The Magic Drum and Other Favourite Stories

A man looking at a magic drum
Author: Sudha Murty
Book Review By: Akshaya Narayanan
Grade: 4

The Magic Drum and Other Favourite Stories

My review is about Sudha Murty’s The Magic Drum and Other Favourite Stories.

The book has thirty seven short stories that are funny, adventurous, and have a moral too. These stories reminded me of the stories my grandfather used to tell me. That is why I really enjoyed reading this book.

In the first story, the men from the village Suvarnanagari are too lazy and waste their time talking. The women have to do all the work and are fed up. So, they write a letter to the king asking for help.

One day, the king came to the village in disguise. The men don’t know he is the king and tell him they know the king well. But they make up all kinds of stuff and boast that they have special powers. The stranger tells them that he is happy to meet them and asks them to do some work for the king with their special powers.

The men know their lies brought them trouble. They had to tell the truth and promised to work hard from that day onwards.

Later, the women saw the stranger’s white horse and realized that the stranger was the king.

This was my favourite story because of all the lies the men said about their special powers.  If people really had those kinds of powers, it would be so cool. But it also reminded me of how me and my friends make up stuff.

The Magic Drum is the last story, and it is about the importance of telling the truth.

I recommend this book to kids because the stories are interesting and funny. You will also get the feeling that your grandparents are telling you the stories.

Read more here:

Sudha Murty Books

Read other reviews from the 2025 contest:

The Hobbit

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

Matilda

Movies Showing Nowhere

Murder Most Unladylike

Bookasura: Adventures of Bala and the Book Eating Monster

The Kid Who Came from Space

The Girl Who Drank the Moon

Beetle Boy

The Mystery of the Strange Messages

The Little Prince

The Magic Drum and Other Favourite Stories

Andaman Adventure: The Jarawa

Share with Friends

0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Categories
Tags
Recent posts