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Monkey and Tortoise were great friends, and when Tortoise went shopping, monkey would give him a ride on his back, because it took Tortoise so long to get anywhere.

”It’s a pity I can’t fly from tree to tree like you,” Tortoise said to Monkey.

”Whoever heard of a tortoise flying?” laughed Monkey.

”No one that I know of,” smiled Tortoise, “but I’d like to try.”

So Monkey’s strong tail curled itself around a branch, and he showed Tortoise, how he sprang from one tree to another.

Tortoise blinked with surprise. “It does look hard,” he said. “Perhaps I’ll have a sleep instead!” And without another word, his little head disappeared into his shell and he went fast asleep.

Monkey picked a banana and sat munching it until Tortoise woke up. By that time it was dark.

”There’s no-one to see you now because it is bedtime,” chattered Monkey, “so if you make a mistake, it doesn’t matter.”

Tortoise tried to leap on to a branch, but his tiny legs were too short to cling on to it and he fell backwards—on to Monkey’s banana skin.

The sticky banana skin stuck sideways on his hard tortoise-shell back—and looked just like a pair of wings. They flapped upwards, and so did Tortoise, into the tree-top! From there he whizzed round in a circle, and back to Monkey, who then stood on his head with amazement!

All through the night Tortoise flew round and round, and not till next morning, when all his jungle friends had seen him, did he stop. He had to anyway, because the banana skin was peeling off his back. But he became quite famous, and Monkey was proud to be his friend.

After all, not everyone knows a “flying tortoise”!

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