And suddenly he saw that a tiny man was looking at him from the mirror - exactly the same as the gnome who was caught in his net. Only dressed differently: in leather pants, a vest and a plaid shirt with large buttons.

- Hey, what do you want here? – Nils shouted and shook his fist at the little man.

The little man also shook his fist at Nils.

Nils put his hands on his hips and stuck out his tongue. The little man also put his hands on his hips and also stuck his tongue out at Nils.

Nils stamped his foot. And the little man stamped his foot.

Nils jumped, spun like a top, waved his arms, but the little man did not lag behind him. He also jumped, also spun like a top and waved his arms.

Then Nils sat down on the book and cried bitterly. He realized that the dwarf had bewitched him and that the little man who looked at him from the mirror was himself, Nils Holgerson.

“Or maybe this is a dream after all?” – thought Nils.

He closed his eyes tightly, then - to wake up completely - he pinched himself as hard as he could and, after waiting a minute, opened his eyes again. No, he wasn't sleeping. And the hand he pinched really hurt.

Nils got close to the mirror and buried his nose in it. Yes, it's him, Nils. Only now he was no bigger than a sparrow.

“We need to find the gnome,” Nils decided. “Maybe the dwarf was just joking?”

Nils slid down the leg of the chair onto the floor and began to search all the corners. He crawled under the bench, under the closet - now it was not difficult for him - he even climbed into a mouse hole, but the gnome was nowhere to be found.

There was still hope - the gnome could hide in the yard.

Nils ran out into the hallway. Where are his shoes? They should stand near the door. And Nils himself, and his father and mother, and all the peasants in Vestmenheg, and in all the villages of Sweden, always leave their shoes at the doorstep. The shoes are wooden. People wear them only on the street, but rent them at home.

But how will he, so small, cope now with his large, heavy shoes?

And then Nils saw a pair of tiny shoes in front of the door. At first he was happy, and then he was afraid. If the dwarf even bewitched the shoes, it means that he is not going to lift the spell from Nils!

No, no, we need to find the gnome as soon as possible! We must ask him, beg him! Never, never again will Nils hurt anyone! He will become the most obedient, most exemplary boy...

Nils put his feet into his shoes and slipped through the door. It's good that it was slightly open. Would he be able to reach the latch and push it aside!

Near the porch, on an old oak board thrown from one edge of the puddle to the other, a sparrow was jumping. As soon as the sparrow saw Nils, he jumped even faster and chirped at the top of his sparrow throat. And - amazing thing! – Nils understood him perfectly.

- Look at Nils! - the sparrow shouted. - Look at Nils!

- Cuckoo! - the rooster crowed cheerfully. - Let's throw him into the river!

And the chickens flapped their wings and clucked vyingly:

- It serves him right! It serves him right!

The geese surrounded Nils on all sides and, stretching their necks, hissed in his ear:

- Good! Well, that's good! What, are you afraid now? Are you afraid?

And they pecked him, pinched him, gouged him with their beaks, pulled him by the arms and legs.

Poor Nils would have had a very bad time if a cat had not appeared in the yard at that time. Noticing the cat, the chickens, geese and ducks immediately scattered and began to rummage in the ground, looking as if they were not interested in anything in the world except worms and last year’s grains.

And Nils was delighted with the cat as if it were his own.

“Dear cat,” he said, “you know all the nooks and crannies, all the holes, all the holes in our yard.” Please tell me where I can find the gnome? He couldn't have gone far.

The cat did not answer immediately. He sat down, wrapped his tail around his front paws and looked at the boy. It was a huge black cat, with a large white spot on its chest. His smooth fur glistened in the sun. The cat looked quite good-natured. He even retracted his claws and closed his yellow eyes with a tiny, tiny stripe in the middle.

- Mrr, mrr! “Of course, I know where to find the gnome,” the cat spoke in a gentle voice. - But it remains to be seen whether I will tell you or not...

- Kitty, cat, golden mouth, you have to help me! Can't you see that the dwarf has bewitched me?

The cat opened his eyes slightly. A green, angry light flashed within them, but the cat still purred affectionately.

- Why should I help you? - he said. “Maybe because you put a wasp in my ear?” Or because you set my fur on fire? Or because you pulled my tail every day? A?

“And I can still pull your tail!” - Nils shouted. And, forgetting that the cat was twenty times larger than himself, he stepped forward.

