Reva in the City of Drawkcab – A Short Children’s Story
In this short story for kids, a little boy goes to a city where everything is done backwards. Find out why in this episode of Reva’s Riddles.
Onyinye Obiorah
5/19/20262 min read
Reva in the City of Drawkcab – Short Story for Kids
It had been cold all morning long. Because of this, David, Ellie, and Reva wore thick sweaters, socks, and mittens. Later in the day, the sun came out. It was now sunny and warm. David and Ellie took off their sweaters, but Reva didn’t. It was his favourite sweater, and he wanted to wear it. They all went outside to play. Very soon, Reva began to feel hot. Still, he wouldn’t take his sweater off.
“Reva! Take off your sweater. You’re hot!” Ellie said.
“No. I want to wear it,” Reva said, pouting with his lips.
“Why?” asked Ellie.
“Because it’s my favourite sweater,” answered Reva, who looked like a melting candle.
“Then I’ll have to take you to Drawkcab City to meet their king,” David said.
“What a strange name for a city,” Reva said, giggling.
“That’s because they write the name of their city backwards,” David said.
“That sounds like fun!” Reva said, happy to go on this imaginary adventure. “I’d love to meet their king.”
“It’s not as much fun as it sounds,” David said. “You’ll soon see why.”
So off they went to the City of Drawkcab.
When they were close to the city, they met a man. He was eating a lot of ice cream. There was so much ice cream. Reva was excited because he loved ice cream.
“It is a wonderful city," he cried out.
But David knew it wasn’t. They decided to talk to the man.
“Hello, Sir," Ellie called out to him. “I’m sure you must be having a pleasant time eating so much ice cream.”
“Not at all,” the man replied. He seemed sad. “I’m only eating this ice cream because I don’t want to.”
“What!” the children cried. “Why would you do that?”
“That’s the way it works in this city. You can only do things backwards. I eat when I’m full and never do when I’m hungry.”
“That’s horrible,” cried Ellie.
“Yes, it is,” said the man. “Those who were hungry since the reign of the king are still hungry. They haven't had anything to eat since then and are now as lean as rakes. And those who were full haven’t stopped eating since then. We never use umbrellas when it’s hot or when it’s raining. We can only use them on cool and dry days,” he continued. “And we never wear sweaters when it’s cold; we only wear sweaters on very hot days. On those days, we never drink water because we’re thirsty. It’s really dreadful.”
“That’s silly,” Reva said.
“It certainly is. But that’s not all. We walk backwards. So, we’re always bumping into each other. We never light a lamp in the dark, so we’re always stumbling and tumbling onto things,” he said. He told them all the strange things the king of Drawkcab City made them do.
“My little brother would like to live in your city,” David said. “He likes to wear sweaters when it’s hot.”
“He’ll fit in here,” the man said. “But why does he wear the sweater?”
“Because it’s my favourite sweater,” Reva said, proudly.
“Oh dear, then he can’t wear the sweater. He can only wear a sweater he doesn’t like.”
“I don’t like this city,” Reva said. “Everything they do is silly.”
He took off his sweater, and they all went home. Reva felt much better. They all played soccer together. It was a good thing they went on an adventure to Drawkcab City.
The End.