Der Struwwelpeter

When the young doctor Heinrich Hoffmann wanted to buy a picture book for his three-year-old son Carl at Christmas in 1844, he found none among those presented to him by the bookseller that met his standards for easy comprehensibility. Upon returning home, he brought a notebook with him, which he handed to his wife with the words: "Here, I have what we need." To her astonished exclamation, "But that's just a blank notebook!" he replied, "Yes, but I will create a picture book for the boy myself." Hoffmann had learned to draw from his father for a reason, had often written verses for a reason, and had applied these skills at the bedsides of sick and unruly children to soothe them for a reason. Certainly, without this external and internal preparation, the book that Hoffmann placed on the Christmas table for his son would not have come into existence. Soon, others also saw the book and encouraged its creator to have it printed: the boy shouldn't be able to tear it apart in just a few days. In a small literary society where it was presented, it also came to the attention of the bookseller Dr. Löning, who had just established a publishing house under the name "Literarische Anstalt." He immediately agreed to print it. For the price of 59 Kreuzer, the first edition of 1,500 copies titled "Lustige Geschichten und drollige Bilder" with 15 colored plates for children aged 3-6 was published at Christmas 1845, which sold out within four weeks. The book quickly captured the hearts of children. It has been distributed in millions of copies, translated into all cultural languages, and reached the farthest countries. Our volume is based on the first editions.