Customer Reviews

Gigantic Turnip

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a wonderful book, with beautiful illustrations. I teach preschool and use this book whenever I get a chance...it can be used to teach about counting, animals and planting...as well as having a wonderful moral. Every little bit helps!

There are probably a dozen or more versions of this very old Russian folk tale floating around at this time, some are illustrated versions such as we have here, others can be found in anthologies in various formats. This particular version was recorded by Aleksei Tolstoy in the 19th century and is as good as most and better than some. A lot depends upon the taste of the individual as to which version is the best. I personally am rather fond of this one due to the fact it was illustrated by Niamh Sharkey and she is quirky enough to appeal to my quirky tastes.

This is an accumulative tale which starts with an old couple planting heir garden. The garden grows and it is time to harvest. All goes well until the very last turnip; the one at the end of the row, is ready to be pulled. Folks, this is one very big turnip! The old man get up one morning and decides it is time to gather that last turnip and goes to pull it up...no luck...it is just too big. The old woman joins him...still, they are unable to remove the big veggie from the garden. And here the tale actually begins in earnest.

One by one, group by group, all of the farm animals lend a hand. Each page adds another critter or group of critters trying to help the old man and woman. This finally includes the old man and woman, the big brown cow, the two pot-bellied pigs, the three black cats, the four speckled hens, the five white geese, the six yellow canaries and finally, when all else fails, the old woman gets the little hungry mouse who lives in their house to lend a hand.

There are little lessons to be learned in this work and they are delightfully presented not only by a very nice select wording, but by some wonderful illustrations.

Now reader take heed...some adults may, after the 10th or 20th reading find the repetitive nature of this work to be a bit much. That does not matter though. The kids seem to like it just fine and when all is said and done, it is the wee ones and their opinion that really counts.

Note: Aleksei Tolstoy was a bit of a controversial character in this time. His life story is rather interesting and the adult reader may want to follow up and find out more about this character...I found it rather fascinating myself...but then, as I said, I am a bit quirky about such things.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

I love how the text reads, even more so than the brilliant illustrations. I love to read this text first and then play Heather Forest's musical adaptation of this story (see Heather Forest's Sing Me a Story).

I was unaware this was a classic tale retold by many and thought this copy was so cute I searched out other versions. All others paled in comparison to the both the easy repetative text and quirky illustrations, others were not nearly as well done IMO. DD asked for this one to be re-read so many times it became a companion to our home library.

The story is of an old husband and wife who plant a garden and tend it through the seasons. At harvest time one turnip has grown soooo large they can't pull it out of the ground. They utilize the help of all the farm animals one by one to heave and tug but still it won't come up. The wife thinks of a creative solution that does the trick and everyone enjoys the "fruit" of their labors in the end :).

Enjoy this fun old story with a new twist. THis is one I used many times in the media center and was always enjoyed byt the students.

I bought this book for my almost 3 year old and it was just wonderful. Lovely message, lovely illustrations. We will definitely keep this book for years to come.

A truly delightful child's book. I bought this book for my father who is 85 years old and has recently started growing turnips in his garden. He has 2 great granddaughters with whom he can share this book.