akorn - Mighty Old Tales Retold

Master Pfriem (Master Cobbler's Awl)

Master Pfriem was a short, thin, but lively man, who never rested a moment. His face, of which his turned up nose was the only prominent feature, was marked with smallpox and pale as death, his hair was gray and shaggy, his eyes small, but they glanced perpetually about on all sides. He saw everything, criticized everything, knew everything best, and was always in the right. 

Death's Messengers

In ancient times a giant was once traveling on a great highway, when suddenly an unknown man sprung up before him, and said, "Halt, not one step farther!"

The Duration of Life

When God had created the world and was about to fix the length of each creature's life, the ass came and asked, "Lord, how long shall I live?"

The Moon

In days gone by there was a land where the nights were always dark, and the sky spread over it like a black cloth, for there the moon never rose, and no star shone in the obscurity. 

The Owl

Two or three hundred years ago, when people were far from being so crafty and cunning as they are today, an extraordinary event took place in a little town. By some mischance one of the great owls, called horned owls, had come from the neighboring woods into the barn of one of the townsfolk...

The Bittern and the Hoopoe

"Where do you like best to feed your flocks?" said a man to an old cowherd.
"Here, sir, where the grass is neither too rich nor too poor, or else it is no use."

The Flounder

The fishes had for a long time been discontented because no order prevailed in their kingdom.

The Willow Wren and the Bear

In former days every sound still had its meaning and application.

Sharing Joy and Sorrow

There was once a tailor, who was a quarrelsome fellow, and his wife, who was good, industrious, and pious, never could please him. 

The Hut in the Forest

A poor lumberjack lived with his wife and three daughters in a little hut on the edge of a lonely forest. One morning as he was about to go to his work, he said to his wife, "Let my dinner be brought into the forest to me by my eldest daughter..."