What happened to the cat? His eyes sparkled, his back arched, his fur stood on end, and sharp claws emerged from his soft fluffy paws. It even seemed to Nils that it was some kind of unprecedented wild animal that jumped out of the forest thicket. And yet Nils did not back down. He took another step... Then the cat knocked Nils over with one jump and pinned him to the ground with his front paws.

- Help, help! – Nils shouted with all his might. But his voice was now no louder than that of a mouse. And there was no one to help him out.

Nils realized that the end had come for him and closed his eyes in horror.

Suddenly the cat retracted its claws, released Nils from its paws and said:

- Okay, that's enough for the first time. If your mother had not been such a good housewife and had not given me milk morning and evening, you would have had a bad time. For her sake I will let you live.

With these words, the cat turned and walked away as if nothing had happened, purring quietly, as befits a good house cat.

And Nils stood up, shook the dirt off his leather pants and trudged to the end of the yard. There he climbed onto the ledge of the stone fence, sat down, dangling his tiny feet in tiny shoes, and thought.

What will be next?! Father and mother will be back soon! How surprised they will be to see their son! The mother, of course, will cry, and the father may say: that’s what Nils needs! Then neighbors from all over the area will come and start looking at it and gasping... What if someone steals it to show it to onlookers at the fair? The boys will laugh at him!.. Oh, how unfortunate he is! How unfortunate! In the whole wide world, there is probably no more unhappy person than him!

His parents’ poor house, pressed to the ground by a sloping roof, had never seemed so big and beautiful to him, and their cramped courtyard had never seemed so spacious.

Somewhere above Nils' head, wings began to rustle. Wild geese were flying from south to north. They flew high in the sky, stretched out in a regular triangle, but when they saw their relatives - domestic geese - they descended lower and shouted:

- Fly with us! Fly with us! We're flying north to Lapland! To Lapland!

The domestic geese became agitated, cackled, and flapped their wings, as if they were trying to see if they could fly. But the old goose - she was the grandmother of a good half of the geese - ran around them and shouted:

- You've gone crazy! You've gone crazy! Don't do anything stupid! You are not some tramps, you are respectable domestic geese!

And, raising her head, she screamed into the sky:

- We’re good here too! We feel good here too!

The wild geese descended even lower, as if looking for something in the yard, and suddenly - all at once - soared into the sky.

- Ha-ga-ha! Ha-ha-ha! - they shouted. -Are these geese? These are some pathetic chickens! Stay in your coop!

Even the eyes of the domestic geese turned red from anger and resentment. They had never heard such an insult before.

Only a young white goose, lifting its head up, quickly ran through the puddles.

- Wait for me! Wait for me! - he shouted to the wild geese. - I'm flying with you! With you!

“But this is Martin, my mother’s best goose,” thought Nils. “Good luck, he’ll actually fly away!”

- Stop, stop! – Nils shouted and rushed after Martin.

Nils barely caught up with him. He jumped up and, wrapping his arms around the long goose neck, hung on it with his whole body. But Martin didn’t even feel it, as if Nils wasn’t there. He flapped his wings vigorously - once, twice - and, without expecting it, he flew.

Before Nils realized what had happened, they were already high in the sky.

Selma Lagerlöf

Nils' Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese

Chapter I. FOREST GNOME

In the small Swedish village of Vestmenheg, there once lived a boy named Nils. In appearance - a boy like a boy.

And there was no trouble with him.

He lived like this until he was twelve years old. And then an extraordinary incident happened to him.

That's how it was.

One Sunday, father and mother gathered for a fair in a neighboring village. Nils couldn't wait for them to leave.

“Let’s go quickly! - Nils thought, looking at his father’s gun, which was hanging on the wall. “The boys will burst with envy when they see me with a gun.”

But his father seemed to guess his thoughts.

Look, not a step out of the house! - he said. - Open your textbook and come to your senses. Do you hear?

“I hear,” Nils answered, and thought to himself: “So I’ll start spending Sunday on lessons!”

Study, son, study,” said the mother.

She even took out a textbook from the shelf herself, put it on the table and pulled up a chair.

And the father counted out ten pages and strictly ordered:

So that by the time we return he knows everything by heart. I'll check it myself.

Finally, father and mother left.

“It’s good for them, they walk so merrily! - Nils sighed heavily. “I definitely fell into a mousetrap with these lessons!”

