The Old Woman Who Lived in a Vinegar Bottle [Hardcover]

Margaret Read MacDonald (Author), Nancy Dunaway Fowlkes (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Oh what a pity, what a pity pity pity! With this refrain, the old woman in the vinegar bottle complains until she gets a cottage ... then a row house ... then a mansion ... How far will she move up before she's satisfied? Storyteller and children's librarian Margaret Read MacDonald pairs a whiny old woman with a no-nonsense fairy in a comical tale of ever-expanding greed and its natural result. Nancy Dunaway Fowlkes's expansive India ink and watercolor illustrations capture MacDonald's high-spirited rendering of this old British fairy tale.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 3?A kind fairy tries to improve the lot of an unhappy old woman living in a vinegar bottle, but her efforts are met with complaints and ingratitude. The fed-up fairy finally sends the woman back to her vinegar bottle. MacDonald has a gift for making stories easy to tell without sacrificing quality, and the crisp, repetitive text is as much fun for the storyteller as it is for young listeners. Children will enjoy whining along with the old woman ("Oh what a pity. What a pity pity pity") or chiming in with the fairy ("If that's what she wants...that's what she'll get!"). The source note is impeccable and includes suggestions for telling. Fowlkes's bold, exuberant watercolor and ink paintings are clear enough for group read-alouds, yet are packed with enticing details for independent readers or one-on-one listeners. The simple lines keep the illustrations from becoming too busy, and the fairy with her spiky red hair and purple tutu is especially appealing.?Donna L. Scanlon, Lancaster County Library, PA
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ages 3^-7. When a kindly fairy overhears the complaints of an old woman who longs to live in a cottage instead of a vinegar bottle, she makes the woman's wish come true. However, just like her folktale cousin the fisherman's wife, the old woman isn't satisfied for long. The fairy indulges each whim for more sumptuous housing until the old woman is a queen in a palace, but finally concludes that "there's no pleasing some people" and returns her ungrateful protege to the vinegar bottle. Known for her storytelling, MacDonald presents a retelling that is so rhythmic and conversational even a first-time storyteller will be successful. Fowlkes' energetic, brightly patterned ink-and-watercolor illustrations are sized right for story time as well, with the vinegar bottle discreetly showing up in every spread. Source notes are included. Susan Dove Lempke

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: August House (December 15, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0874834155
• ISBN-13: 978-0874834154
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 8.9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #394,754 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Margaret Read MacDonald travels the world telling stories....always on the lookout for more great folktales to share. She shapes these found stories into tellable tales which anyone can share with ease. Filling her folktale collections with these delightful tales, she creates perfect read alouds for you and your family. MRM wants everyone to experience the joy of a beautifully told tale. She hopes you will read them a few times...then put down the book...put down the electronic device...and just TELL the story to your children!

Some of her favorite folktales she expands into picture books...hopefully with delightfully readable language while will roll right out of your mouth. Share them with your children and then....act the tales out! Revisit the tales by TELLING them! At bedtime. While on the road. Fill your pockets with great stories to share wherever you go.

Joining her Folklore Ph.D. with her 30 plus years as a children's librarian, Margaret brings folktales to life in playful, lilting language which should delight both reader and listener.

See her performance schedule at: www.margaretreadmaconald.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A good book to read every night, February 25, 2000

By 

Yvonne Kenney (Bothell, Wa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Old Woman Who Lived in a Vinegar Bottle (Hardcover)

My 7 yr. old daughter loves this book. It's a funny book about an old lady who is never satisfied with her house even though the fairy keeps granting her wishes for bigger and better houses. The morale is a good one--happiness comes from within, not from your possessions. My daughter soon memorized the verses that repeat throughout the book and recites them each time we read the book. The pictures are beautiful, detailed, and full of bright colors.

4.0 out of 5 stars Great story - love the repetition., November 6, 2009

By 

Ulyyf "Connie" (NYC) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Old Woman Who Lived in a Vinegar Bottle (Hardcover)

We all know this story, though many of us may know it as "The Fisherman and his Wife".

Here's a woman who's chronically unhappy with her lot in life. And to start with, who can blame her? She lives in a vinegar bottle, for crying out loud!

But it doesn't matter WHAT you do to help her, she's just bound and determined to want more and more and more. (And she never says thank you, either. No wonder even her benefactor got fed up with her in the end!)

The pictures aren't quite as good as the cover would indicate, but they're still very pretty, and my nieces loved reciting along with me "Oh, what a pity, what a pity pity pity" and "If that's what she wants, that's what she'll get."

2.0 out of 5 stars Can't Compete with Rumer Godden's Version, June 2, 2009

By 

Shanna A. Gonzalez "eyelevelbooks.com" (Gaithersburg, MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Old Woman Who Lived in a Vinegar Bottle (Hardcover)

This is a very different version of the fairy tale told by Rumer Godden about an old woman who lives in a vinegar bottle. In this version, it is a fairy rather than a fish who offers the woman better and better gifts, until she finally asks for too much and is returned to her former condition.

While many of the plot elements are similar, this one is clearly intended for younger readers; there is some verbal repetition ("What a pity, pity, pity") as opposed to the more lyrical style in Godden. The artwork is brash and colorful, and the moral lesson is much less subtle. If Godden's version didn't exist this one might make a good library checkout, but I'm afraid it might spoil readers for Godden's most excellent story.