Chapter One
BINI ARU AND HIS SON KIKI ARU
Well, dear readers, you now know a lot
about the Land of Oz and its capital—the Emerald City. And you know that there
are very many countries in the Land of Oz.
In one of these countries, the
Munchkin Country, there lived an old man. 1 His name was Bini
Aru.
This man had a secret. He knew a magic
word. This word could change you into an animal, a bird, a flower, a stone.
And it could change you back 2 into your real form.
It was a very easy thing to do if you
knew how to say the word. The word was Pyrzqxgl.
Can you, readers, say the word? I'm
afraid you can't. But Bini Aru knew how to say it.
Usually when Bini Aru went far away
from home and was hungry, he said: "I want to become a sheep: Pyrzqxgl!" He
became a sheep at once. And he ate a lot of grass. Then the sheep said: "I
want to be Bini Aru again. Pyrzqxgl!" and the magic changed the sheep back
into an old man.
Now Bini Aru was afraid to forget the
magic word. So he decided to write it in some secret place. 3
That was a clever idea. But where could he find a secret place? He thought and
thought and at last he decide to find it in his house, in his room.
Bini Aru had a son. His son's name was
Kiki. Kiki's father told him that he must not come into his room. But Kiki was
a wicked boy. Once, when his father was not at home, Kiki opened the door of
his father's room and went in.
As he came into the room, he stumbled
over one of the floor boards. 4 He did not find any
interesting things 5 in his father's room. As he went back to
the door he stumbled again over that floor board.
He looked at the board for a long
time. "That's strange," he thought. "Why did I stumble over that board for a
second time?"
Kiki took the board out, and saw some
writing on the back of it. 6 The writing told him how to read
and say the magic word Pyrzqxgl. Now he knew that the word could change you
into a bird or an animal. If you repeated the word again it could change you
back into your real form: into a boy, girl, man or woman.
Now Kiki knew his father's secret. He
took a piece of paper and made a copy of the writing. 7 Then
he put the board back in its place.
"Father must not know that I have his
secret," thought the wicked boy.
He went into the garden and sat down
under a tree. "I always wanted to go away from this country and visit the big
world," he thought. "Now I can change my form and be a bird. Then I can fly
and see the big world. And I can fly away from this country which I hate so
much. But first I must learn the magic word and remember it, I don't want to
be always a bird."
So he learned the word by heart,
8 repeated it a hundred times.
"Now I shall not forget the word," he
thought. "And I must find the place for this paper in a secret place."
So he put it into a tin box and put
the box in a corner of the garden under a big stone.
He decided to become a bird at once.
So he stood in front of the house and said: "I want to become a big strong
bird. I want to become a hawk! Pyrzqxgl!" And at once he became a grey hawk.
1 there lived an old
man — жил-был старик
2 it could change you
back — оно могло вернуть вас снова
3 secret place —
тайник
4 floor boards —
половицы
5 did not find any
interesting things — не нашел ничего интересного
6 saw some writing on
the back of it — увидел на обратной стороне (доски) какую-то надпись
7 made a copy of the
writing — переписал эту надпись
8 he learned ... by
heart — выучил ... наизусть