Who knows, maybe Nils would have slept all day if some rustling had not woken him up.

Nils raised his head and became wary.

The mirror that hung above the table reflected the entire room. There is no one in the room except Nils... Everything seems to be in its place, everything is in order...

And suddenly Nils almost screamed. Someone opened the lid of the chest!

Who opened the chest?

Maybe while Nils was sleeping, a thief got into the house and is now hiding somewhere here, behind the door or behind the closet?

Nils held his breath and peered into the mirror without blinking.

What is that shadow there in the corner of the chest? Here it moved... Now it crawled along the edge... A mouse? No, it doesn't look like a mouse...

Nils couldn't believe his eyes. There was a little man sitting on the edge of the chest. He seemed to have stepped out of a Sunday calendar picture. On his head is a wide-brimmed hat, a black caftan is decorated with a lace collar and cuffs, stockings at the knees are tied with lush bows, and silver buckles glitter on red morocco shoes.

“But it’s a gnome! - Nils guessed. “A real gnome!”

Mother often told Nils about gnomes. They live in the forest. They can speak human, bird, and animal. They know about all the treasures that were buried in the ground at least a hundred or a thousand years ago. If the gnomes want it, the flowers will bloom in the snow in winter; if they want it, the rivers will freeze in the summer.

Well, there’s nothing to be afraid of the gnome. What harm could such a tiny creature do?

Moreover, the dwarf did not pay any attention to Nils. He seemed to see nothing except a velvet sleeveless vest, embroidered with small freshwater pearls, that lay in the chest at the very top.

While the gnome was admiring the intricate ancient pattern, Nils was already wondering what kind of trick he could play with his amazing guest.

It would be nice to push it into the chest and then slam the lid. And here's what else you can do...

Nils carefully slid to the floor and pulled the net off the nail.

One swing - and the gnome hid in the net like a caught dragonfly.

Listen, Nils,” the dwarf finally begged, “let me go free!” I'll give you a gold coin for this, as big as the button on your shirt.

Nils thought for a moment.

Well, that’s probably not bad,” he said and stopped swinging the net.

Clinging to the sparse fabric, the gnome deftly climbed up. He had already grabbed the iron hoop, and his head appeared above the edge of the net...

And Nils shook the net again.

But then suddenly someone gave him such a slap in the face that the net fell out of his hands, and he rolled head over heels into a corner.

For a minute Nils lay motionless, then, groaning and groaning, he stood up.

The gnome is already gone. The chest was closed, and the net hung in its place - next to his father's gun.

“I dreamed all this, or what? - thought Nils. - No, my right cheek is burning, as if an iron was passed over it. This gnome hit me so hard! Of course, father and mother will not believe that the gnome visited us. They will say - all your inventions, so as not to learn your lessons. No, no matter how you look at it, we must sit down to read the book again!”

The main character of the fairy tale “Nils’s Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese” is a boy named Nils. He liked to play pranks and did not like to study. One day he caught a gnome. The dwarf got angry and made him as small as he was, and then disappeared. Nils was afraid that he would remain small forever, and began to look everywhere for the gnome to ask him to disenchant him. His search led him to the yard. With surprise, the boy realized that he understood the language of birds and animals. At this time, a flock of wild geese flew past. They began to tease the domestic geese and invite them to come with them to Lapland.

One of the domestic geese, named Martin, decided to fly with the wild geese. Nils tried to hold him back, but forgot that he was much smaller than a goose and soon found himself in the air. They flew all day until Martin was completely exhausted. Once they even fell behind the pack, but managed to catch up with it. The wild geese, having first learned that Nils was a man, wanted to drive him away, but it so happened that during an overnight stay the boy saved one of them from a fox and they did not drive him away.

For many days the geese flew to their goal, making stops at times. During one of the stops, Nils saved the baby squirrel Tirli, who fell out of the nest. The boy returned it to his mother. Finally, the flock reached an abandoned castle, where only various animals and birds had lived for a long time. From the inhabitants of the castle, travelers learned that the castle was besieged by rats. But Nils saved the situation. The leader of the flock of geese gave him a magic pipe, and the boy, playing on it, lured all the rats into the water, where they drowned. Later, Nils learned that the eagle owl brought the pipe from the very forest gnome whom he had offended. The dwarf was still very angry with the boy.

