The Magic Cap

by Flavia Weedn, Lisa Weedn Gilbert

A mother knits her son a "magical" cap to protect him from the cold, and although the townspeople offer to trade goods for the cap, the boy refuses all offers and learns that love is the greatest magic of all.

48 pages, Hardcover

First published September 11, 1995

Reviews

[Prabhat sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Magic Cap by Flavia Weedn, Illustrator Lisa Weedn Gilbert- Children’s Illustrated Colour Picture Book- The book narrates a Swedish tale about a little boy whose mother makes him a cap for him. In Sweden, a boy and his mother reside in a small cottage. His mother stitched clothes, cooked food for families and parties of rich neighbours for their survival. At night, his mother read stories to her son. As winter arrived, his mother found some wool and thread with which she prepared a cap for her son. She gave the cap to her son with the instruction that when he goes to the forest to cut fire wood, he must wear this cap for warmth. The child felt that it is a magical cap. He told the passersby that he is wearing a magical cap. A farmer proposed to exchange his cap with his woolen coat, but the boy refused. The farmer snatched the cap from his head, wore it and ran. The boy followed him. Soon the farmer found that the cap had nothing magical and returned the cap to the boy. Soon, his cap was the talk of the town. The boy went to the King’s palace where a party of rich and affluent was going on. The Guards let him in. Kings proposed to the boy that he may exchange the cap for a golden Crown but the boy refused. One guard snatched his cap, the king wore it but he also did not find any magic in it. King returned the cap to the boy. While the boy was returned back from the palace to his house, he found a wise old lady walking. He narrated his story to the wise lady. Wise lady told the boy that his mother’s love for him is the magic in the cap, the love can be felt by him only. The boy reaches home and narrates the day’s incident to his mother and one neighbor boy. Neighbour boy says that he should have accepted the King’s proposal so that he could live and lead an affluent life. But the boy replies that he will retain the cap because love of his mother. Note to the story reads ‘One day, Father Time invited eight story letters and asked them to write and spread stories of Hope love and effort to make their dreams come true and always listen to their heart. “This story is one narrated by those eight story tellers. “ Coloured illustrations help the reader to relate to the story. I have read the Hindi language translation of this book.