Customer Reviews

The Enormous Turnip

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I found this book at the library and we read it a dozen times a day. I wish it were not out of print. My child is internationally adopted and of Russian decent.
I have read several versions of this story with more "traditional" Russian illustrations and they were too long and did not flow as well. We love all the perfectly chosen Russian names for the various characters. The simple pictures and words reveal much about their personalities and relationships as a larger "family" A new twist on the original tale is that a beetle instead of the usual mouse is the one to succeed. I agree that the illustrations are cute but not special. I collect children's books and sometimes what appeals to a child is so subtle as to be missed by even pickiest adult. There is something very endearing about this version.

This book retells the Russian folk tale of the Enormous (or Giant) Turnip. Grandfather can't pull the turnip up, because it is so big, so he enlists the aid of everyone around. The illustrations contain a bunch of superfluous bunnies standing around with goofy grins. They have nothing to do with the story and I can't see their point at all, except for artificially inflating the cuteness factor. While I like the story well enough, everyone pulling together to accomplish something, I'll look for a more visually appealing version.