The flight of the geese continued. Many adventures befell Nils. He ran away from a bronze statue of a king in a port city, went underwater and saved a family of bears from hunters. Already all the animals and birds knew about the boy who travels with the geese. And on the road, Martin the goose acquired a girlfriend named Martha.

Finally the flock arrived in Lapland. The birds began to build nests for themselves and hatch chicks, and Nils also decided to build himself a real house. The whole flock of geese helped him, and the swallows that arrived covered the house with clay. The flock lived all summer in Lapland, and in the fall they got ready to fly back to the south. Nils missed home and his parents very much, but he did not want to return to his family, being a tiny little man. The leader of the pack managed to find out that Nils can return to his previous appearance only if someone voluntarily agrees to become as tiny as him.

And so the flock went south. Together with the adult geese, young goslings also flew. At rest stops, all the animals that already knew about Nils the traveler fed him with whatever they could.

When the flock flew past the house of Nils' parents, the boy decided to find out how they lived. But he still did not want to return to them as children. The boy learned that his parents remember him and grieve that he is not around. And then suddenly one of the goslings told Nils that he wanted to be little. Nils was delighted and cast a spell, after which he became the same boy again. The delighted parents recognized their son, who by some miracle suddenly found himself on the threshold of his home. Soon Nils went back to school. Now he studied with only straight A's.

This is the summary of the tale.

The main idea of the fairy tale “Nils’s Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese” is that pranks and pranks are not in vain, and for them you can get punishment, sometimes very severe. Nils was punished very severely by the dwarf and suffered many hardships before he was able to correct the situation.

The fairy tale “Nils's Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese” teaches you to be resourceful and courageous, to be able to protect your friends and comrades in dangerous moments. During his journey, Nils managed to do many good deeds for birds and animals, and they repaid him with kindness.

I liked the forest gnome in the fairy tale. He is strict but fair. The dwarf punished Nils very severely, but the boy, as a result, realized a lot, his character changed for the better after the trials he experienced and began to study well at school. The punishment did Nils good; he became a good person.

What proverbs fit the fairy tale “Nils’s Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese”?

Looking at people, although you don’t grow, you stretch.
The more you learn, the stronger you will become.
A man without a friend is like earth without water.

Current page: 1 (book has 10 pages in total)

Selma Lagerlöf
Nils' Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese

* * *

Artists

E. Bulatov and O. Vasiliev

Chapter I
Forest gnome

1

In the small Swedish village of Västmenhög there lived a boy named Nils. In appearance - a boy like a boy. And there was no trouble with him. During lessons, he counted crows and caught twos, destroyed bird nests in the forest, teased geese, chased chickens, and threw stones at cows. He lived like this until he was twelve years old. And then an extraordinary incident happened to him. Here is how it was.

Nils was sitting at home alone.

The day was Sunday, and father and mother went to a neighboring village for a fair. Nils was also going with them. He even put on his festive plaid shirt with big pearl buttons like plaques and new leather pants. But this time he didn’t manage to show off his outfit.

As luck would have it, my father decided to check his school diary just before leaving. The grades were no worse than last week - even, perhaps, better: three twos and one one. How can you please your father?

His father ordered Nils to stay at home and study.

Of course, it was possible not to obey, but father recently bought a wide, hard belt with a heavy copper buckle and promised to replace it on Nils’ back at the first opportunity. What can you do?

Nils sat down at the table, opened the book and... began to look out the window.

The snow, warmed by the March sun, has already melted.

Muddy streams ran merrily throughout the yard, spilling into wide lakes.

Chickens and roosters, raising their paws high, carefully walked around the puddles, and geese boldly climbed into the cold water and floundered and splashed in it, so that splashes flew in all directions.

Nils himself would not have minded splashing on the water, if not for these unfortunate lessons.

He sighed heavily and stared at the textbook with annoyance.

But suddenly the door creaked and a large fluffy cat slipped into the room. Nils was very happy with him. He even forgot about all the abrasions and scratches that remained as a memory of their last battle.

- Mur-mur-mur! – Nils called the cat.

Seeing Nils, the cat arched its back and backed towards the door - he knew very well who he was dealing with. And his memory was not so short. After all, not even three days had passed before Nils singed his mustache with a match.

- Well, go, go, my cat, go, little cat! Let’s play a little,” Nils persuaded him.

He leaned over the arm of the chair and lightly tickled the cat behind the ear.

