A Picture-Book of Merry Tales

A Picture-Book of Merry Tales gathers the legendary exploits of Tyll Owlglass, German folklore's most irresistible trickster. Born with chaos in his blood, baptized not once but three times, including in a muddy ditch, Tyll emerges from childhood already plotting his first pranks on the villagers who will spend the rest of their lives trying to outsmart him. The stories follow his career of mischief with gleeful precision: he talks his way into a priest's household, eats two roasting chickens whole while ostensibly "only half working," and turns every social exchange into an opportunity for elaborate trickery. The humor operates on two levels at once. Children laugh at the absurdity and the comeuppance. Adults recognize something sharper beneath the playfulness: a folk hero who thumbs his nose at pomposity, exposes hypocrisy through comedy, and refuses to be caught no matter how elaborate his schemes. These are tales that have been told around firesides for centuries, and they retain their sparkle here, undimmed by time. For anyone who believes the best stories involve watching the cleverest person in the room outmaneuver everyone else.