
Nutcracker and Mouse King
'Nutcracker and Mouse King' Summary
The story begins on Christmas Eve, at the Stahlbaum house. Marie, seven, and her brother, Fritz, sit outside the parlour speculating about what kind of present their godfather, Drosselmeyer, who is a clockmaker and inventor, has made for them. They are at last allowed in, where they receive many splendid gifts, including Drosselmeyer's, which turns out to be a clockwork castle with mechanical people moving about inside it. However, as they can only do the same thing over and over without variation, the children quickly tire of it. At this point, Marie notices a nutcracker, and asks to whom he belongs. Her father tells her that he belongs to all of them, but that since she is so fond of him she will be his special caretaker. She, Fritz, and their sister, Louise, pass him amongst themselves, cracking nuts, until Fritz tries to crack one that is too big and hard, and his jaw breaks. Marie, upset, takes him away and bandages him with a ribbon from her dress.
When it is time for bed, the children put their Christmas gifts away in the special cabinet where they keep their toys. Fritz and Louise go up to bed, but Marie begs to be allowed to stay with the nutcracker a while longer, and she is allowed to do so. She puts him to bed and tells him that Drosselmeyer will fix his jaw as good as new. At this, his face seems momentarily to come alive, and Marie is frightened, but she then decides it was only her imagination.
The grandfather clock begins to chime, and Marie believes she sees Drosselmeyer sitting on top of it, preventing it from striking. Mice begin to come out from beneath the floor boards, including the seven-headed Mouse King. The dolls in the toy cabinet come alive and begin to move, the nutcracker taking command and leading them into battle after putting Marie's ribbon on as a token. The battle goes to the dolls at first, but they are eventually overwhelmed by the mice. Marie, seeing the nutcracker about to be taken prisoner, takes off her slipper and throws it at the Mouse King. She then faints into the toy cabinet's glass door, cutting her arm badly.
Marie wakes up in her bed the next morning with her arm bandaged and tries to tell her parents about the battle between the mice and the dolls, but they do not believe her, thinking that she has had a fever dream caused by the wound she sustained from the broken glass. Several days later, Drosselmeyer arrives with the nutcracker, whose jaw has been fixed, and tells Marie the story of Princess Pirlipat and Madam Mouserinks, who is also known as the Queen of the Mice, which explains how nutcrackers came to be and why they look the way they do.
The Mouse Queen tricked Pirlipat's mother into allowing her and her children to gobble up the lard that was supposed to go into the sausage that the King was to eat at dinner that evening. The King, enraged at the Mouse Queen for spoiling his supper and upsetting his wife, had his court inventor, whose name happens to be Drosselmeyer, create traps for the Mouse Queen and her children.
Book Details
Language
EnglishOriginal Language
GermanPublished In
1816Genre/Category
Tags/Keywords
Authors

E. T. A. Hoffmann
Prussia
Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann was a German Romantic author of fantasy and Gothic horror, a jurist, composer, music critic and artist. His stories form the basis of Jacques Offenbach's opera The Tales...
Books by E. T. A. HoffmannListen/Download Audiobook
Related books

Treasure Chest of My Bookhouse by Olive Beaupre Miller
This volume, part of the 'My Bookhouse' series, presents a compilation of classic children's literature, carefully selected and edited for young reade...

Ring o' Roses: A Nursery Rhyme Picture Book by L. Leslie Brooke
A collection of Classical children's nursery rhymes. Many familiar, a few unfamiliar, all simple and easy for younger children.

Gingerbread Boy and Joyful Jingle Play Stories by Laura Rountree Smith
Gingerbread Boy and Joyful Jingle Play Stories is a collection of short, funny stories for children that are not only fun to read and listen to, but a...

Rumpty-Dudget's Tower: A Fairy Tale by Julian Hawthorne
Rumpty-Dudget's Tower is a charming fairy tale about a mischievous dwarf named Rumpty-Dudget who lives in a magical tower. He embarks on a quest to f...

Selection from the Norse Tales for the Use of Children by Sir George Webbe Dasent
This collection of Norse folktales is perfect for children of all ages. The stories are full of adventure, magic, and humor, and they offer a glimpse...

The Magic World by Edith Nesbit
The Magic World is an influential collection of twelve short stories by E. Nesbit. It was first published in book form in 1912 by Macmillan and Co. Lt...

Fairchild Family by Mary Martha Sherwood
This classic children's novel follows the adventures of Lucy, Emily, and Henry, three siblings living in Regency England. The children's escapades and...

Robin Hood by Amice MacDonell
This classic tale of Robin Hood is brought to life in this delightful audio play. Join Robin and his Merry Men as they outwit the Sheriff of Nottingha...

Hänsel and Gretel: A Fairy Opera in Three Acts by Adelheid Wette
Step into a magical world where breadcrumbs guide the way and a wicked witch awaits in the enchanting opera, "Hänsel and Gretel: A Fairy Opera in Thre...

Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm is a classic American 1903 children's novel by Kate Douglas Wiggin that tells the story of Rebecca Rowena Randall and her a...
Reviews for Nutcracker and Mouse King
No reviews posted or approved, yet...