It was very pleasant: the cat immediately softened, purred and began to rub against Nils’ leg.

And Nils was just waiting for this.

Once! – and the cat hung by its own tail.

- Me-a-a-u! – the cat screamed shrilly.

- Ay-yay! – Nils shouted even louder and threw the cat away: twisting in the air, the cat still managed to stroke Nils with its claws.

That's where their game ended.

The cat ran away, and Nils buried his face in the book again.

But he read a little.

For some reason, the letters began to jump before his eyes, the lines either merged or scattered... Nils himself did not notice how he fell asleep.

2

Nils did not sleep for long - he was awakened by some rustling.

Nils raised his head. The mirror that hung above the table reflected the entire room.

Stretching his neck, Nils began to peer carefully into the mirror.

There was no one in the room.

And suddenly Nils saw that the chest in which his mother kept her holiday dresses was open for some reason.

Nils was scared. Maybe while he was sleeping, a thief got into the room and is now hiding somewhere here, behind a chest or closet?

Nils cowered and held his breath.

And then a shadow flashed in the mirror. It flashed again. More…

Someone was crawling slowly and carefully along the edge of the chest.

Mouse? No, not a mouse.

Nils stared straight into the mirror.

What a miracle! On the edge of the chest he clearly saw a small man. This little man had a pointed cap on his head, a long-skimmed caftan that reached to his very heels, and on his feet were red morocco boots with silver buckles.

Why, it's a gnome! The real gnome!

Mother often told Nils about gnomes. They live in the forest. They can speak human, bird, and animal. They know about all the treasures that lie in the ground. If the gnomes want, flowers will bloom in the snow in winter; if they want, the rivers will freeze in summer.

But why did the gnome get here? What is he looking for in their chest?

- Come on, wait! “Here I am now,” Nils whispered and pulled the butterfly net off the nail.

One swing - and the gnome hid in the net like a caught dragonfly. His cap slipped down his nose and his legs got tangled in his wide caftan. He floundered helplessly and waved his arms, trying to grab the net. But as soon as he managed to get up, Nils shook the net, and the gnome fell down again.

“Listen, Nils,” the dwarf finally begged, “let me go free!” I'll give you a gold coin for this, as big as a button on your shirt.

Nils thought for a moment.

“Well, that’s probably not bad,” he said and stopped swinging the net.

Clinging to the rare fabric, the gnome deftly climbed up. Now he grabbed the iron hoop, and his cap appeared above the edge of the net...

Then it occurred to Nils that he had sold too cheap. In addition to the gold coin, he could demand that the dwarf teach his lessons for him. You never know what else you can think of! The dwarf will now agree to everything! When you're sitting in a net, you won't bargain.

And Nils shook the net again.

But suddenly he received such a huge slap to the face that the net fell out of his hands, and he rolled head over heels into the corner.

3

Nils lay motionless for a minute, and then, groaning and groaning, he stood up.

The gnome is already gone. The chest was closed, and the butterfly net hung in its place - between the window and the closet.

– I dreamed all this, or what? - said Nils and, limping, trudged to his chair.

He took two steps and stopped. Something happened to the room. The walls of their small house moved apart, the ceiling went high up, and the chair on which Nils always sat rose in front of him like an impregnable mountain. To climb it, Nils had to climb the twisted leg, like a gnarled oak trunk.

The book was still on the table, but it was so huge that Nils could not see a single letter at the top of the page. He lay down on his stomach on the book and slowly crawled from line to line, from word to word.

He started to sweat while he read one sentence.

- What the hell is this! “But I won’t even crawl to the end of the page by tomorrow,” said Nils and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

And suddenly he saw that a tiny man was looking at him from the mirror - exactly the same as the gnome who was caught in his net. Only dressed differently: in leather pants and a plaid shirt with large buttons.

“Yes, there’s another one! – thought Nils. - And dressed up like that! I just came for a visit!”

- Hey, you, what do you want here? – Nils shouted and shook his fist at the little man.

The little man also shook his fist at Nils.

Nils put his hands on his hips and stuck out his tongue. The little man also put his hands on his hips and also stuck his tongue out at Nils.

Nils stamped his foot. And the little man stamped his foot.

Nils jumped, spun like a top, waved his arms, but the little man did not lag behind him. He also jumped, also spun like a top and waved his arms.

