Episode 34: 33. The Three Languages
A count's son has trouble learning anything of use, but he does learn how to talk to dogs, frogs, and birds. Those skills end up coming in handy for the fellow.
2011 episodes (34)
Episode 32: 31. The Maiden Without Hands
A maiden loses her hands when her father bargained her away to the devil. The girl escapes the devil and evenually marries a king. The devil continues to cause her trouble, but she eventually lives happily ever after.
Episode 31: 30. The Louse and the Flea
A louse and a flea set up a happy home together, but things very quickly go terribly wrong one day while they are brewing beer.
Episode 30: 29. The Devil With the Three Golden Hairs
A boy is born as fortune's favorite, destined to marry the king's daughter. The king didn't care for the idea, and did what he could to prevent it. The boy ends up going to hell and back to fulfill his destiny.
Episode 28: 27. The Bremen Town Musicians
A donkey, a dog, a cat, and a rooster are no longer appreciated by their human owners, so they all run off to make a new life for themselves as musicians in the town of Bremen. Along the way, they encounter a band of theives.
Episode 27: 26. Little Red Cap
A girl known for wearing her little red hat takes a basket of treats to her grandmother's house, though the woods. A big bad wolf has other plans.
Episode 26: 25. The Seven Ravens
In a fit of anger, a father curses his seven sons and they turn into ravens. Their younger sister travels to the end of the earth to lift the curse.
Episode 25: 24. Mother Holle
A widow spoils her daughter, and makes her stepdaughter do all the work. The stepdaughter falls down a well and discovers the home of Mother Holle (who rules the weather). While their, her industriousness earns her a reward of gold. After returning home, the other daughter tries to follow in her step-sister's footsteps, but her idle nature earns her nothing but pitch.
Episode 24: 23. The Mouse, The Bird, and The Sausage
A mouse, a bird, and a sausage meet and set up house. Everything is happy until the bird gets convinced he's being taken advantage of. He tries for a different arrangement with disasterous results.
Episode 23: 22. The Riddle
A prince travels the world, and along the way defeats a witch and a band of muderers. He uses the experience to win the hand of a princess via a riddle contest.
Episode 22: 21. Cinderella
The familiar story of a girl marrying a prince, despite her evil step-sisters doing their best to keep her down. This original version is a bit more bloody than the one you may know, however.
Episode 21: 20. The Brave Little Tailor
A little tailor kills seven flies with one blow, and milks the feat for all it's worth. And then some.
Episode 20: 19. The Fisherman and His Wife
A fisherman catches a wish-granting flounder, and his wife wishes for more and more outlandish things.
Episode 19: 18. The Straw, the Coal, and the Bean
A peice of straw, a smoldering coal, and a bean escape from a poor old woman's house and head off for a foreign country. Along the way, we learn why beans to this day have a black seam.
Episode 18: 17. The White Snake
A servant secretly tastes the king's food, and is given the power to talk to animals.
Episode 17: 16. The Three Snake Leaves
A young man makes a name for himself, and is able to marry a king's beautiful daughter. An illness takes her, but a snake provides three miraculous leaves that he uses to bring her back to life. Unfortunately, she returns a changed woman, and conspires to kill her husband. His servant uses the same leaves to bring him back to life, and she meets justice.
Episode 16: 15. Hansel and Gretel
A poor woodcutter can afford to feed his children, so he abandons them in the forest. They find an edible house, but the witch who lives inside ensnares them and want to cook them. They escape, and live happily ever after.
Episode 15: 14. The Three Spinners
A lazy girl doesn't want to spin flax, but her mother's lie to the queen finds her in the middle of three rooms full of the stuff. Three women with odd features happen by and agree to spin the flax for her. They do, and the girl never has to spin again.
Episode 14: 13. The Three Little Gnomes in the Forest
A good girl is tortured by her evil stepmother and stepsister, but thanks to the gifts bestowed by three gnomes in the forest, everything works out for the good girl and her tormentors come to a terrible end.
Episode 13: 12. Rapunzel
The classic story of a maiden with long hair locked in a tower, but maybe a bit darker than you remember. Still, she and her prince live happily ever after.
Episode 12: 11. Brother and Sister
A brother (who gets turned into a deer) and a sister (who becomes a ghost) get tormented by their evil stepmother (who is also a witch). But in the end, they live happily ever after.
Ep. 10
10. Riffraff
A rooster and hen, along with a duck, a pin, and a needle, don’t make for the best houseguests.
Ep. 09
9. The Twelve Brothers
Twelve princes lose everything after their father has a strange prophesy regarding their young sister. They stew in the forest for a while and eventually reconcile with her, only to be turned into ravens. Their young sister then endures extreme hardship to save them.
Ep. 08
8. The Marvelous Minstrel
The Marvelous Minstrel: A bored minstrel walking through the forest wants a companion. Beasts need not apply.
Ep. 07
7. The Good Bargain
A dumb farmer is outsmarted by frogs and dogs, but still manages to strike a good bargain with a soldier and a Jew. (Yeah, I know. But for this podcast, I’ll be reading *all* the Grimm’s stories.)
Ep. 06
6. Faithful Johannes
A dying King, a young king, their servant who is faithful to the end, a kidnapped princess, talking ravens, and beheaded princes, who all manage to live happily ever after.
Ep. 05
5. The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids
A wolf eats the mother goat’s kids, but ends up with a belly full of stones.
Ep. 04
4. A Tale About the Boy Who Went Forth to Learn What Fear Was
A simple boy who just wants to be frightened.
Ep. 03
3. The Virgin Mary's Child
The Virgin Mary adopts a child who lies, grows up, lies again, repents, and is forgiven.
Ep. 02
2. The Companionship of the Cat and Mouse
A mouse lives with a cat, and the cat eats all the fat.
Ep. 01
1. The Frog King, or Iron Heinrich
A princess loses her ball down a well, a frog retrieves it, and a servant’s heart grows three sizes.
0. Introduction
This is the introductory episode of “The Brothers Grimm Lunch Break”. Over the next year or so, hopefully several times a week, during my lunch break I will record, edit, and publish one of the original 250 storyies colelcted by the Brothers Grimm in the 1800s and translated into English by Dr. Jack Zipes. Welcome!