Princess September Summary Class 8 English It So Happened Chapter 5

The Princess and the Songbird

In the kingdom of Siam, the King and Queen had many daughters, so the King named them after the months of the year to avoid confusion. The youngest daughter was called September.

The King had a peculiar habit of giving gifts on his birthday instead of receiving them. One year, he gifted each of his daughters a green parrot in a golden cage. The princesses trained their parrots to say phrases like "God save the king" and "Pretty Polly" in different languages. However, when Princess September found her parrot dead, she was heartbroken, but the Queen dismissed her grief and sent her to bed without dinner.

Later that night, a little bird flew into Princess September's room and sang a beautiful song, lifting her spirits. She decided to keep this new bird instead of her dead parrot. The next morning, the bird greeted her with "Good morning!" and ate rice from her hand, which amazed everyone. Princess September wanted to show her bird to her sisters, and when she did, the bird sang a different song for each sister, while the parrots only repeated "God Save the King." The King and Queen were also pleased with the new bird's song, as they were tired of the parrots.

However, Princess September's sisters felt jealous and made a cruel suggestion to her. They advised her to put the bird in a cage to keep it from flying away. That evening, when the bird came late, September worried about its safety from hawks and traps. She quickly caged it, hoping to protect it. The bird was surprised and expected to be freed in the morning, but it lost its singing ability and refused to eat.

The next day, when September found the bird lying still, she thought it was dead. In her sadness, she decided to set it free. The bird, grateful for its freedom, promised to return every day to sing. Her sisters mocked her, saying the bird would never come back. However, the bird did return, sitting on September's shoulder, eating from her hand, and singing beautiful songs.

September kept her window open day and night for the bird to come and go. The fresh air made her incredibly beautiful, and she eventually married the king of the land. In contrast, her sisters, who kept their windows shut, became unattractive and unpleasant, leading to their marriages to the King’s ministers.