Then Nils sat down on the book and cried bitterly. He realized that the dwarf had bewitched him and that the little man looking at him from the mirror was himself, Nils Holgerson.

After crying a little, Nils wiped his eyes and decided to go look for the gnome. Maybe if he asks for forgiveness well, the gnome will turn him into a boy again?

Nils ran out into the yard. A sparrow was jumping in front of the house.

As soon as Nils appeared on the threshold, a sparrow flew up onto the fence and shouted at the top of its sparrow voice:

- Look at Nils! Look at Nils!

And the chickens flapped their wings and clucked vyingly:

- It serves him right! It serves him right!

And the amazing thing is that Nils understood everyone perfectly.

The geese surrounded Nils on all sides and, stretching their necks, hissed in his very ear:

- Good! Well, that's good! What, are you afraid now? Are you afraid? “And they pecked him, pinched him, gouged him with their beaks, pulled first by his arms, then by his legs.

Poor Nils would have had a very bad time if at that time a flock of wild geese had not flown over their village. They flew high in the sky, stretched out in a regular triangle, but when they saw their relatives - domestic geese - they descended lower and shouted:

- Ha-ga-ha! Fly with us! Fly with us! We're flying north to Lapland! To Lapland!

The domestic geese immediately forgot about Nils. They became excited, cackled, and flapped their wings, as if they were trying to see if they could fly. But the old goose - she was the grandmother of a good half of the geese - ran around them and shouted:

- They're crazy! We're crazy! Don't do anything stupid! After all, you are not some tramps, you are respectable domestic geese!

And then she raised her head and screamed into the sky:

- We’re good here too! We feel good here too!

Only one young goose did not listen to the advice of the old grandmother. Spreading his large white wings wide, he quickly ran across the yard.

- Wait for me, wait for me! - he shouted. - I'm flying with you! With you!

“But this is Martin, my mother’s best goose,” thought Nils. “Good luck, he’ll actually fly away!”

- Stop, stop! – Nils shouted and rushed after Martin. Nils barely caught up with him. He contrived, jumped up and, wrapping his arms around Martin’s long neck, hung on him. But the goose didn’t even feel it, as if Nils wasn’t there. He flapped his wings vigorously - once, twice - and, without expecting it, flew into the air.

Before Nils realized what had happened, they were already high in the sky.

Chapter II
Riding a goose

1

The wind hit my face, tore my hair, howled and whistled in my ears. Nils sat astride the goose, like a rider on a galloping horse: he pulled his head into his shoulders, shrank and pressed his whole body against Martin’s neck. He grabbed the goose feathers tightly with his hands and closed his eyes in fear.

“Now I’ll fall, now I’ll fall,” he whispered with each flap of his large white wings. But ten minutes passed, twenty minutes passed, and he did not fall. Finally he gained courage and opened his eyes a little.

The gray wings of wild geese flashed to the right and left, clouds floated above Nils’s head, almost touching him, and far, far below the earth darkened. It didn't look like earth at all. It seemed as if someone had spread a huge checkered scarf underneath them. Some cells were completely black, others were yellowish-gray, and others were light green.

These were meadows covered with barely emerging grass, and newly plowed fields.

Fields gave way to dark forests, forests to lakes, lakes again to fields, and the geese kept flying and flying.

Nils was completely depressed.

“Good luck, they will actually take me to Lapland!” - he thought.

- Martin! Martin! - he shouted to the goose. - Turn home! Enough, let's attack!

But Martin didn't answer.

Then Nils spurred him with all his might with his wooden shoes.

Martin turned his head slightly and hissed:

- Listen, you! Sit still, or I’ll throw you off... Then you’ll fly upside down!

I had to sit still.

2

All day long the white goose Martin flew at a par with the whole flock, as if he had never been a domestic goose, as if all his life he had done nothing but fly.

“Where did he get such agility?” – Nils was surprised.

But by evening Martin began to give in. Now everyone could see that he was flying for one day at a time: sometimes he would suddenly fall behind, sometimes he would rush ahead, sometimes he would seem to fall into a hole, sometimes he would seem to jump up.

And the wild geese saw it too.

– Akka Knebekaise! Akka Knebekaise! - they shouted.

- What you want from me? - shouted the goose, flying ahead of everyone.

- White is lagging behind!

– He should know that flying fast is easier than flying slowly! - the goose shouted without even turning around.

