Hop-Frog is a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, first published in 1849. The title character, a person with dwarfism taken from his homeland, becomes the jester of a king particularly fond of practical jokes. It is about a king and his 7 advisers who enjoy practical jokes. They have enslaved two dwarfs. One is a male whom they call Hop-Frog and the other is a female who they have named Trippetta. The king summoned Hop-Frog for advice on a party he was going to have. The king enjoyed making fun of the dwarf and making him drink wine. Hop-Frog did not like drinking wine and it makes him drunk very easily. When the king insists that the dwarf drink another glass, he refuses. The king becomes angry. Trippetta falls at the king's knees and asks him to please let Hop-Frog pass up the wine. The king gets even madder and he hits the girl and throws the wine in her face. This insult to Trippetta makes the dwarf angry. He grits his teeth. He tells the men that he has come up with a joke for them to play on their guests. The Dwarf coats the king and his advisers with tar, fur, and chains them together. The king still thinking it is a joke goes along. The "Ourang-otangs" enter the party, scare everyone and while they are wandering in the room the dwarf hooks them to the chain in the centre of the ceiling. Enjoy free online English audiobook “Hop-Frog”, a novel by Edgar Allan Poe.
