Hansel and Gretel

Once upon a time, there was a poor woodcutter.

He lived near a great forest.

He had two children, Hansel and Gretel.

They were good, sweet children.

But the family was very poor.

The woodcutter's wife had died.

He married again.

His new wife was a mean stepmother.

She did not love the children.

She wanted them gone.

One night, there was no food.

The cupboard was empty.

The children went to bed hungry.

The stepmother talked to the woodcutter.

"We cannot feed four people!" she said.

"Tomorrow, we must take the children into the forest.

We will leave them there.

They will not find their way home.

Then we will have enough food for ourselves."

The poor woodcutter's heart was heavy.

Hansel could not sleep.

He heard everything his stepmother said.

He was scared but clever.

"I will not let us get lost," he thought.

He had an idea!

Hansel quietly got out of bed.

He tiptoed outside into the moonlight.

The ground was covered with white pebbles.

They shone like silver coins in the moonlight!

Hansel filled his pockets with pebbles.

He went back to bed.

"Don't worry, Gretel," he whispered.

"I have a plan to save us.

We will find our way home.

Trust me."

Gretel felt better.

She trusted her big brother.

He was always so smart!

She closed her eyes.

Soon both children were asleep.

The next morning, the stepmother woke them early.

"Get up! We're going into the forest today!"

She gave them each a small piece of bread.

"That's all the food you get," she said meanly.

The family started walking into the woods.

As they walked, Hansel lagged behind.

He dropped a white pebble on the path.

Then another, and another!

"Hansel! Why are you so slow?" called the stepmother.

"I'm looking at my little white cat on the roof!" lied Hansel.

"Silly boy! That's not a cat, that's the sun shining!" she snapped.

But Hansel kept dropping pebbles.

He left a trail all the way.

They walked deeper and deeper into the forest.

The trees grew thick and dark.

Finally, they reached the middle of the forest.

"Wait here, children," said the stepmother.

"Your father and I will cut wood.

When we're done, we'll come get you."

She and the woodcutter walked away.

Hansel and Gretel waited and waited.

They ate their small pieces of bread.

The sun went down.

It grew dark and cold.

Their parents did not return.

"I'm scared!" cried Gretel.

"Don't be afraid," said Hansel bravely.

"Wait until the moon rises.

Then you'll see my plan!"

He held his sister's hand.

Soon the moon rose high and bright.

The white pebbles began to shine!

They glowed like tiny stars on the path!

"Look, Gretel!" said Hansel.

"Follow the pebbles home!"

Hand in hand, they followed the shining pebbles.

They walked all night long.

At dawn, they reached their house!

They knocked on the door.

The stepmother opened it.

"Where have you been?" she shouted angrily.

She was not happy to see them!

But the woodcutter was overjoyed!

"My children! You're safe!"

He hugged them tight with tears in his eyes.

A few weeks passed.

Again, there was no food.

Again, the stepmother made a plan.

"Tomorrow, we take them deeper into the forest!" she told the woodcutter.

"This time, they won't find their way back!"

Once more, Hansel heard the plan.

He tried to go outside for pebbles.

But the stepmother had locked the door!

"Oh no!" thought Hansel.

"What will I do now?"

The next morning, they got only tiny pieces of bread.

As they walked into the forest, Hansel had a new idea.

He broke his bread into crumbs.

He dropped the crumbs on the path.

"This will work too!" he thought.

They walked even deeper than before.

The forest was dark and scary.

Strange sounds came from the shadows.

Finally, the stepmother said, "Wait here!"

And again, she and the woodcutter left.

Night came.

The moon rose.

"Now we can follow the breadcrumbs home!" said Hansel.

But when they looked for the crumbs...

They were gone!

The birds had eaten all the breadcrumbs!

There was no trail to follow!

"We're truly lost!" cried Gretel.

"Don't worry," said Hansel, trying to be brave.

"We'll find our way in the morning."

They tried to find their way home.

They walked for three whole days!

They were hungry and tired and scared.

They ate only a few berries they found.

Their feet hurt from walking.

"I'm so hungry," cried Gretel.

"Me too," said Hansel sadly.

Just then, they heard a beautiful sound!

A white bird was singing!

It flew ahead of them, as if leading the way.

The children followed the white bird.

Suddenly, they came to a clearing.

There stood the most amazing house!

The walls were made of gingerbread!

The roof was made of cake!

The windows were clear sugar!

There were candy canes and lollipops everywhere!

Gumdrops decorated the door!

Chocolate covered the chimney!

"It's a house made of candy!" gasped Gretel.

"Let's eat!" said Hansel.

He was so hungry!

He broke off a piece of the roof.

