This is the original tale of the Elves and the Shoemaker. Every night the shoemaker and his wife wake to their unfinished shoes being completed. Eventually, the shoemaker and his wife stay up at night to catch their little helpers and find the elves don't have clothes. They want to repay the Elves for all their help so they make them clothes and shoes. The Elves are so happy that they quickly dress and leave never to be seen again. For the shoemaker and his wife, well they continue to prosper even after their elves are gone. This folklore is the classic rendition of a Grimm tale. The illustrations capture the magic of these elves. The author Paul Galdone enjoys making picture books of folklore tales. ( )

This was such a cute book! This was an entertaining book that had really great illustrations also. It has a secret sort of meaning behind it too showing kindness and receiving gratitude. ( )

Classic tale
that all children will love and enjoy!

A poor shoemaker found himself with only enough leather for one more pair of shoes to make. He cut the leather and headed to bed so the next day he would be able to make the best shoes he could. The next morning he awoke to a strange bit of good fortune, the shoes were perfectly made and sitting on his table. Soon, a man came in and paid a good sum for these shoes and the shoemaker was able to buy more leather. Like the previous day, he cut the leather and left it on the table for the day to come. The cycle continued as customers would come into the store and pay nice amounts for the shoes. After some time, the shoemaker became curious to see what or who was helping him out at night. The shoemaker and his wife decided to stay awake, hid, and see what would happen. That night much to their surprise two naked elfs arrived and started making the shoes like every night before. Knowing who was now the helpers, the wife thought about repayment for their help. In return she made me outfits, even the shoemaker created them shoes. That night instead of leather, they were left clothes. The elfs were ecstatic and so thankful, they now had clothes so they no longer had to be cobblers. They elfs left the house that night and never returned, although they left, the shoemaker and his wife still continued to make money.
I have never heard about this story before and I enjoyed getting to read it. I thought that it was well written and flowed as if someone were orally telling me rather than reading. I thought that it was a cute story that had a really nice meaning behind it. ( )

This book teaches children about kindness and hard work. It was a great tale about elves, and a married couple that has a happy ending.