One child offers a carrot, one man suggests a potato, and eventually the entire crowd offers up their own ingredients. Eventually, the travelers convince the villagers to contribute to the soup. In this version, the soup starter is a stone.

The travelers decide to gather everyone with their magic soup. Searching for food, the travelers knock on the villagers’ doors, only to be spurned with suspicious looks. In Heather Forest’s contemporary version, two travelers make there way to an unidentified mountaintop village. Everywhere the tale is told, the plot ends with the optimistic realization that when each person makes a small contribution, the collective impact can be huge. In the Russian version, an axe serves as the soup starter. In Sweden, the story features a tramp who teaches a stingy old woman generosity by using a nail to start a sumptuous nail broth. In the French version, the travelers are cast as soldiers and the townspeople are fearful of being generous because of the ravages of war. This story about community teaches readers the importance of sharing, generosity and vegetables!August House Publishers offer an animated version of Stone Soup as well as free lesson plans!Ī popular European folktale that has been told and retold for centuries. In this cumulative retelling of an ancient and widely circulated legend, author Heather Forest shows us that when each person makes a small contribution, 'the collective impact can be huge.' Susan Gaber's paintings portray the optimism and timelessness of a story that celebrates teamwork and generosity. Not to be outdone, another villager contributes a potato, and the soup grows as others bring corn, celery, and other vegetables and seasonings.

All they need is a carrot, which a young girl volunteers.

As they sit to rest beside a well, one of the travelers observes that if the townspeople have no food to share, they must be 'in greater need than we are.' With that, the travelers demonstrate their special recipe for a magical soup, using a stone as a starter. To their surprise, villager after villager refuses to share, each one closing the door with a bang. Winner of Parents' Choice Award & Bank Street College: Best Children's Books of the Year Two hungry travelers arrive at a village expecting to find a household that will share a bit of food, as has been the custom along their journey.

Stone Soup by Susan Gaber