Martin tried to flap his wings harder and more often, but his tired wings became heavy and no longer obeyed him.

- Akka! Akka Knebekaise!

– What else do you need from me?

“White can’t fly that high!”

– He should know that flying high is easier than flying low!

Poor Martin strained his last strength and flew as high as he could. But then his breath caught, and his wings completely weakened.

– Akka Knebekaise! White is falling!

“Whoever can’t fly like us should stay at home, tell that to the white man!” – Akka shouted, without slowing down her flight.

“It’s true, it would be better for us to stay at home,” Nils whispered and clung tighter to Martin’s neck.

Martin fell down as if shot.

It was also fortunate that they found some skinny willow below. Martin got caught on the top of a tree and got stuck among the branches.

So they sat on the willow tree.

Martin's wings sagged, his neck dangled like a rag, he breathed loudly, opening his beak wide, as if he wanted to grab more air.

Nils felt sorry for Martin. He even tried to console him.

“Dear Martin,” Nils said affectionately, “don’t be sad that they abandoned you.” Well, judge for yourself: how can you compete with them? Just rest a little and then we’ll return home.

But this was little consolation. How?! Give up at the very beginning of the journey? No way!

“You’d better not bother with your advice,” Martin hissed. - Hold your tongue!

And he flapped his wings with such fury that he immediately rose high and soon caught up with the flock.

Luckily for him, it was already evening.

Black shadows lay on the ground: a thick fog stretched from the lake over which wild geese were flying.

Akki Knebekaise's flock went down to spend the night.

3

As soon as the geese touched the coastal strip of land, they immediately climbed into the water. Only Martin the goose and Nils remained on the shore.

As if from an ice slide, Nils slid down Martin's slippery back. Finally he is on earth! He straightened his numb arms and legs and looked around.

The place was deserted. Tall spruce trees approached the lake itself like a black wall. From the dark depths of the forest some crackling and rustling was heard. Everywhere the snow had already melted, but here, near the gnarled, overgrown roots, the snow still lay in a dense thick layer. One would think that the ate would never want to part with winter.

Nils felt uneasy.

How far they have flown! Now, even if Martin wants to return, they still won’t find their way home... But still, Martin is great!.. But where is he?

- Martin! Martin! – Nils called.

No one answered. Nils looked around in confusion.

Poor Martin! He lay as if dead, his wings spread on the ground and his neck stretched out. His eyes were covered with a cloudy film.

Nils was scared.

“Dear goose Martin,” said Nils, leaning towards him, “take a sip of water!” You will see, you will immediately feel better.

But the goose did not move.

Then Nils grabbed him by the neck with both hands and dragged him towards the water.

It was not an easy task. The goose was the best on their farm, and his mother fed him well. And Nils is now barely visible from the ground. But still, he dragged Martin all the way to the lake and stuck his head straight into the chilly water.

Martin immediately came to life. He opened his eyes, took a sip or two, and struggled to his feet. He stood for a minute, swaying from side to side, then climbed into the lake and slowly swam between the ice floes. Every now and then he plunged his beak into the water, and then, throwing back his head, greedily swallowed algae.

“It’s good for him,” Nils thought with envy, “but I also haven’t eaten anything since the morning.”

And Nils immediately felt so hungry that he even felt a queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

At this time, Martin swam to the shore. He had a silver fish clutched in his beak. He put the fish in front of Nils and said:

“We weren’t friends at home.” But you helped me in trouble, and I want to thank you.

Nils had never tried raw fish before. But what can you do, you have to get used to it! You won't get another dinner.

He rummaged in his pockets, looking for his penknife.

The little knife, as always, lay on the right side, only it became small, like a pin - however, just within the pocket.

Nils opened his knife and began to gut the fish.

Suddenly he heard some noise and splashing: it was wild geese shaking themselves off and coming ashore.

“Make sure you don’t let it slip that you’re a human,” Martin whispered to Nils and respectfully stepped forward, greeting the flock.

Now we could get a good look at the whole company. I must admit that they did not shine with beauty, these wild geese. And they weren’t tall enough, and they couldn’t show off their outfit. Everything is as if it were gray, as if covered with dust - if only someone had one white feather!

And how they walk! They jump at every step, trip over every stone, and almost plow the ground with their beaks.

Nils even snorted. And Martin spread his wings in surprise. Is this how decent geese walk? You need to walk slowly, carefully pressing your foot to the ground, and keep your head high. And these ones hobble around like lame people.

