The Godfather (fairy tale) facts for kids
The Godfather (German: Der Herr Gevatter) is a German fairy tale. The famous Brothers Grimm collected it as tale number 42. It tells a story about a poor man, a magical gift, and a mysterious godfather.
The Godfather Fairy Tale
Story Summary
A very poor man had many children. When another baby was born, he had a big problem. He had already asked everyone he knew to be a godparent for his other kids! He didn't know who to ask for his new baby.
That night, he had a dream. The dream told him to go outside his house. It said to ask the very first person he met to be the baby's godfather. The next morning, he did just that.
He met a man who agreed to be the godfather. This mysterious man gave the poor father a small bottle. It held special water. The godfather said this water could heal sick people. But there was a rule: it only worked if the sickness was in the head, not the feet.
The Healing Water
The poor man started using the magical water. He became very well-known. He also became rich because he could heal so many people.
One day, he was called to help the King's child. The child was very sick. The man used the magical water two times, and it worked! The child got better. But on the third try, the water did not work. The man had to tell the King that his child would not survive. Sadly, the King's child passed away soon after.
A Strange Visit
Not long after the King's child died, the man decided to visit the Godfather. He wanted to tell him all about his adventures with the magical water.
When he arrived at the Godfather's house, everything seemed strange. It was very messy and disorganized. On the first step of the stairs, a dustpan and brush were moving as if they were arguing. On the second step, there were many fingers lying around. On the third step, a pile of bowls was stacked up. On the fourth step, fish were cooking themselves!
The fifth step led to the Godfather's room. The man looked through the keyhole. He saw the Godfather inside. The Godfather had very long, unusual features on his head.
The man opened the door. As soon as he did, the Godfather quickly got into a bed and covered himself up. The man asked the Godfather about all the weird things happening in the house. The Godfather tried to act like nothing was wrong. He said the man was just imagining things.
But then the man mentioned the self-cooking fish. Right at that moment, the fish came into the room! They presented themselves on a dish to the Godfather. Finally, the man brought up what he saw through the keyhole. He mentioned the Godfather's long, strange features. At this, the Godfather shouted loudly at the man. He said the man was telling lies. The man was so scared by the shout that he ran out of the house as fast as he could.
