Why Reddy Fox Wears Red

A story retold from Mother West Wind "Why" Stories by Thornton W. Burgess

Thornton W. Burgess was an American author who wrote thousands of animal stories for children in the early 1900s. This tale comes from his collection Mother West Wind "Why" Stories, published in 1915. Like many of Burgess's stories, this one teaches a lesson through the adventures of animal characters. The story explains that a red coat is a warning—a reminder to watch out for those who are dishonest, no matter how polite they seem.

Band

Yellow · Emerging readers, about 6 to 8

Length

medium · about 537 words in 6 sections · 4 pictures

Source

Mother West Wind "Why" Stories, Thornton W. Burgess · Project Gutenberg

First published

see the About page in the reader

Regions

Canada · United States

Included formats

• · Web reader and PDF
• · EPUB for e-readers
• · Home-print sheet
• · Folded booklet
• · Binder edition (8.5 × 11)
• · Worksheet
• · Quick Check (8 questions) with answer key
• · Read-aloud script
• · Colouring page

Readers are engineered from the original public-domain text with AI under HummingRead’s published canon and Content Philosophy, checked by automated audit and sampled by a person. Pictures are made with AI to HummingRead’s brief for each story. How a reader is made.