This first volume of the complete stories of Hermann Hesse contains his earliest tales. He wrote them at the ages of 22 to 25. Only two of them ("Der Novalis" and "Erlebnis in der Knabenzeit") were included in his books, while eight others were published in newspapers and magazines. The remaining six ("Erwin," "Der Dichter," "Das Rathaus," "Sommeridyll," "Julius Abderegg," and "Peter Bastians Jugend") were never published during his lifetime. They were found in his estate. All are autobiographical and depict episodes from his childhood and youth in Calw, Basel, and Maulbronn, his years of apprenticeship in Tübingen, as well as his first trip to Italy in 1901.