Clever hero legend

An artwork of a boy drawing cats inside a temple, Romanian folktale scene.

The Boy Who Drew Cats

by Quwwatu-Llah Oyebode

February 24, 2026

Eastern & Balkan Folktales·Romanian Folktales

In a quiet village nestled among the rolling hills of rural Romania, there lived a young boy unlike any other in his family. While his siblings labored in the fields and helped with chores, the boy wandered with a pencil and scraps of parchment, drawing cats. The villagers whispered that he was strange, and his own family often dismissed him,

An illustration of Jack climbing a giant beanstalk toward a castle, English folktale scene.

British & Irish Folktales·English Folktales

Jack and the Beanstalk

In a humble village on the edge of rolling English countryside, there lived a boy named Jack with his widowed mother. Their home was small and worn, the wooden beams darkened by age, and the hearth only just warm enough to fend off the chill of winter. They owned little