The Complete Polly and the Wolf by Catherine Storr

Author:Catherine Storr
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781681370040
Publisher: New York Review Books
Published: 2016-07-07T04:00:00+00:00

“In a moment, Wolf. I’m just considering how I’ll have you cooked,” said Polly.

“I’m very tough, Polly.”

“That’s all right, Wolf. I can simmer you gently over a low flame until you are tender.”

“I don’t suppose I’d fit very nicely into any of your saucepans, Polly.”

“I can use the big one Mother has for making jam. That’s an enormous saucepan,” said Polly thoughtfully, measuring the wolf with her eyes.

The wolf began visibly to shake where he sat.

“Oh please, Polly, don’t eat me. Don’t eat me up this time,” he urged. “Let me off this once. I promise I’ll never do it again.”

“Never do what again?” Polly asked.

“I don’t know. What was I doing?” the wolf asked himself in despair.

“Trying to get me to eat,” Polly suggested.

“Well, of course, I’m always doing that,” the wolf agreed.

“And you would have eaten me?” Polly asked.

“Not if you’d asked very nicely, I wouldn’t,” the wolf said. “Like I’m asking now.”

“And if I didn’t eat you up, you’d stop trying to get me?”

The wolf considered.

“Look,” he said, “I can’t say I’ll stop for ever, because after all a wolf is a wolf, and if I promised to stop for ever I wouldn’t be a wolf any more. But I promise to stop for a long time. I won’t try any more today.”

“And what about after today?” Polly insisted.

“The first time I catch you,” the wolf said dreamily, “if you ask very nicely I’ll let you go because you’ve let me off today. But after that, no mercy! It’ll be just Snap! Crunch! Swallow!”

“All right,” Polly said, recollecting that so far the wolf had not ever got as far as catching her successfully even once. “You can go.”

The wolf ducked his head gratefully and trotted off. Polly saw him threading his way between the busy shoppers in the High Street.

But she sat contentedly in the hot sun and wondered what was the difference between a fat pink pig and a plate of sausages and bacon. Not much, if she knew her wolf!

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