ReadNative
The Rider on the White Horse coverDer Schimmelreiter

🇩🇪 German graded reader

Der Schimmelreiter

The Rider on the White Horse

On a stormy night on the North Sea coast, a traveler meets a silent rider on a white horse, and an old schoolmaster tells him who it was. Theodor Storm's classic novella of Hauke Haien, the clever boy who became dike warden, built a new dike against the sea, and paid for it with everything he loved, retold in graded German that rises from A2 to B1.

A2–B1 18 chapters 4,711 words Pro
Read chapter 1 free Read it in the app

Chapters

  1. Kapitel 1: Der Reiter auf dem Deichread online
  2. Kapitel 2: Der Junge mit dem BuchChapter 2: The Boy with the Book
  3. Kapitel 3: Die Wellen im WinterChapter 3: The Waves in Winter
  4. Kapitel 4: Der Kater von Trien’ JansChapter 4: The Tomcat of Trien Jans
  5. Kapitel 5: Im Haus des DeichgrafenChapter 5: In the House of the Dike Warden
  6. Kapitel 6: Die RechnungenChapter 6: The Accounts
  7. Kapitel 7: Das EisboselnChapter 7: The Ice-Throwing Match
  8. Kapitel 8: Der RingChapter 8: The Ring
  9. Kapitel 9: Der neue DeichgrafChapter 9: The New Dike Warden
  10. Kapitel 10: Der PlanChapter 10: The Plan
  11. Kapitel 11: Der SchimmelChapter 11: The White Horse
  12. Kapitel 12: Der neue DeichChapter 12: The New Dike
  13. Kapitel 13: Der Hund im DeichChapter 13: The Dog in the Dike
  14. Kapitel 14: Der Hauke-Haien-KoogChapter 14: The Hauke Haien Polder
  15. Kapitel 15: Die schwache StelleChapter 15: The Weak Spot
  16. Kapitel 16: Trien’ JansChapter 16: Trien Jans
  17. Kapitel 17: Die SturmflutChapter 17: The Storm Flood
  18. Kapitel 18: Der Deich steht nochChapter 18: The Dike Still Stands
What level is The Rider on the White Horse in German?

It starts at A2 and climbs gradually to B1. Each chapter introduces a little new vocabulary, so you're always reading just above your comfort zone.

How long is it?

18 chapters and about 4,700 words in total, using roughly 900 different word forms.

Is it free?

It's part of ReadNative Pro. The first chapter is free to read here. The first book in every language is free.

Does it have audio?

Not yet. You can read it with tap-to-translate and sentence translations; narration is currently available on the Chinese books.

More German books

Till Eulenspiegel's Pranks coverTill Eulenspiegels Streiche Till Eulenspiegels Streiche Till Eulenspiegel's Pranks · A1–A2 · Pro Hansel and Gretel coverHänsel und Gretel Hänsel und Gretel Hansel and Gretel · A1–B1 · Free

More German reading: Learn German by reading · German graded readers · German short stories

New to German? Start with how ReadNative teaches German or our guide How to learn German by reading.