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A bride surrounded by wedding guests cheering.

What Vusi’s sister said What Vusi's sister said Que va dire la sœur de Vusi ?

Written by Nina Orange

Illustrated by Wiehan de Jager

Read by Darshan Soni

Language English

Level Level 4

Narrate full story

Reading speed

Autoplay story


An old woman thinking of a wedding, giving a boy an egg.

Early one morning Vusi’s granny called him, “Vusi, please take this egg to your parents. They want to make a large cake for your sister’s wedding.”

Early one morning Vusi’s granny called him, “Vusi, please take this egg to your parents. They want to make a large cake for your sister’s wedding.”

Un matin de bonne heure, Vusi est appelé par sa grand-mère, « Vusi, s’il te plaît, peux tu amener cet œuf à tes parents. Ils veulent faire un gros gâteau pour le mariage de ta sœur ».


A boy standing between two boys picking fruit and one of them holding a slingshot.

On his way to his parents, Vusi met two boys picking fruit. One boy grabbed the egg from Vusi and shot it at a tree. The egg broke.

On his way to his parents, Vusi met two boys picking fruit. One boy grabbed the egg from Vusi and shot it at a tree. The egg broke.

En allant chez ses parents, Vusi rencontra deux garçons en train de cueillir des fruits. Un des garçons s’empara de l’œuf de Vusi et le lança sur un arbre. L’œuf se cassa.


A boy telling the fruit pickers about the egg and the wedding.

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That egg was for a cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. What will my sister say if there is no wedding cake?”

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That egg was for a cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. What will my sister say if there is no wedding cake?”

« Qu’as-tu fait ? » cria Vusi. « Cet œuf était pour un gâteau, le gâteau du mariage de ma sœur. Que va dire ma sœur s’il n’y a pas de gâteau pour son mariage ? »


Two fruit pickers giving a boy a walking stick.

The boys were sorry for teasing Vusi. “We can’t help with the cake, but here is a walking stick for your sister,” said one. Vusi continued on his journey.

The boys were sorry for teasing Vusi. “We can’t help with the cake, but here is a walking stick for your sister,” said one. Vusi continued on his journey.

Les garçons étaient désolés d’avoir taquiné Vusi. « Nous ne pouvons rien faire pour le gâteau, mais voilà un bâton de marche pour ta sœur, » dit l’un d’eux. Vusi poursuivit sa route.


A worried-looking boy standing next to two men building a house. One of the builders is holding a broken stick.

Along the way he met two men building a house. “Can we use that strong stick?” asked one. But the stick was not strong enough for building, and it broke.

Along the way he met two men building a house. “Can we use that strong stick?” asked one. But the stick was not strong enough for building, and it broke.

En chemin, il rencontra deux hommes, qui construisaient une maison. « Pouvons-nous utiliser ce solide bâton ? » demanda l’un d’eux. Mais le bâton n’était pas assez solide pour la construction, et il s’est rompu.


A boy telling the builders about the egg, the wedding and the walking stick.

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That stick was a gift for my sister. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for the cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift. What will my sister say?”

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That stick was a gift for my sister. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for the cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift. What will my sister say?”

« Qu’avez-vous fait ? » s’écria Vusi. « Ce bâton était un cadeau pour ma sœur. Les cueilleurs de fruits m’ont donné le bâton parce qu’ils ont cassé l’œuf pour le gâteau. Le gâteau était pour le mariage de ma sœur. Maintenant il n’y a pas d’œuf, pas de gâteau, et aucun cadeau. Que va dire ma sœur ? »


Two builders giving a boy some thatch.

The builders were sorry for breaking the stick. “We can’t help with the cake, but here is some thatch for your sister,” said one. And so Vusi continued on his journey.

The builders were sorry for breaking the stick. “We can’t help with the cake, but here is some thatch for your sister,” said one. And so Vusi continued on his journey.

Les constructeurs étaient désolés d’avoir brisé le bâton. « Nous ne pouvons rien faire pour le gâteau, mais voici du foin pour ta sœur, » dit l’un d’eux. Vusi continua sa route.


A worried-looking boy standing next to a farmer feeding a cow some thatch.

Along the way, Vusi met a farmer and a cow. “What delicious thatch, can I have a nibble?” asked the cow. But the thatch was so tasty that the cow ate it all!

