In a land far away, there lived two children, Hansel and Gretel. They lived with their father, a woodcutter, and their cruel, domineering stepmother,

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1 In a land far away, there lived two children, Hansel and Gretel. They lived with their father, a woodcutter, and their cruel, domineering stepmother, in a ramshackle house on the edge of the woods.

One fateful night, his wife demanded that he take the

2 Sadly, the woodcutter was incredibly poor which meant that he could no longer provide food for his family. One fateful night, his wife demanded that he take the children into the shadowy, dismal forest and leave them there.

3 Eavesdropping behind the door, Hansel and Gretel overheard what their stepmother had suggested. They were devastated.

4 Hansel crept outside and gathered stones. Furtively, he filled his pockets and snuck back inside the cottage where his parents were sleeping.

5 The next morning, they children reluctantly followed their parents into the forest. As they walked, Hansel dropped the pebbles along the path.

6 Further and further, they ventured into the forest. After a while, the tired children could go on no longer. Their father made a fire and told them to rest.

7 When they awoke, they were all alone. But Hansel s plan had worked because they could follow the stones all the way home.

8 When they arrived back at the dilapidated cottage, the woodcutter was overjoyed! But their stepmother was furious! Later that night, she told the woodcutter that he must dispose of the children.

9 At breakfast the following day, their stepmother gave Hansel and Gretel two slices of stale bread which smelt of mould. Once again, they set out into the forest.

10 This time, they walked a lot further into the heart of the forest. As they walked along, Hansel dropped breadcrumbs along the path.

11 When the children were tired, the woodcutter told them to gather wood so that he could build them a fire. Once again, he told them to rest by the fire, and once again they fell asleep.

12 The twins once again found themselves alone in the soundless, densely-wooded forest, surrounded by a sea of identical trees

13 Nevertheless, Hansel was not worried. He reassured Gretel and told her that he had laid a path of breadcrumbs. Unfortunately, when they looked along the path, it was empty. Something had eaten the breadcrumbs!

14 Without knowing where they were going, Hansel and Gretel walked and walked. Eventually, they came across house! But this was not any old house. It was a sweet-encrusted, chocolate-covered house which was made from the most fragrant gingerbread.

15 Shaking with anticipation, a starving Hansel and Gretel began to ravenously shove bits of the house into their mouths. All of a sudden, an old, hunchbacked woman with gnarled hands appeared at the door. Instead of being angry, she invited them both inside.

16 Once the children were inside, however, they found that the kindly old woman was actually incredibly evil. Cackling maliciously, she pushed Hansel in a tiny cage. She wanted to fatten him up and eventually eat him!

17 One day, the old woman showed Gretel the oven in which she would cook her brother.

working. Annoyed, the hag leaned forward to take a closer look.

18 But Gretel concocted a cunning plan! Smiling sweetly, she told the old woman that the oven wasn t working. Annoyed, the hag leaned forward to take a closer look. Quick as a flash, Gretel pushed her straight into the blistering flames which were burning furiously.

19 Ignoring the old woman s screams, Gretel found the key to the cage and with shaking hands, placed it in the lock. Click. The door swung open and Hansel leapt out. He embraced his sister.

20 Rushing out of the cottage, they noticed a wooden chest which was bursting with gold coins. This will solve all of our problems! Hansel cried out.

21 After an exhausting walk through the forest, Hansel and Gretel eventually found a path that they recognised. They ran excitedly along the path and finally saw their home in the distance.

22 Their relieved father ran towards them. Out of breath, he informed them that their stepmother had mysteriously vanished. What s in the chest? he asked them. The twins smiled at each other. Now that they were no longer poor, they knew that they would never be hungry again.

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