Based on the story by

JONATHAN
SWIFT
Illustrated by
PETER DENNIS
Gullivers
T r a v e l s

Based on the book by

Jo n a th a n Swift
Adapted by Gill Harvey

Illustrated by Peter Dennis

Reading consultant: Alison Kelly
Roehampton University of Surrey
 Contents

Chapter 1 All so sm all 3

Chapter 2 The emperor 13

Chapter 3 Freedom 19
Chapter 4 W ar! 30
Chapter 5 Gulliver in danger 42

Chapter 6 Escape plans 53

2
 Chapter 1

All so small
Lemuel Gulliver loved to travel
and he loved adventures. This is
(he story o f one of his stranger
adventures.

11 began when Gulliver boarded

a ship for the F ar E ast...

3
 The voyage w as a difficult and
dangerous one. W inds howled,
storm s raged and the ship w as
pushed off course. Finally, it hit
some rocks and sank.

The passengers were desperate.

Some tried to escape in a sm all
boat. But it capsized and they all
drowned... except for Gulliver.

4
 (iulliver sw am for his life.
Ju st as he w as giving up hope,
he saw land. H e stum bled ashore
and collapsed on the beach.
Soon, he w as fast asleep.

When he woke up, he couldn’t

move —not even his head. H e w as
i fed to the ground.

5
 Gulliver tugged his hair free and
looked around. An am azin g sight
met his eyes. Tiny men were
clam bering all over him.
“H e y !” Gulliver shouted.
What are you
doing?

The men jum ped

off in fright. Some o f
them fired arrows,
which pricked his skin
like needles.
‘O w !” cried Gulliver.
‘T h at hurts!

7
 W h at were they going to do
next? H e soon found out. They
stopped firing arrows and built
a ladder beside him. Then an
im portant-looking m an clim bed
up and shouted in his ear.

B ut Gulliver didn’t understand

a word. H e w as hungry, too, so
he pointed to his mouth.
“H u n gry ,” he said.

8
 The m an m ust have understood
him because a crowd appeared,
carrying huge am ounts o f very
sm all food. Gulliver gobbled

Then they brought barrels o f

wine which G ulliver gulped down
thirstily. The people gave each
other sly smiles.
 Unknown to Gulliver, they h ad
put som ething in the wine. In
seconds, he fell into a deep sleep.
The people set to work.

Five hundred tiny carpenters

built a wooden cart, and d ragged
Gulliver onto it. Then he w as
pulled a w a y .

10
 G ulliver woke up outside a
m agnificent temple. H e w as
in the country’s cap ital city,
M ilando. The people thought the
temple could be his new home.

But Gulliver, who still couldn’t

understand them, w as very
confused.
 To m ake things worse, he w as
chained to the temple.
As he stood there,
crowds gathered
to stare a t him.

Gulliver w as just as am azed.

It w as like a toy town.

12
 Chapter 2

The emperor

As soon as the emperor o f the

land heard about the gian t
m an, he cam e to see Gulliver,
but they couldn’t understand
each other either.

13
 “I need to think about th is,” said
the emperor. Leaving his soldiers to
gu ard Gulliver, he strode off.

Everyone w anted a closer look at

the gian t. B ut some men fired more
arrows a t him.
“Stop th a t!” cried the soldiers,
seizing the men.
“H ere!” one shouted. “Let’s give
them to the gian t to punish.”

14
 Gulliver picked up one o f the
troublem akers and opened his
mouth. The little m an w riggled
and howled with terror. H e w as
sure he w as going to be eaten.

15
 M eanwhile, the emperor w as
thinking hard. W h at should he do
about Gulliver? H e decided to ask
his advisors.

“Anything th at big M U ST be
dan gerous,” said one.

16
 B ut, as they were talkin g, two
men arrived. They were full o f
news about the men who h ad fired
arrows a t Gulliver.
 The emperor w as delighted.
“Let’s keep him ,” he said. “Give
him plenty o f food, m ake him
some new clothes and teach him
our la n g u a g e .”

Soon, Gulliver h ad everything he

needed. B ut he w as still held
in the tem ple, like a prisoner.

18
 C hapter 3

Freedom

< • u Iliver learned the people’s

lan gu age as quickly as he could.
Then he asked to see the emperor.
Please set me free,” he pleaded.

19
 The emperor w asn ’t sure. “Y o u ’ll
have to w a it,” he said. “Y ou m ay
still be dan gerous.” And he sent his
men to search G ulliver’s pockets.

They found his

handkerchief...

his sn u ffbox...

his notebook...

20
 The only dangerous thing
1 1irij found w as his gun. But
i liey didn’t know w hat it w as.

21
 The emperor w asn ’t satisfied. H e
sent a m essage to Gulliver.
“D o you have any w eapons?
Show u s!” he dem anded.
 “D on’t w orry,” Gulliver said.
You can have them .” He handed
his sword and gun to the guards
and the emperor relaxed. B ut he
.(ill didn’t set Gulliver free.

23
 Gulliver just h ad to w ait.
To p ass the tim e, he learned more
about the country, which w as
called Lilliput. It h ad some very
stran ge custom s.

