First published 1811
These stories spring from the pages of a religious almanac, where moral instruction mingles with worldly wisdom. Napoleon appears alongside Austrian Emperor Joseph, but so do ordinary soldiers, workers, and townspeople navigating their daily struggles. Hebel crafts tales that range from gentle moral lessons to darker reports of murders and disasters. A joke sits next to an anecdote about human folly. A mystery unfolds beside a story of everyday kindness. The characters face choices that reveal their true nature, whether they wear crowns or work with their hands. Each story asks the same quiet question: how should we live? The collection draws its power from this mix of high and low, sacred and secular, finding profound truths in simple encounters.
Genres: fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, 19th-century
Vibes: intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: character-driven, slice-of-life
Setting: Austria
Period: 19th-century, 20th-century
208 pages · Paperback · Penguin Classics