Once upon a time, on a quiet farm, there lived an old grey Donkey. For many, many years he had carried sacks of grain to the mill. Now his legs were a little slower, and the kind farmer said, "Old friend, you have worked so hard. You may rest now." But the Donkey had a dream tucked in his heart. "Hee-haw!" he said. "I still have a big, strong voice. I think I will go to the town of Bremen and become a musician!" The farmer laughed and waved. "Go and have your adventure. And come back to visit!"
So the Donkey set off down the long, winding road, clip, clop, clip, clop. Soon he found an old brown Dog lying under a tree, sighing. "Why do you sigh, friend?" asked the Donkey. "For years I ran after the sheep," said the Dog. "Now I am slower, and the young dogs do the running. I feel a bit bored." "Come with me to Bremen!" said the Donkey. "We will be musicians. You can bark the drum beat." "Woof! What a good idea," said the Dog, and his tail began to wag.
Clip, clop, pad, pad, they walked on. On a stone wall sat an old striped Cat with a face as gloomy as three rainy days. "What's the matter?" asked the Dog. "I used to play in the barn all day," said the Cat. "Now I'd rather nap, and I feel a little lonely." "Come with us to Bremen!" said the Donkey. "You sing so beautifully at night." "Meow! Why not?" said the Cat, and she hopped down.
Clip, clop, pad, pad, tip, tip, they walked on. On a farm gate stood a Rooster, crowing with all his might. "Why are you crowing so hard in the middle of the day?" asked the Cat. "My farm got a new clock that goes ding-dong every morning," said the Rooster. "Now nobody needs my wake-up song." "Then come with us to Bremen," said the Donkey. "A band needs a singer with a big voice like yours." "Cock-a-doodle-doo! Count me in!"
The four friends walked and walked, but Bremen was far away. As the sun went down, they came to a quiet forest. The Donkey and the Dog settled under a big tree, the Cat curled up on a branch, and the Rooster flew up to the very top. From up there he saw a little light twinkling between the trees. "A house!" he called. "Maybe it's warm in there."
They tiptoed to the house. The Donkey, who was tallest, peeked in through the glass. Inside, a group of strangers sat around a big table full of bread and soup. They were very noisy. They laughed loudly, banged their spoons and sang songs that went all wobbly. "What do you see?" whispered the Rooster. "Supper," said the Donkey. "And people who love music, I think. Let's sing for them. Maybe they'll invite us in."
So the Dog climbed onto the Donkey's back. The Cat climbed onto the Dog's back. And the Rooster flew up onto the Cat's head. Then, all together: "Hee-haw! Woof, woof! Meow! Cock-a-doodle-doo!" The strangers jumped. Spoons clattered. "What's that?" they cried, and they hurried outside to look. And there in the moonlight stood a wobbly tower of four animals, all singing their very best.
For a moment, nobody moved. Then one of the strangers started to chuckle, and soon they were all laughing big, happy belly laughs. "That's the loudest, funniest song we ever heard!" said the tallest stranger. "We love noisy music too, but everyone always tells us to hush. Come in, come in! Share our supper!" So the animals went inside. There was bread for everybody, carrots for the Donkey, a bowl of milk for the Cat, a biscuit for the Dog and some corn for the Rooster.
After supper, they made a band. The strangers played spoons and pots and a little tin whistle. The Donkey sang hee-haw, the Dog barked the beat, the Cat sang the high notes, and the Rooster sang loudest of all. "Do we still need to go to Bremen?" asked the Dog. The Donkey looked around the warm, cosy room. "Maybe," he said, "the best place for our band is right here, with our new friends."
Then it was time to sleep. The Donkey lay down on soft straw in the yard. The Dog curled up by the door. The Cat snuggled beside the warm stove. The Rooster perched on a wooden beam near the roof. The strangers pulled up their blankets and snored softly. One by one, the candles went out. The moon shone over the little house in the forest. And the Bremen Town Musicians, old friends and new friends together, slept peacefully until morning. Shhh.
Parent tip: Stack your fists one on top of another like the animal tower, and whisper each animal sound together as the story winds down.
Ask your child: After the story, you can ask: “Who was kind in this story, and what did they do?”
In this gentle retelling the animals are old friends on an adventure and the noisy strangers welcome them in, so nothing is scary.