One w as the gam e of “Leaping

and Creeping” . Even im portant
nobles played it. They h ad to leap
over a stick or creep under one. The
winners won prizes.

24
 To work for the emperor,
people had to do tricks. The top
jobs went to the best acrobats.

( i cilliver thought this custom w as

very odd, but he didn’t show it. If
lie w as friendly, they m ight trust
him and let him go.

25
 Every d ay , Gulliver begged to be
allow ed to leave the temple.
Finally, the emperor agreed.

“Let him g o ,” he declared. “The

gian t m ay w alk where he likes.
B ut he m ust ask first. And he m ust
stay on the m ain ro ad s!”
“I w ill!” Gulliver prom ised.

26
 Free a t last, Gulliver set off to
explore the city. All the people
stayed indoors, to avoid his
enormous feet.

27
 Gulliver
thought he’d
visit the p alace,
but the g ate
w as too sm all
and the w alls
were too tall.
So, he cut down
a tree from the
p alace garden
and m ade two
stools.
W ith a stool
on either side o f
the w all, he
could step over
into the p alace
courtyard.
 Inside, he w as taken to meet
the empress and her children.
“W elcom e,” said the empress.
She held out her hand for
( iulliver to kiss.

Gulliver explored the entire city

before he returned to his tem ple
(hat night. W hen he fell asleep, he
had a smile on his face.

29
 C hapter 4

War!

Lilliput seemed like a peaceful place

but Gulliver soon found out it
w asn ’t. One d ay , the em peror’s
secretary cam e to see him.

30
 “W e have a problem ,” he said.
There are two groups of people in
Lilliput. The T ram ecksan s w ear
high heels an d the Slam ecksans
wear low ones. T h ey’re bitter
enemies and both groups w ant
to rule.”

31
 “The emperor likes low heels a t
the m om ent, so the Slam ecksan s
have more power. B ut if he changes
his m ind, w ar could break o u t!”
“T h a t’s terrible!” said Gulliver.

I v I

32
 “And th a t’s not a ll!” cried the
secretary. “W e’re already a t
war, with a nearby island called
Blefescu.”

“W h y ?” said Gulliver.
“W hatever h appened?”

33
 “It’s all about e g g s,” explained the
secretary. “Boiled eggs and a cut
ringer.
G ulliver w as astonished. “E g g s!”
he said. “H ow ?”

The secretary blushed. “W ell,

m any years ago , everyone opened
their eggs a t the big end. B ut then
the prince cut his finger when
breaking his egg open.”

34
 ‘H is father passed a law a t once.
No one w as to crack their eggs a t
(he big end, ever ag ain . E ggs
alw ays h ad to be eaten from the
sm aller end.”

35
 “Lots of people refused to obey
the law. They were ready to die
over it and some were killed. B ut
others fled to Blefescu, because
there people still cracked their eggs
a t the big end.”

36
 “ W e’ve been a t w ar ever since.
And now, the Blefescu fleet is
going to invade Lilliput. Y ou have
to help u s,” the secretary pleaded.
"P lease!”

(iulliver listened carefully to the

sad tale. “I’ll see w hat I can d o,”
lie said.

37
 H e tried to find the island o f
Blefescu with his telescope. It w as
easy to spot. A fleet o f ships w as
getting ready to set out. Gulliver
counted over fifty warships.

38
 “I’ll need ropes and iron b a rs,”
lie told the emperor.

Gulliver twisted the ropes

loqether to m ake them stronger.
Then he bent the iron bars
into hooks.

39
 “N ow for the next stag e o f
my p la n ,” he m uttered, heading to
the sea. Gulliver w aded in and
sw am alm ost to Blefescu.

W hen he rose out o f the sea,

towering above them, the sailors
scream ed with fright. M any dived
overboard, just to escape.

40
 Gulliver hooked a rope to each
of the ships and tied the ropes
together. Then he hauled the fleet
back across the sea to Lilliput.
 C hapter 5

Gulliver in danger
B ut the emperor o f Lilliput w asn ’t
satisfied. “I w ant to take over
Blefescu,” he told Gulliver.

Gulliver thought th at w as
going too far. “I w on’t m ake
people into slaves,” he said.

42
 This m ade the emperor cross.
Then some messengers arrived from
lUefescu, hoping to m ake peace.
When they met Gulliver, they
invited him for a visit.

This m ade the emperor furious,

i Irm ph,” he said, crossly. “I
suppose you can go. If you m u st.”

43
 Gulliver
thought he’d
better stay in
Lilliput and
try to keep the
emperor h a p p y .

H e stayed
quietly in his
temple until,
one night, he
w as woken by
shouting.
“H ELP!
Gulliver! The
p alace is on
fire!”
 People were frantically fighting
the fire, but flam es were licking the
roof. Gulliver, who w as taller than
the tallest ladder, threw w ater over
the p alace to save it.
 After this, the emperor w as
happy a g a in for a while. Gulliver
began to enjoy life, although he
kept thinking o f home. B ut m ost
people were very kind to him.

Three hundred tailors m ade him

a new blue suit...

46
...and three hundred chefs cooked
him tasty m eals every day.

