They Do Things Right in Albern

A long time ago and very far away, there was a town where no one had ever seen a mole. A mole is a strange looking creature, so when Barney Plump dug one up, he was very surprised. He did not know what to do with what he had found.

He went to his wife, who sent him to the priest, who sent him to the city council, who decided to consult professors with long names and doctors with many degrees. All agreed that the mole was a bad omen. But of what, no one knew.

Then the whole village was called. And still no one knew what to do. Finally it was advice from an outsider that solved the problem, in a most ridiculous way. But, of course, no one in the town ever knew that.

This old folktale from Switzerland, with its gentle humor and subtle mockery of the ways of humans, has been retold and illustrated by a talented. young Swiss artist, who understands both the people and the situation.