Publisher's Synopsis
He was a very selfish Giant.The poor children had now nowhere to play. They tried to play on the road, but the road was verydusty and full of hard stones, and they did not like it. They used to wander round the high wallwhen their lessons were over, and talk about the beautiful garden inside. "How happy we werethere," they said to each other.Then the Spring came, and all over the country there were little blossoms and little birds. Only inthe garden of the Selfish Giant it was still winter. The birds did not care to sing in it as there wereno children, and the trees forgot to blossom. Once a beautiful flower put its head out from thegrass, but when it saw the notice-board it was so sorry for the children that it slipped back into theground again, and went off to sleep. The only people who were pleased were the Snow and theFrost. "Spring has forgotten this garden," they cried, "so we will live here all the year round." TheSnow covered up the grass with her great white cloak, and the Frost painted all the treessilver. Then they invited the North Wind to stay with them, and he came. He was wrapped in furs, and he roared all day about the garden, and blew the chimney-pots down. "This is a delightfulspot," he said, "we must ask the Hail on a visit." So the Hail came. Every day for three hours herattled on the roof of the castle till he broke most of the slates, and then he ran round and round thegarden as fast as he could go. He was dressed in grey, and his breath was like ice."I cannot understand why the Spring is so late in coming," said the Selfish Giant, as he sat at thewindow and looked out at his cold white garden; "I hope there will be a change in the weather."But the Spring never came, nor the Summer. The Autumn gave golden fruit to every garden, but tothe Giant's garden she gave none. "He is too selfish," she said. So it was always Winter there, andthe North Wind, and the Hail, and the Frost, and the Snow danced about through the trees