This is a picture book. A picture book uses pictures and text to tell the story. The number of words varies from zero ('wordless') to around 1k over 32 pages. Picture books are typically aimed at young readers (age 3-6) but can also be aimed at older children (7+). This book was published 2011 by Ishi Press .

Heinrich Hoffmann (1809-1894), a doctor in his native Frankfurt (where there is a museum devoted to his work), often told funny stories to put his young patients at their ease. Frustrated by the moralistic tone of contemporary children's books, he wrote and illustrated this picture book as a Christmas present for his three-year-old son, and it has delighted and terrified generations since.