Page 1: This page is blank save for a tiny woodcut illustration of a young man and a crow sharing a picnic lunch and a single line of text that reads, “All of what follows is true.”
Pages 2–3: I was having a picnic that first day of spring when a pesky crow flew down and stole my spoon. Zuddiger jumps up and down and waves a sword in anger while a crow flies away into the woods, a spoon clutched in its beak. The jar of raspberry preserves Zuddiger had been about to spoon onto a biscuit lies neglected on the ground. In the background, a scary castle with knife-like towers protrudes above the treetops.
Pages 4–5: The nasty bird flew into the trees and then through a gate, but I followed with haste. Zuddiger runs down a forest path that passes through an immense iron gate flanked by iron statues of beautiful women.
Pages 6–7: He flew over a swirling lake, and the black swans honked at him in anger. Zuddiger races along the edge of a lake, the center of which is a whirlpool and on which float several black swans.
Pages 8–9: I chased him through a garden and tried not to disturb the locals. Zuddiger races through a garden of strange fungus and a carpet of tiny, misshapen, vegetable- like humanoids that crawl and run from him; the crow perches atop a mushroom and watches.
Pages 10–11: Unfortunately, some of the locals were already disturbed. Zuddiger climbs into a leaf-shaped boat on a river while an angry flying owlbear intercepts the crow’s flight, forcing the smaller bird to veer away downriver. In the background, two immense stone hands at the top of a cliff seem to pour a waterfall into the river below.
Pages 12–13: It got very cold and my boat froze, so I had to chase the crow through the graveyard on foot. Zuddiger chases the crow through a snowy graveyard, the gravestones of which are three times as tall as they should be. His boat is frozen in a lake in the background, and the shadowy form of a four-armed giant seems to rise up beyond a large crypt to watch the chase.
Pages 14–15: But the crow had an older brother. Zuddiger cowers in a large forest clearing at the center of which is a large stone spire. The crow hovers near the top and points down at Zuddiger with a wingtip while the “older brother,” an immense crow perched atop the spire, peers down with angry eyes.
Pages 16–17: I was beginning to worry that I would not be able to finish my picnic after all. The bigger crow clutches Zuddiger in its talons and flies over a swamp filled with scary worms that rise up to bite at Zuddiger’s feet; the smaller crow flaps along behind the bigger bird, spoon still clutched in its beak.
Pages 18–19: Fortunately, I landed on something soft. The giant bird and the crow fly off into the sky laughing as Zuddiger, recently dropped, lands on the belly of a particularly hideous troll. In the background rises an iron cage shaped like a beehive, from which dozens of smiling but disembodied faces shine down.
Pages 20–21: And also fortunately, I’m faster and craftier than a silly old troll. Zuddiger sneaks down a forest path; the angry troll is far behind. The troll carries a large ranseur and is climbing around on a crooked house as if he’s looking for Zuddiger among the house’s dozens of mismatched roofs.
Pages 22–23: But I still didn’t have my spoon. Zuddiger wanders forlornly through a forest glade filled with statues; in the background, a tall tower rises from a round hilltop.
Pages 24–25: As it turned out, neither did that nasty crow! An elated Zuddiger finds the crow caught by a beautiful woman—she holds the spoon in one hand and a scared crow in the other. In the background, a strange house looms on an island.
Pages 26–27: So I traded my sword for a spoon and a bird. The now smiling woman gives a grinning Zuddiger the spoon and the crow and accepts his sword as a gift.
Pages 28–29: And made it back home in time for dinner. Zuddiger, spoon in one hand and the tied-up crow tucked under an arm, walks down another forest path, at the end of which can be seen his picnic basket, blanket, and raspberry preserves sitting patiently in a clearing.
Pages 30–31: It was the best picnic ever. Zuddiger sits down to a picnic meal of raspberry preserves while a delicious- looking crow roasts over an open fire.
Page 32: The last page of the book presents a full-color, hand-painted map labeled "Thousandbreaths".
