The Little Jester

A little jester brings about big changeWhen the world was a thousand years younger and minstrels traveled the roads, there was a monastery in the French countryside. The monks who lived there made books in which they painted lovely pictures. But the most beautiful picture, to them, was the painting of the weeping Madonna above the altar. One evening a jester boy comes to the monastery and is offered shelter. To thank the monks, he begins to juggle and dance. The stern Abbot wants to throw him out for disrespectful behavior, but soon the monks notice that something wonderful has happened. It is nothing less than a miracle, and one that will change the monastery – and the weeping Madonna – forever. Blending medieval and modern pictorial language, Helena Olofsson’s warmhearted story, accompanied by beautiful, distinctive illustrations, is about the transformative power of laughter and creativity.