Stone Soup [Hardcover]

Jon J Muth (Author), Jon J. Muth (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2003 | Age Range: 4 - 8 years | Lexile Measure: 480L (What's this?)

Award-winning artist Jon J Muth retells the favorite tale of a selfish community who is tricked into creating a delicious soup from stones. Set in China in Muth's hauntingly beautiful watercolors.

Three strangers, hungry and tired, pass through a war-torn village. Embittered and suspicious from the war, the people hide their food and close their windows tight. That is, until the clever strangers suggest making a soup from stones. Intrigued by the idea, everyone brings what they have until-- together, they have made a feast fit for a king!
In this inspiring story about the strength people possess when they work together, Muth takes a simple, beloved tale and adds his own fresh twist.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-3-Muth has taken this old tale and transplanted it from its traditional European setting to China. The tricksters are no longer hungry travelers or soldiers but Buddhist monks. Their goal in fooling the villagers is not to fill their own stomachs but rather to enlighten them about the happiness that comes from sharing. Muth's characteristic watercolor illustrations, with their striking use of misty hues contrasted with bright primaries, are expertly done and convey a distinct sense of place. In his author's note, the reteller details the elements of Chinese folklore that he incorporated into the story as well as the symbols from Eastern culture used in the artwork. However, Muth's decision to alter the motivation of the tricksters also depresses some of the humor in the story and gives it a moralistic tone. In addition, the likelihood that these initially suspicious and reclusive villagers would become truly happy people as a result of their own gullibility is slim. This is a beautifully executed book with a flawed story line.
Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

K-Gr. 2. Muth freshens a familiar folktale with a change of setting. Three Zen monks arrive in a Chinese mountain village where hard times have made villagers distrustful of strangers and selfish toward one another. Undeterred by a lack of welcome, the monks set about preparing dinner soup, which, as the story traditionally goes, draws the villagers from their sheltered homes with ingredients to enrich the pot, thereby reinvigorating the community. The muted, unexceptional telling is less successful than the expressive pictures, which bloom in color as the soup thickens; the misty grays and blues of the mountains and empty village square gradually become vibrant, climaxing in a spread of villagers eating at a crowded, seemingly endless table, enjoying food and one another's company beneath the glow of red lanterns. A note at the back explains Muth's change of venue. An unusual version that kids will want to compare to other adaptations of the story. Stephanie Zvirin
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 4 - 8 years
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Press; 1st edition (March 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 043933909X
• ISBN-13: 978-0439339094
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 10.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,430 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

The career of Jon J Muth spans three decades, beginning with Wilmington College hosting his first one-man show as a painter at the age of eighteen. He now exhibits his work internationally. He is a musician and a best-selling writer, and for over twenty years put pictures and words together in comics and graphic novels; culminating in the industry's highest honor, an Eisner Award for "The Mystery Play".

Siting that becoming a father was a profoundly life changing experience, Mr. Muth became aware of the need to explore subjects that spoke to a younger audience. He remarks, "My oldest is eighteen and now we have four year old twins. I love writing for children. Drawing for them. Children see the world in a bright, curious and immediate way. Most of my work in children's publishing has been in watercolor which speaks to that vibrancy.... Being a parent to me reveals something about being alive and a responsibility that is really shattering... An artist is a very selfish position to occupy, but being a parent just throws all that out the window. Becoming a father in my case, did something I can't really explain and it has influenced my creative process."

In 1999 Mr. Muth started what has been over a decade in children's books, first illustrating "Come On Rain!", which won a Gold Medal from the Society of Illustrators. He has received numerous awards and critical acclaim and worked with many talented people, including Neil Gaiman and Mo Willems. He is the author and illustrator of "Zen Shorts" a Caldecott Honor book, which Kirkus Review described as "Every word and image comes to make as perfect a picture book as can be". He is the illustrator of the anthology, "A Family of Poems", with Caroline Kennedy. His book "The Three Questions" has been described as "quietly life-changing" by The New York Times.

In an interview with the Paris Review, E.B. White once said, "You don't write down for children. You write up." Muth wholeheartedly agrees. "Children are completely capable of intuiting wisdom as readily as adults are... they just may not have the ability to put it into words ... [but] they get this stuff very quickly. Even the kids who come to the book (Zen Shorts) because it has this giant panda tend to come back because there's some itch that's set off -- in their minds or in their hearts -- to re-examine what's going on."

Mr. Muth has had a life long interest in Asian Studies, including tai chi chuan, sumi ink drawing and chado, "the way of tea". His work has been translated into more than a dozen languages and he lives with his wife Bonnie and their four children in New York.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Share this Book March 24, 2003

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a beautiful book. The illustrations are masterful, and the story is quite sweet. I would definitely share it with young children, yet the exquisitely depicted images make me want to show it to adults. The cross-cultural elements of the story are especially good for young children. To find a children's book that contains this much beauty is a treasure for any child.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful! New Soup from an Ancient Recipe! March 26, 2003

By ann izumi

Format:Hardcover

My two children and I loved this book. They enjoyed following the little girl and her cat and finding them on different pages. It works very well to read out loud at bedtime. The monks were sweet. I don't know how they could have scared anybody. It was nice to see these faces in this story. Some of them were very funny. I was surprised to see how well it all fit. This was a nice retelling.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars great book November 9, 2003

By Marianne Mcparland

Format:Hardcover

This is told differently than the version I read as a child, but it is told very nicely. The pictures are nice as well. Both my 4 year old son and my 11 year old niece love it.