The lamp is not impressive. It is dented, dull, and smells faintly of old socks and disappointment. When Alfie finds it behind the skate ramp and accidentally rubs it, out pops a blue genie who speaks only in rhyme and offers three wishes. This should be brilliant. This should be the best day ever.

Then Ben starts asking questions.

Alfie wishes for loads of money. Ben asks what currency. Pounds the money or pounds the weight? Old pounds or new pounds? Scottish or English? Paper or coin? Cash or bank transfer? What about fraud detection? What about inflation? Each answer creates ten more questions. The wish collapses under its own logic.

They try again. World peace. Ben asks if that includes animals fighting. What about sports? What about arguments? What about aliens invading and nobody being allowed to fight back? The wish unravels.

Best at football. For how long? At what age? What about other teams? You would kill the sport. Famous. For what? For how long? Privacy gone forever. Happiness. Forced or real? Constant or contextual? What about guilt?

The wishes come faster and faster. No weapons. Climate change fixed. King of the world. The perfect wish. Every single one gets torn apart by consequences, loopholes, and the terrifying complexity of actually changing anything. Ben cannot stop finding problems. Alfie cannot stop trying to fix them. The genie watches sadly as three hundred years of experience tells him exactly how this ends.

Finally, Alfie snaps and wishes they had never found the stupid lamp. Everything resets. The boys run home. And the genie sits alone in the darkness, still trapped, because nobody ever completes three wishes. They always panic and wish it away first.

This is one of the cleverest fun kids stories in the collection. Children who love logical puzzles and overthinking will recognise themselves in Ben, while kids who just want things to work will sympathise with Alfie's mounting frustration. The genie's rhyming voice is a particular delight, and the bittersweet ending lands somewhere thoughtful without being heavy.

Grown ups will appreciate the wit behind the escalating chaos and the surprisingly poignant truth underneath. That fear of consequences can paralyze us completely. That overthinking everything means you end up with nothing. That the perfect really is the enemy of the good.

Brilliant for car journeys when older kids need something that rewards attention, for after school when brains are switched on, or as a kids story podcast episode that sparks actual conversation afterwards about choices and consequences. If you want fun children's stories with proper theatrical performances, a kids storytelling podcast with funny bits that build relentlessly, or audio tales that make everyone think while they laugh, this genie's trap is spectacular.

The comedy escalates magnificently through nine increasingly ridiculous wishes, then lands somewhere unexpectedly moving. Wholesome chaos with a thoughtful heart.

More funny bedtime stories for kids at MrMortonsBarmyBook.com where Morton keeps the barmy bits coming every week.

Episode length: approximately 15 minutes
Ages: 4 to 400 (though older kids will get more of the logic spirals)
Best enjoyed: bedtime, car journeys, after school wind down

If this made your household laugh and think, follow the show for more stories that are clever without showing off.