Gretel nibbled a sugar window.

It was delicious!

Suddenly, a voice called out:

"Nibble, nibble, little mouse!

Who's nibbling at my house?"

The children froze in fear!

Who lived in this candy house?

The door opened slowly.

An old woman came out.

She had a crooked nose and a wrinkled face.

She walked with a cane.

She squinted at the children.

"Oh, you poor dears!" she said sweetly.

"You must be lost and hungry!

Come inside!

I'll give you food and a warm bed!"

She seemed very kind.

Hansel and Gretel went inside.

The old woman gave them a wonderful meal!

Pancakes with syrup!

Apples and nuts!

Milk and honey!

Then she made them soft beds to sleep in.

But the old woman was really a wicked witch!

She only pretended to be nice!

She had built the candy house to trap children!

She had bad eyesight but a good sense of smell.

She could smell where children were!

The witch laughed an evil laugh.

"Tomorrow, I will have a feast!" she cackled.

"That boy looks plump and tasty!

I will fatten him up!

Then I will cook him and eat him!"

The next morning, the witch grabbed Hansel!

She locked him in a cage!

It had bars like a chicken coop!

"Let me out!" cried Hansel.

But the witch just laughed.

She made Gretel work like a servant!

"Clean the house!" she ordered.

"Cook the food!

And feed your brother!

Make him nice and fat!"

Every day, the witch checked Hansel.

She made him stick his finger through the bars.

She wanted to feel if he was fat enough to eat!

But clever Hansel had an idea!

He stuck out a little bone instead of his finger!

The witch's eyesight was very bad.

She felt the thin bone.

"You're still too skinny!" she complained.

"Eat more food!"

This went on for weeks!

Finally, the witch grew impatient.

"Fat or thin, I'll eat him today!" she declared.

She told Gretel to check the oven.

"Crawl inside and tell me if it's hot enough!"

The witch was going to push Gretel in too!

But Gretel was smart like her brother!

"I don't know how," she said innocently.

"Can you show me?"

"Stupid girl!" said the witch.

"It's easy! Just stick your head in like this!"

As soon as the witch leaned into the oven...

PUSH!

Gretel shoved her all the way in!

She slammed the oven door shut!

The wicked witch was trapped!

Gretel ran to free her brother!

"Hansel! Hansel! The witch is gone!"

She unlocked the cage.

Hansel jumped out!

They hugged each other tight!

Now they were safe!

They explored the candy house.

In every corner, they found treasure!

Chests full of pearls!

Boxes full of jewels!

Pockets full of gold coins!

"The witch must have stolen these from other children!" said Hansel.

"Let's take them home!" said Gretel.

They filled their pockets with treasures.

They took as much as they could carry.

"Now we can help Father!" said Hansel.

They ran out of the candy house.

They ran into the forest.

But which way was home?

They didn't know!

They walked and walked.

The children came to a wide river.

There was no bridge!

How could they cross?

"We can't swim with all these treasures!" said Gretel.

They sat down, feeling sad.

Then a beautiful white duck swam by!

"Little duck, little duck!" called Gretel.

"Can you help us cross?

There is no bridge or boat!

Please carry us across!"

The kind duck agreed!

First, she carried Gretel across.

Then she came back for Hansel.

Safely on the other side, they thanked the duck!

"You saved us!" they said.

They walked through the forest.

Soon, the trees looked familiar!

"I know this place!" cried Hansel.

"We're close to home!"

They started to run!

There was their little house!

They ran to the door!

They burst inside!

"Father! Father!" they cried.

The woodcutter looked up in amazement!

He grabbed his children and hugged them!

Tears of joy ran down his face!

"My precious children!" he sobbed.

"I've been so sad without you!

I thought I'd never see you again!"

"Where is our stepmother?" asked Gretel.

"She left me," said the woodcutter.

"She went away weeks ago.

I've been all alone.

I've been searching the forest for you every day!"

Hansel and Gretel showed him the treasures!

Gold, jewels, and pearls!

"Now we'll never be poor again!" said Hansel.

"We can buy food and everything we need!"

The woodcutter cried happy tears.

From that day on, they lived happily.

They were never hungry again.

The woodcutter never remarried.

He kept his children close.

They loved each other very much.

Hansel and Gretel grew up to be wise.

They always remembered their adventure.

"We were brave," said Gretel.

"We were clever," said Hansel.

"We were together," they both said.

The children never forgot the lessons they learned.

Stay brave when you're scared.

Be clever when you're in trouble.

Work together with those you love.

And never give up hope!

They shared their treasure with the poor.

They helped everyone in their village.

The woodcutter was proud of them.

They lived in peace and happiness.

And they all lived happily ever after!