Along the way, Vusi met a farmer and a cow. “What delicious thatch, can I have a nibble?” asked the cow. But the thatch was so tasty that the cow ate it all!

Sur le chemin, Vusi rencontra un fermier et une vache. « Quel foin délicieux, est-ce que je peux en prendre un peu ? » demanda la vache. Mais le foin était si bon que la vache a tout mangé !


A boy telling the farmer about the egg, the wedding, the walking stick and the thatch.

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That thatch was a gift for my sister. The builders gave me the thatch because they broke the stick from the fruit pickers. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for my sister’s cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift. What will my sister say?”

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That thatch was a gift for my sister. The builders gave me the thatch because they broke the stick from the fruit pickers. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for my sister’s cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift. What will my sister say?”

« Qu’as-tu fait ? » s’écria Vusi. « Ce foin était un cadeau pour ma sœur. Les constructeurs m’ont donné du foin, car ils ont cassé le bâton des cueilleurs de fruits. Les cueilleurs de fruits m’ont donné le bâton parce qu’ils ont cassé l’œuf pour le gâteau de ma sœur. Le gâteau était pour le mariage de ma sœur. Maintenant il n’y a pas d’œuf, pas de gâteau, et aucun cadeau. Que va dire ma sœur ? »


A farmer giving a boy a cow.

The cow was sorry she was greedy. The farmer agreed that the cow could go with Vusi as a gift for his sister. And so Vusi carried on.

The cow was sorry she was greedy. The farmer agreed that the cow could go with Vusi as a gift for his sister. And so Vusi carried on.

La vache était désolée d’avoir été si gourmande. Le fermier décida que la vache devait accompagner Vusi et être un cadeau pour sa sœur. Vusi poursuivit sa route.


A boy standing next to wedding guests eating.

But the cow ran back to the farmer at supper time. And Vusi got lost on his journey. He arrived very late for his sister’s wedding. The guests were already eating.

But the cow ran back to the farmer at supper time. And Vusi got lost on his journey. He arrived very late for his sister’s wedding. The guests were already eating.

Mais là l’heure du souper la vache s’échappa et retourna chez le fermier. Et Vusi se perdit en chemin. Il arriva très tard pour le mariage de sa sœur. Les invités mangeaient déjà.


A boy telling the wedding guests about the cow, the thatch, the walking stick, the egg and the wedding.

“What shall I do?” cried Vusi. “The cow that ran away was a gift, in return for the thatch the builders gave me. The builders gave me the thatch because they broke the stick from the fruit pickers. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for the cake. The cake was for the wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift.”

“What shall I do?” cried Vusi. “The cow that ran away was a gift, in return for the thatch the builders gave me. The builders gave me the thatch because they broke the stick from the fruit pickers. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for the cake. The cake was for the wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift.”

« Que dois-je faire ? » s’écria Vusi. « La vache qui s’est enfuie était un cadeau, en échange du foin, que les constructeurs m’ont donné. Les constructeurs m’ont donné le foin, car ils ont cassé le bâton des cueilleurs de fruits. Les cueilleurs de fruits m’ont donné le bâton parce qu’ils ont cassé l’œuf pour le gâteau. Le gâteau était pour le mariage. Maintenant il n’y a pas d’œuf, pas de gâteau, et aucun cadeau ».


A bride surrounded by wedding guests cheering.

Vusi’s sister thought for a while, then she said, “Vusi my brother, I don’t really care about gifts. I don’t even care about the cake! We are all here together, I am happy. Now put on your smart clothes and let’s celebrate this day!” And so that’s what Vusi did.

Vusi’s sister thought for a while, then she said, “Vusi my brother, I don’t really care about gifts. I don’t even care about the cake! We are all here together, I am happy. Now put on your smart clothes and let’s celebrate this day!” And so that’s what Vusi did.

La sœur de Vusi réfléchit un moment, puis elle a dit, « Vusi mon frère, les cadeaux me sont égaux. Je ne me soucie pas non plus du gâteau ! Nous sommes ici tous ensemble, je suis heureuse. Maintenant va mettre tes vêtements de fête et célébrons ce jour ! » Et c’est ce que fit Vusi.


Written by: Nina Orange
Illustrated by: Wiehan de Jager
Read by: Darshan Soni
Language: English
Level: Level 4
Source: What Vusi's sister said from African Storybook
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 International License.
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