3 h 15 minAudiobook5 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the sensible life is the one that keeps you from the world you long for?
In Dresden, poor, clumsy student Anselmus hears wonders in an elder tree. Serpentina, a small golden green snake with deep blue eyes, draws him toward a hidden world. Around him, coffeehouses, clerks and tea parties carry on as though common sense can explain everything.
Archivist Lindhorst hires Anselmus to copy rare manuscripts, but his strange house unsettles the student. Meanwhile, Veronica Paulmann loves Anselmus and imagines a comfortable marriage. In E. T. A. Hoffmann’s The Golden Pot, he feels the pull of two lives: respectable security, and a world of poetry, nature and love.
What you’ll discover
- Magic amid ordinary streets Enter a Dresden where wonders break into the familiar world of clerks and coffeehouses.
- A wonderfully awkward dreamer Follow Anselmus as his clumsiness meets a longing that ordinary life cannot satisfy.
- Two futures pulling hard Feel the tension between Veronica’s comfortable hopes and Serpentina’s invitation to a hidden world.
- Common sense meets wonder Meet orderly schoolmasters and an odd archivist in a fairy tale with sly humor.
- A story told in darkness Explore twelve short vigils whose shifting narrator and dreamlike logic keep certainty out of reach.
Who will love it
For readers who love fairy tales set in real cities, bright magic beside everyday comedy, and stories where a dreamer chooses between a safe life and a wonder that few people can see.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A clumsy student meets three golden snakes
- Friends decide he is drunk or mad
- The door knocker grins and the archivist appears
- Copying in a house of wonders
- Veronika turns to the wise woman
- Serpentina tells the old story of Atlantis
- Faith and care guide the copying
- What the tale is about
Who’s who
- AnselmusA clumsy, dreamy student in Dresden who copies manuscripts and falls in love with a golden-green snake.
- Archivist LindhorstAn odd keeper of rare manuscripts who is in truth a salamander, a fire spirit, and the father of three snake daughters.
- SerpentinaThe youngest daughter of Lindhorst, who appears as a green snake with deep blue eyes and loves Anselmus.
- VeronikaVice Rector Paulmann's daughter, who loves Anselmus and dreams of being a court councillor's wife.
- Old LiseVeronika's former nurse, now a witch, who is the enemy of Lindhorst and wants the golden pot.
- Registrar HeerbrandA friendly official who finds Anselmus the copying job and likes a good punch.
- Vice Rector PaulmannVeronika's father, a practical schoolmaster who thinks Anselmus has lost his mind.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 5 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook and the audiobook open when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
The Golden Pot in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
The Golden Pot
by E. T. A. Hoffmann · 1814
A clumsy student in Dresden hears bells in an elder tree and falls for the blue eyes of a golden snake.
Challenging2–5 hours to read25 languages
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then USD 0.14 a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
In short
What happens when a clumsy student crashes into an apple seller on Ascension Day and hears a curse about crystal? E.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A clumsy student meets three golden snakes
The story opens on Ascension Day in Dresden. Anselmus, a student with terrible luck, runs into an old woman's basket of apples and cakes. She shrieks that his fall will soon be in crystal.
He slips off to the river Elbe, sits under an elder tree and complains about his fate. Then the leaves ring like crystal bells, and he sees three little snakes, gold and green, coiling in the branches. One of them looks at him with deep blue eyes, and a longing he has never known fills him. A rough voice calls from far away, and the snakes dive into the water.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about The Golden Pot
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is The Golden Pot about?
A shy student in Dresden named Anselmus is hired to copy manuscripts for a strange archivist and falls in love with the archivist's daughter, a golden-green snake. A witch and his own doubts stand in his way.
Who is Archivist Lindhorst?
He is a respected royal archivist in Dresden, but also a salamander, a fire spirit from the land of Atlantis. He is the father of three snake daughters and the enemy of the old witch.
What does the golden pot mean?
The golden pot is a dowry and a gift from the Earth Spirit. A fire lily grows from it at a marriage, and it stands for knowledge of nature's harmony, reached through faith and love.
The author
E. T. A. Hoffmann
1776–1822 · German Romantic writer
E. T. A. Hoffmann (1776–1822) was a German writer, composer, and lawyer. He was born in Königsberg and died in Berlin. He wrote The Golden Pot (1814), The Devil’s Elixirs (1815–1816), Night Pieces (1816–1817), and The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr (1819–1821).
More by E. T. A. Hoffmann
All 5 booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
