There was once a poor fisherman who lived in an old hut by the sea with his wife. One day when he is out fishing he catches a magic fish claiming to be a prince. Learning this fact, the fisherman does the right thing and lets him go. However, when his wife finds out, she orders him to go back to the sea and make a wish for her. Her reluctant husband does as she asks - many times, for his wife does not stay happy for long. Eventually, the poor fisherman and his wife must pay the price for being so greedy. An easy-to-read folktale adapted by Freya Littledale with pictures by Winslow Pinney Pels.
An old fisherman lives in a hut by the sea with his wife and his dog. One day he reels in an enormous, golden fish that talks and claims to be magic. The old man lets the fish go, but his wife has other ideas. She orders her husband to go back and retrieve the fish - after all, we are talking about a magic fish - and asks him to have the fish grant a wish. The fish is only too happy to help out. He provides the fisherman and his wife with a new house, more money, and a bed for the fisherman's dog. But every wish the magic fish grants is only followed by an even more elaborate request from the fisherman's wife. And even a talking magic fish has his limits.
Freya Littledale's retelling of the classic story of greed and its consequences is clear and simple to follow. Winsley Pinney Pels adds to the magic of The Magic Fish with humorous illustrations of the kindly fisherman and the airs put on by his wife, and above all, the face of a fish that is baffled by people who just don't know when to say when.
