Ting-a-ling

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

20836

Title

Ting-a-ling

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

Frank R. Stockton's whimsical tale follows a handsome prince who rescues a secluded princess, only to face a royal father's cruel traditions. The story expands into a fantastical adventure featuring a gentle giant, a mischievous tiny fairy, and a monstrous dragon, blending fairy-tale charm with humorous escapades.

Summary up to 500 words

In Frank R. Stockton's whimsical tale *Ting-a-ling*, a handsome prince flees his northern kingdom to seek refuge in a far eastern land. There, he encounters Princess Aufalia, who is kept in seclusion by her father, the King. After a brief skirmish with her terrified slaves, the prince rescues the princess and leads her to the palace. However, adhering to his harsh custom of treating strangers with suspicion, the King sentences the prince to death. That night, the princess's devoted maid, Nerralina, attempts a daring rescue using a rope of scarves. Tragically, she is killed by a heavy stool the prince had set to bar the door. Upon discovering her body, the prince respectfully buries her and is subsequently locked in an aviary by the Grand Chamberlain. Escaping the aviary, the prince wanders the palace and meets a Princess of the Sea, the daughter of a water-princess and a land-prince. Her enchanting music, played on a guitar, puts listeners to sleep, a side effect of a mischievous ocean spirit named Nimshee. The prince and the sea-princess marry, but the Chamberlain, fearing the princess's popularity, locks the prince in the aviary again. Eventually, the prince escapes and meets a tiny fairy named Ting-a-ling. Together, they encounter a giant, Tur-il-i-ra, who has captured a monstrous dragon, the Kyrofatalapynx. The dragon, sharpening a giant iron arrow, threatens to destroy the kingdom. Ting-a-ling and a green fairy companion manage to cut the dragon's bowstring, causing the arrow to fail and the dragon to be slain by the giant. Grateful, the giant takes Ting-a-ling home. Later, Ting-a-ling reunites with Nerralina, who has returned from a distant visit, and they journey back to the palace. The green fairy, finding the giant too violent, departs to live in nature. The story concludes with the giant celebrating the triumph of small courage over great evil, welcoming the tiny fairy into his home as a hero.

LLM editorial rating

4.2/5

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Categories

• Fiction
• Fairy Tales