From Publishers Weekly
Forest and Gaber (previously paired for The Woman Who Flummoxed the Fairies; The Baker's Dozen) revisit this oft-told tale to demonstrate the pleasures of collaboration and mutual generosity. Two hungry travelers, denied food by the inhabitants of a mountain village, publicly declare that they can make soup from a stone. Only they need a carrot... and a potato... and a few more ingredients to make it taste really good. Everyone in the town contributes something, pronounces the soup delicious and learns the magic behind it: sharing. Gaber's bold acrylic paintings emphasize the big black soup tureen and the brightly colored vegetable ingredients. As each member of the multiracial town speaks up to offer a contribution, a speech bubble appears showing a picture of the offering. Forest's jolly prose simmers with energy: "Bring what you've got! Put it in the pot!" cry the travelers. Flavorful and nutritious, this classic tale is served up with a smile. A recipe for stone soup tops it off. Ages 4-8. (May) FYI: The other two folktales in the series are The Dancing Turtle: A Folktale from Brazil, retold by Pleasant DeSpain, illus. by David Boston; and a bilingual title, The Girl Who Wore Too Much: A Folktale from Thailand, retold by Margaret Read MacDonald, trans. by Supaporn Vathanaprida, illus. by Yvonne Lebrun Davis (each $15.95 ISBN -502-X; -503-8; May)
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 1AAs they did in The Baker's Dozen (1993) and The Woman Who Flummoxed the Fairies (1990, both Harcourt), this storyteller and illustrator have once again collaborated in the retelling of a traditional tale. Unlike Marcia Brown's classic version in which three hungry French soldiers are returning from a war (Scribners, 1947), this Stone Soup is not linked to any particular time or place. The straightforward, didactic retelling concludes with the lesson (for those readers who somehow missed it): "'These two travelers made such a delicious soup out of a stone.' 'Out of a stone,' said the travelers with a grin, 'and a magical ingredient...sharing.'" Gaber's brilliantly colored paintings illuminate a mountain village with a multicultural population. Whereas Brown's version offers readers a tasty mix of suspicious peasants and clever soldiers, Forest's tale has a medicinal aftertaste.AKathleen Whalin, Greenwich Country Day School, CT
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.