| Audio | Visual |
|---|---|
| The Troll Who Lived Under the Bridge As told by Brandi Chase. Illustrated by Craig Deeley. |
A short, grumpy-looking man stands near a river with his arms crossed. Three goats stand together on a bridge in the distance, looking down at the troll. |
| A troll discovered a bridge crossing a deep river.
On one side of the river, the hills were green and thriving.
On the other side, the land was barren and brown. "What a lovely place to make my home," said the troll to himself. As he unpacked his things -- seeds, a watering can, and other gardening tools -- he wondered aloud. "Now why is the land on this side green, and the other, brown?" |
The troll has spiky hair and an umbrella on his cap. Seed packets poke out of his backpack. |
| The troll did not know that three billy-goat brothers named Gruff lived on the brown side of the river. There was Tiny Gruff, Big Gruff, and Great Big Gruff. They had eaten up all the good green grass and this was why the land was barren. The billy-goats were hungry and wanted to cross the river to eat up the green grass on the other side. | The three goats look down at the bridge from the top of the brown, barren hill. |
| The troll, while enjoying his morning tea, heard the tiny trip trap trip of hooves skipping on the wooden planks overhead. "Who is that trip trapping across my bridge?" called the troll from under the bridge. "Tiny Gruff" said the billy-goat brother. "I want to cross to the other side to eat the green grass." |
Tiny Gruff looks surprised as the troll pops out from under the bridge! |
| The troll knew that goats do not know when to stop eating and so he said, "You cannot cross my bridge." "Why not?" cried Tiny Gruff. Answered the troll, "If I let you cross, you will eat all the grass, and turn the hill from green to brown." |
The troll points at Tiny Gruff from an open hatch at the top of the bridge. |
| "Oh please," cried Tiny Gruff.
"I haven't eaten for days.
I will only nibble a few blades of grass.
I am tiny and won't eat very much." So the troll said, begrudgingly, "Promise you will eat only a few blades of grass and then come right back." "I promise!" pledged Tiny Gruff and went trip trap trip across the bridge and up the hill to eat the green grass. |
Image left: Tiny Gruff looks at the troll with big, sad eyes. Image right: The troll looks at Tiny Gruff suspiciously as he heads into the green grass. |
| The troll had just started looking at his seed packets when he heard the big trip trap trip of hooves trotting on the wooden planks overhead. "Who is that trip trapping across my bridge?" called the troll from under the bridge. "Me!" said Big Gruff. "I want to cross to the other side to eat the green grass and grow fat." The troll felt worried. He had let one goat cross the bridge. How many more would come? He said, "You cannot cross my bridge." "Why not?" cried Big Gruff. Answered the troll, "If I let you cross, you will eat all the grass, and turn the hill from green to brown." "Oh please," cried Big Gruff. "I haven't eaten for days. I will only nibble a few blades of grass. I am not great big and won't eat very much." |
The troll looks up from his seed packets and points at Big Gruff from under the bridge. |
| The troll was suspicious, but said, "Promise you will eat only a few blades of grass and then come right back." "I promise!" pledged Big Gruff as he went trip trap trip across the bridge and up the hill to eat the green grass with his brother. |
The troll looks back at the two goats. Tiny Gruff has already made a brown patch in the grass where he's been eating. |
| The troll was choosing seeds to plant that spring and wondering why the billy-goat brothers had not returned yet when he heard a great big trip trap trip of hooves clomping on the wooden planks overhead. The troll was worried, for he recognized that as the sound of a very big goat indeed. | The troll looks up from his home under the bridge. A goat with big horns is crossing over. |
| The troll leaped onto the bridge and said, "You can not cross my bridge!" "Why not?" asked Great Big Gruff. The troll answered, "Your brothers are already eating the grass hill and have not returned as they promised. If I let you cross, you will certainly turn the green, thriving hill into a brown, barren hill." "Here come my brothers now," said Great Big Gruff. "Just look there behind you." The troll turned to look and... |
The troll holds out his hands to stop Great Big Gruff. The two younger brothers continue eating grass behind him. |
| Trip trappity trip! Great Big Gruff tossed the troll straight up into the air and went trip trap trip across the bridge and up the hill to join his brothers who were still eating. | Image left: The troll looks surprised as Great Big Gruff bumps him into the air. Image right: Great Big Gruff walks toward his brothers with a smirk on his face. The two billy-goat brothers have carved an even bigger patch of brown out of the green grass. |
| When the troll landed, he bounced, bounced, bounced so hard that the bridge broke into pieces and he fell into the river. | Pieces of the bridge go flying as the troll falls into the river. The troll's backpack and cap fall into the river with him! |
| The rushing river carried the troll far, far away. | The troll holds on to a floating piece of wood. His belongings float behind him. |
| The troll walked back on the brown, barren side of the river.
When he arrived at the bridge, he looked up at the green, thriving hill and shook his head.
The Gruff brothers were still there, eating the green grass. "Well, I guess I will make this side my home," said the troll and then set to work. |
The troll leaves wet footprints as he walks back to the broken bridge. He holds his umbrella in one hand and a watering can in the other. Much of the grass on the other side of the river has been eaten! |
| In the same amount of time that it took for the goats to turn the green hill to brown, the troll transformed the brown hill to green.
If you visit the spot today, you will find the troll busily tending to the hill. THE END |
Grasses and flowers from the troll's seed packets have sprouted all over the once-brown hill. The three goat brothers look sadly from the other side of the river, where they have eaten all of the grass. |