Prinsessen pa aerten

Det var engang en prins; han ville have sig en prinsesse, men det skulle vaere en rigtig prinsesse.

Hans Christian Andersen - Fairy Tales - Introduction

Hans Christian Andersen, let’s call him Hans, is best known today for his fairy tales. In his own time he was better known for other writings such as poetry, short stories, novels, autobiography, and his travelogues, at least to begin with -- he traveled all over Europe, Africa, Asia, and even to America. He spent a lot of time as a house guest to well off benefactors and even stayed so long with Charles Dickens at his home in Kent, that the Dickens family had to ask Hans to leave. But that’s another story.

Urbanus

In a cloister there lived a young man named Urbanus, who was pious and studious.

The Poor Woman and the Little Canary Bird

There was a miserably poor woman. She was very sad, for she had nothing to eat, and her husband was dead and had to be buried, but she was so poor that she could not afford to buy a coffin.

Folks Say --

Folks often say one thing and mean another. 

The Penman

There once was a man who held an office that required good penmanship.

Croak!

All the birds of the forest were sitting on the branches of the trees, which had quite enough leaves; and yet the birds were unanimous in their desire for more leaves -- the "leaves" of a journal; a new, good journal was what they longed for -- a critical newspaper such as humans have so many of, so many that half of them would be sufficient.

The Flea and the Professor

There was an aeronaut, and things went badly for him. His balloon burst, hurled him out, and went all to pieces. Just two minutes before, the aeronaut sent his boy down by parachute -- wasn't the boy lucky!

What Old Johanne Told

The wind whistles in the old willow tree. It is as if one were hearing a song; the wind sings it; the tree tells it. If you do not understand it, then ask old Johanne in the poorhouse; she knows all about it; she was born here in the parish.

Aunty Toothache

Where did we get this story? Would you like to know?
We got it from the basket that the wastepaper is thrown into.
Many a good and rare book is taken to the delicatessen store and the grocer's, not to be read, but to be used as wrapping paper for starch and coffee, beans, for salted herring, butter, and cheese.