Struwwelpeter 2000 (English and German Edition)

A page at the end describes the making of "suncatchers" - stained glass window hangings - in the shape of Struwwelpeter figures, and a stained glass Peter is shown on the back cover.

Der Struwwelpeter was written in December 1844 by Frankfurt am Main physician Heinrich Hoffmann as a Christmas gift for his three-year-old son Carl Pilipp. He put it together very quickly from funny stories that he used in his practice. He told these to frightened child patients, making pencil sketches to illustrate, and the children quickly forgot their fears and could be examined. It is sometimes theorized that the stories are too frightening for children, but Hoffmann knew better - from practice.

The book was published in October 1845 and was an immediate and perennial success. Edition after edition quickly followed - nearly 200 in Hoffmann's lifetime. Today, Struwwelpeter scholars have given up trying to count the editions and imitations and parodies and translations that are still appearing. An internet search for "Struwwelpeter" returns over 400,000 results.

The Struwwelpeter Museum is at 20 Schubertstrasse in Frankfurt, a short walk from the Palmengarten entrance. Helping to support the museum is its "Freundeskreis" (Circle of Friends). Membership - see the Museum website - is US$30 per year and is open to all. It includes a subscription to their annual Struwwelpost - a journal of Struwwelpeter news and scholarly articles.