47
 One evening, the emperor even
visited Gulliver with his fam ily.
They all sat down to a wonderful
feast a t G ulliver’s table.

48
 B ut G ulliver’s problem s didn ’t go
aw ay . Flim nap, who w as in charge
of the em peror’s m oney, didn’t like
Gulliver. H e said he cost too much.

The emperor listened to w hat

Flim nap said. It w as true. Gulliver
w as very expensive.

49
 Late one night, G ulliver h ad a
visitor, an im portant noble from the
p alace. H e kept his face hidden.

H e h ad come with a w arning.

“Flim nap is turning everyone
a g a in st you.”

50
 "Your enemies have written a list
o f your crimes. They say you’re a
traitor,” he said.

"Even worse, they say you’re

plotting a g a in st the emperor. They
w ant you killed.”

51
 “Flim nap w ants to set your
tem ple on fire and shoot poisoned
arrows a t y ou!”
Gulliver turned pale.
“N o t all o f the nobles w ant to
kill you,” the m an added. “Some
say you should only be blinded.”

“B ut even the emperor w ants to

give you less food, to save money.
Y ou m ust leave. N o w !”

52
 C hapter 6

Escape plans

Gulliver didn’t w aste any time.

Q uickly, he scribbled a letter to
the emperor.
“I ’m off to visit Blefescu, as I
prom ised,” he wrote.

53
 Then he hurried down to the sea
and undressed. H e piled his clothes
onto the biggest ship he could find
and w aded into the sea between
Lilliput and Blefescu.
 Gulliver didn’t stop until he had
reached Blefescu. The king him self
cam e out to meet him. Gulliver lay
down to kiss his hand.
“W elcom e!” cried the king. “Stay
as long as you like.”
 W alk in g on the beach a week
later, Gulliver spotted som ething
strange out a t sea.

It w as a sm all b oat —but a

full-sized one —floating upside
down in the w ater.
Gulliver rushed to the king.
“Please help m e!” he begged.

56
 “This could be my chance to go
home. C an you help me rescue the
b o a t?”
“O f course,” said the king. “T ak e
some ships to help you.”
Gulliver sw am out to the
boat, holding ropes from each
of the ships.

W ith the ships pulling and

Gulliver pushing, the b oat w as
brought safely to shore.

57
 Gulliver set about
fixing the b oat for
his long journey
home. W hile he
carved a tree trunk
to m ake a m ast,
some o f the k in g’s men m ade
a new sail.

The sail w as like a quilt, m ade o f

thirteen layers of the strongest
fabric in the land.

58
 Soon, the boat w as finished. “I’d
like to leave now,” Gulliver told
the king. “B ut no one a t home will
believe my story. Could I take
some o f your people with m e?”

I think your
people would
enjoy seeing my
country.

“I c an ’t possibly allow th a t,”

said the king. “B ut you m ay take
some cows and a sheep or tw o.”

59
 H e also gave Gulliver fifty b a g s
o f gold coins. “I don’t w ant you to
g o ,” he said. “B ut I understand
why you have to .”
“T h an k you,” said Gulliver. “I’ll
never forget you a ll.”

H e clam bered into his b oat and

set sail. “G oodbye, Blefescu!” he
cried. “G oodbye!”

60
 After only a few d ay s a t sea,
Gulliver saw a ship. H e shouted
and w aved wildly, hoping the
sailors would see him.

Helloooo!
Help! Over
here!

H e w as in luck! The lookout

spotted him. The ship sailed over
an d picked him up.

61
 “W here have you come from ?”
asked the captain .
“A place called L illiput,” said
G ulliver an d he showed the
cap tain his souvenirs.

The cap tain w as astonished. For

a few gold coins and a couple o f
cows, he agreed to tak e Gulliver all
the w ay home.
 Try these other books in
Series T w o:

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the fairground ghost a trick or two.

T h e Incredible Present: Lily gets

everything she’s ever wished for... but
things don’t turn out as she expects.

T h e C lum sy Crocodile: Cassy, the

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63
 Series Editor: Lesley Sims

Designed by
K atarin a Dragoslavic

This edition first published in 2007 by Usborne Publishing Ltd.,

Usborne House, 83-85 Saffron Hill, London EC1N 8RT, England.
www.usborne.com
Copyright © 2007, 2002, 1982 Usborne Publishing Ltd.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,

stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise
without the prior permission of the publisher. The name Usborne
and the devices § ® are Trade Marks of Usborne Publishing Ltd.
Printed in China. UE. First published in America in 2003.

64
 Gulliver sets sail for adventure and finds a country
beyond his wildest dreams. H e’s certainly never met
anyone like the people of Lilliput. But then the people
of Lilliput have never met anyone quite like Gulliver...
This book comes with a C D which brings the story to life
through lively music, dramatic sound effects and superbly
characterized readings. A listenalong version is followed
by a readalong version with prompts for page turns.

ir
Usborne Young Reading combines exciting stories with
easy reading text The books are carefully graded into
levels (Series One, Two and Three) and cover a wide
range of subjects to suit all interests and abilities.
ISBN 978074608903-3
9780746089033

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