The Sword of Damocles

A story retold from Fifty Famous Stories by James Baldwin

This story comes from Fifty Famous Stories Retold by James Baldwin, an American educator who collected classic tales for young readers in the early 1900s. The tale of Damocles and King Dionysius is an ancient Greek legend that has been told for more than two thousand years. It teaches that power and riches often come with hidden dangers. The phrase "sword of Damocles" is still used today to describe a danger that hangs over someone. This reader is worth a child's time because it shows, through a vivid and memorable image, that things are not always as they seem and that envy can be foolish.

Band

Yellow · Emerging readers, about 6 to 8

Length

medium · about 565 words in 6 sections · 4 pictures

Source

Fifty Famous Stories Retold, James Baldwin · 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.