This little work aims to combine the instructive features of a book of travels with the interest of a domestic tale.Throughout its pages the descriptions of Dutch localities,customs, and general characteristics have been given with scrupulous care. Many of its incidents are drawn from life, and the story of Raff Brinker is founded strictly upon fact.

In this classic winter tale, set against a backdrop of frozen canals in a land of windmills and wooden shoes, the year’s most thrilling event is about to take place--the race to win the coveted Silver Skates.

For youngsters of the Dutch village, the time is especially exciting.But Hans and Gretel Brinker, with their hand-carved wooden blades,can hardly expect to compete against their well-trained young friends who own costly steel skates. Raff Brinker, their father, is seriously ill, and the desperately poor family is struggling to survive.To win the race, the siblings will need a miracle--and a helping hand.

First published in 1865, Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates was greeted with instant popular acclaim. The heartwarming tale continues to delight countless readers today with its messages of virtue rewarded and the importance of maintaining courage in the pursuit of one’s dreams.

1. Hans and Gretel

2. Holland

3. The Silver Skates

4. Hans and Gretel Find a Friend

5. Shadows in the Home

6. Sunbeams

7. Hans Has His Way

8. Introducing Jacob Poot and His Cousin Ben

9. The Festival of Saint Nicholas

10. What the Boys Saw and Did in Amsterdam

11. Big Manias and Little Oddities

12. On the Way to Haarlem

13. A Catastrophe

14. Hans

15. Homes

16. Haarlem--the Boys Hear Voices

17. The Man with Four Heads

18. Friends in Need

19. On the Canal

20. Jacob Poot Changes the Plan

21. Mynheer Kleef and His Bill of Fare

22. The Red Lion Becomes Dangerous

23. Before the Court

24. The Beleaguered Cities

25. Leyden

26. The Palace and the Wood

27. The Merchant Prince and the Sister-Princess

28. Through The Hague

29. A Day of Rest

30. Homeward Bound

31. Boys and Girls

32. The Crisis

33. Gretel and Hilda

34. The Awakening

35. Bones and Tongues

36. A New Alarm

37. The Father’s Return

38. The Thousand Guilders

39. Glimpses

40. Looking for Work

41. The Fairy Godmother

42. The Mysterious Watch

43. A Discovery

44. The Race

45. Joy in the Cottage

46. Mysterious Disappearance of Thomas Higgs

47. Broad Sunshine

48. Conclusion