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A Reading Resource for Kids, Parents, and Teachers

The Gift-Giving

Story Stats

Rating: 5
Grade Level: 5
Page count: 11
Categories: Christmas, Fantasy

Author

Joan
Aiken

Appeared in

Sixteen Short Stories by Outstanding Writers for Young Adults

Story Summary

Each Spring four uncles leave the mountains for different parts of the world and return just before Christmas with goods for trade and presents for their families. Although Grandmother is stone blind, she can describe each gift in detail while her son, Uncle Mark, plays on his flute. But one year Uncle Mark doesn't return and Grandmother's gift is gone until Mark's son carves a flute and remembers the tune.