Tom, the Piper's Son

Quick Answer

Why This Story Works for Bedtime

It has a clear ‘turning point’ from trouble to safety. For bedtime, it’s reassuring: the child makes a mistake, learns, and ends the night with a calm, secure supper.

Story Synopsis

Tom lives in a small crooked hut with his father, Barney the piper. Barney loves playing music, but he plays so badly that people hurry away, and the pennies are few. Many mornings, Tom wakes with an empty stomach. One day, hunger pushes Tom toward a wrong choice. When his father suggests stealing, Tom goes along—because he doesn’t yet know a better way. He takes a pig and runs, but the ‘win’ doesn’t feel like winning at all. His heart pounds, his legs ache, and every sound behind him feels like a chase. Instead of ending in punishment, this retelling offers a gentler rescue: Tom meets a farmer who sees the frightened boy and gives him honest work. Tom learns that steady effort can fill his belly without fear. The story closes with a peaceful supper—and a new ending to the old rhyme: Tom trades stealing for working, and he can finally rest.

Story Excerpt

Tom, Tom, the piper’s son, Was hungry when the day begun. At the end of the village street, in a small, crooked little hut, lived old Barney the piper and his boy, Tom. Barney did not like to work. He liked to play his pipes. But Barney played so badly that people did not smile and clap. They covered their ears and hurried away. Only a few pennies ever landed in his pouch. Tom had grown up with just his father. His mother had died when he was a baby. Tom was not the worst boy in the world. He could be kind. He could be helpful. But when his father told him to do something wrong, Tom often did it — because he didn’t know any better way. One morning, Tom’s tummy felt empty. He rubbed it and looked at the table. There was no bread. There was no bun. There was nothing warm to eat. Tom sighed. “ What shall we do? ” “ Go hungry, ” said Barney, with a grumpy little shrug, “ unless you want to take my pipes and play in the village. Maybe someone will give you a penny. ” Tom shook his head. “ No one gives pennies for our playing. ” Then he remembered something and said, “ But Farmer Bowser might give me a penny to stop playing, if I go to his house. He did last week. ” Barney nodded. “ You’d better try it. It’s mighty uncomfortable to be hungry. ” So Tom picked up the pipes and walked over the hill. Tom, Tom, the piper’s son, Learned to play when…

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