In this literary fairy tale by Wilhelm Hauff, a sixteen-year-old dwarfish boy with an oversized head is turned out of his dead father’s house by relatives. On his travels, he acquires and puts to use various items with magical powers… slippers that allow him to run with superhuman speed or fly, a walking stick that can locate buried treasure, and fruit that can grow donkey ears and a long nose on anyone who eats it. Although returning home rich after humiliating an unfair king, he chooses to live in isolation. Themes include magic, appearance vs. inner character, betrayal, misanthropy/social withdrawal

This literary fairy tale by Wilhelm Hauff carries a warning for children … treat adults with respect. A boy helping his mother sell vegetables in a marketplace makes unkind remarks about an elderly woman’s appearance. The woman is a witch. She kidnaps and drugs the boy, forcing him to work for seven years as her servant. When he escapes, he finds that she has changed him into a misshapen dwarf even his parents don’t recognize. Fortunately, a similarly enchanted goose-girl saves the day. Themes include magic, the consequences of rudeness, appearance vs. inner character, alienation, self-respect, empathy and compassion, redemption

In this literary fairy tale by Wilhelm Hauff, a benevolent forest spirit showers a young man dissatisfied with his poverty and low social standing with riches. After squandering these on drinking and gambling, the young man turns to a dark spirit who promises him endless wealth if he exchanges his human heart for one of stone. He makes the trade, but the outcome is not what he expected. Written for older children, the story satirizes the selfishness, greed and social climbing of early 19th century German society. Other themes include magic, identity (envy, ambition, self-acceptance), empathy and compassion, regret, redemption.