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The frog king or Iron Henry
The brothers Grimm →

Cinderella
The brothers Grimm →

The wolf and the seven young kids
The brothers Grimm →

Fairytales and stories of Hans Christian Andersen

List of fairytales (Page 4)

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061 Everything in its proper place

It was over a hundred years ago. By the great lake behind the wood there stood an old mansion. Round about it circled a deep ditch, with bulrushes, reeds, and grasses growing in it. Close by the bridge, near the entrance gate, an old willow tree bent over the reeds.Read the story →

062 The goblin and the huckster

There was once a regular student, who lived in a garret, and had no possessions. And there was also a regular huckster, to whom the house belonged, and who occupied the ground floor. A goblin lived with the huckster, because at Christmas he always had a large dish full of jam, with a great piece of butter in the middle.Read the story →

063 Under the willow tree

The country around the town of Kjöge is very bare. The town itself lies by the seashore, which is always beautiful, although it might be more beautiful than it is, because all around are flat fields, and a forest a long way off. But one always finds something beautiful in the spot that is one's own home, something for which one longs, even when one is in the most wonderful spot in the world.Read the story →

064 Five peas from a pod

There were five peas in one pod; the peas were green and the pod was green, and so they believed that the whole world was green-and that was absolutely right! The pod grew and the peas grew; they adjusted themselves to their surroundings, sitting straight in a row. The sun shone outside and warmed the pod; the rain made it clear and clean.Read the story →

065 She was good for nothing

The mayor was standing at his open window; he was wearing a dress shirt with a dainty breastpin in its frill. He was very well shaven, self-done, though he had cut himself slightly and had stuck a small bit of newspaper over the cut. Listen, youngster! he boomed. The youngster was none other than the washerwoman's son, who respectfully took off his cap as he passed.Read the story →

066 Two maidens

Have you ever seen a maiden? I am referring to what road pavers call a maiden, a thing used for ramming down the paving stones. She is made entirely of wood, broad at the bottom, with iron hoops around it, and a stick run through it at the upper, narrower end, which gives the maiden arms. Two maidens like this were once standing in the yard shed, among shovels, measuring tapes, and wheelbarrows.Read the story →

067 The last pearl

There was a rich and happy house. All those in it-the owners, and servants, and friends, too-were happy and cheerful, for on this day a son and heir had been born, and mother and child were doing well. The lamp in the cozy bedroom had been partly covered, and heavy curtains of costly silken material had been drawn tightly together before the windows. The carpet was as thick and soft as moss.Read the story →

068 At the uttermost parts of the sea

A couple of large ships were sent up toward the North Pole, to discover the boundaries of land and sea and how far it would be possible for the human race to penetrate in that direction. A year and a day had already passed, and with great difficulty they had traveled high up amid mist and ice. Now winter had set in again; the sun was gone, and one long night would last for many, many weeks.Read the story →

069 The moneybox

In a nursery where a number of toys lay scattered about, a money-box stood on the top of a very high wardrobe. It was made of clay in the shape of a pig, and had been bought of the potter. In the back of the pig was a slit, and this slit had been enlarged with a knife, so that dollars, or crown pieces, might slip through; and, indeed there were two in the box, besides a number of pence.Read the story →

070 A leaf from heaven

High up in the thin, clear air there flew an angel bearing a flower from the garden of heaven. As he kissed it, a tiny leaf drifted down into the muddy soil in the middle of the wood; it very soon took root there, and sprouted, and sent up shoots among the other plants. That's a funny kind of slip, said the plants.Read the story →

071 Clumsy Hans

Out in the country there was an old mansion where an old squire lived with his two sons, who were so witty that they thought themselves too clever for words. They decided to go out and propose to the King's daughter, which they were at liberty to do, for she had announced publicly that she would take for a husband the man who had the most to say for himself.Read the story →

072 Ib and little Christina

In the forest that extends from the banks of the Gudenau, in North Jutland, a long way into the country, and not far from the clear stream, rises a great ridge of land, which stretches through the wood like a wall.Read the story →

073 The thorny road of honor

There is an old fairy tale: The Thorny Road of Honor was trodden by a marksman named Bryde, to whom came great honor and dignity, but not until after manifold adversities and peril of life. More than one of us had heard that tale in childhood, and perhaps read it in later years, and thought of his own unsung thorny road and manifold adversities.Read the story →

074 The Jewish girl

Among the other children in the charity school was a little Jewish girl, clever and good-in fact, the brightest of them all. But there was one class she could not attend, the one where religion was taught, for she was in a Christian school.Read the story →

075 A string of pearls

The railroad in Denmark still extends only from Copenhagen to Korsör; it is a string of pearls. Europe has a wealth of these pearls; its most costly are named Paris, London, Vienna, Naples. And yet many a man will point out as his favorite pearl not one of these great cities but rather some little country town that is still the home of homes to him, the home of those dearest to him.Read the story →

076 The bell deep

Ding-dong! Ding-dong! rings out from the Bell Deep in the Odense River. And what sort of river is that? Why, every child in Odense Town knows it well. It flows around the foot of the gardens, from the locks to the water mill, under the wooden bridges. Yellow water lilies grow in the river, and brown, featherlike reeds, and the black, velvety bulrushes, so high and so thick.Read the story →

077 The bottle neck

Close to the corner of a street, among other abodes of poverty, stood an exceedingly tall, narrow house, which had been so knocked about by time that it seemed out of joint in every direction. This house was inhabited by poor people, but the deepest poverty was apparent in the garret lodging in the gable.Read the story →

078 Soup from a sausage skewer

We had such an excellent dinner yesterday, said an old mouse of the female sex to another who had not been present at the feast. I sat number twenty-one below the mouse-king, which was not a bad place. Shall I tell you what we had? Everything was first rate. Mouldy bread, tallow candle, and sausage.Read the story →

079 The old bachelor's nightcap

There is a street in Copenhagen with a very strange name. It is called Hysken street. Where the name came from, and what it means is very uncertain. It is said to be German, but that is unjust to the Germans, for it would then be called Hauschen, not Hysken.Read the story →

080 "Something"

I mean to be somebody, and do something useful in the world, said the eldest of five brothers. I don't care how humble my position is, so that I can only do some good, which will be something. I intend to be a brickmaker; bricks are always wanted, and I shall be really doing something.Read the story →

The most beautiful fairytales of Andersen
The best fairytales →

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