An old, old goose walked ahead of everyone. Well, she was a beauty too! The neck is skinny, bones stick out from under the feathers, and the wings look like someone has chewed them off. But all the geese looked at her respectfully, not daring to speak until she was the first to say her word.

It was Akka Knebekaise herself, the leader of the pack.

She had already led the geese from south to north a hundred times and returned with them from north to south a hundred times. Akka Knebekaise knew every bush, every island on the lake, every clearing in the forest. No one knew how to choose a place to spend the night better than Akka Knebekaise, no one knew better than she how to hide from the cunning enemies that awaited the geese at every turn.

Akka looked at Martin for a long time from the tip of his beak to the tip of his tail and finally said:

– Our flock cannot accept the first comers. Everyone you see in front of you belongs to the best goose families. And you don't even know how to fly properly. What kind of goose are you, what family and tribe are you?

“My story is not long,” Martin said sadly. “I was born last year in the town of Svanegolm, and in the fall I was sold to a neighboring village to Holger Nilsson. That's where I lived until today.

- How did you get the courage to fly with us? – Akka Knebekaise was surprised.

– I really wanted to see what kind of Lapland this is. And at the same time, I decided to prove to you, wild geese, that we, domestic geese, are capable of something.

Akka silently looked at Martin with curiosity.

“You are a brave goose,” she said finally. “And he who is brave can be a good comrade on the road.”

Suddenly she saw Nils.

- Who else is with you? – Akka asked. “I’ve never seen anyone like him.”

Martin hesitated for a moment.

“This is my comrade...” he said uncertainly.

But then Nils stepped forward and decisively declared:

– My name is Nils Holgerson. My father is a peasant, and until today I was a man, but this morning...

He failed to finish. Hearing the word “man,” the geese backed away and, stretching out their necks, hissed angrily, cackled, and flapped their wings.

“A man has no place among wild geese,” said the old goose. – People were, are and will be our enemies. You must leave the pack immediately.

Martin could not resist and intervened:

– But you can’t even call him a human! Look how small he is! I guarantee that he will not do you any harm. Let him stay at least one night.

Akka looked searchingly at Nils, then at Martin, and finally said:

– Our grandfathers, great-grandfathers and great-great-grandfathers bequeathed to us never to trust a person, be he small or big. But if you vouch for him, then so be it - today let him stay with us. We spend the night on a large ice floe in the middle of the lake. And tomorrow morning he must leave us.

With these words, she rose into the air, and the whole flock flew after her.

“Listen, Martin,” Nils asked timidly, “are you going to fly with them?”

- Well, of course I’ll fly! – Martin said proudly. – It’s not every day that a domestic goose has such an honor - to fly in the flock of Akki Knebekaise!

- And what about me? – Nils asked again. “There’s no way I can get home alone.” Now I’ll get lost in the grass, let alone in this forest.

“I don’t have time to take you home, you understand,” Martin said. “But here’s what I can offer you: let’s fly to Lapland together.” Let's see how it is and what's going on, and then we'll return home together. I’ll somehow persuade Akka, but if I don’t persuade her, I’ll deceive her. You are small now, it is not difficult to hide you. Well, now let's get down to business! Gather some dry grass quickly. Yes, more!

When Nils picked up a whole armful of last year's grass, Martin carefully picked him up by the collar of his shirt and carried him to a large ice floe in the middle of the lake.

The wild geese were already sleeping, their heads tucked under their wings.

“Now spread out the grass,” Martin commanded, “otherwise, without any bedding, my paws will freeze to the ice.”

Although the litter turned out to be somewhat liquid (how much grass could Nils carry away now!), it still somehow covered the ice.

Martin stood on top of her, grabbed Nils by the collar again and pushed him under his wing.

- Good night! - Martin said and pressed the wing tighter so that Nils wouldn’t fall out.

The wonderful adventure of Nils with the wild ones. School encyclopedia

Chapter I. Forest gnome

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2

What proverbs fit the fairy tale “Nils’s Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese”?

Selma Lagerlöf Nils' Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese

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Chapter I Forest gnome

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2

3

Chapter II Riding a goose

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2

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Selma Lagerlöf
Nils' Wonderful Journey with the Wild Geese

Chapter I
Forest gnome

Chapter II
Riding a goose