Stone soup

Author: Marcia Brown (USA)
Publisher:
Publish Date: July 1, 2004
Features: This is an illustrated storybook adapted from a French folktale. First published in 1947. "Three soldiers tiredly walked along an unfamiliar country road. They were on their way home after the war. They were both tired and hungry, in fact, they hadn’t eaten anything for two days." When the three soldiers approached a village, the villagers began to hustle. They knew soldiers were usually very hungry, so every household hid all the edible things they had, such as storing barley in the attic, sinking milk buckets into the well, and hanging meat in the cellar. The soldiers went from door to door asking for food and hoped to borrow a place to stay on the attic, but the villagers all said they had no food or shelter, and the entire village even tried hard to pretend to be starving. This was a battle of wits. The starving soldiers were forced to come up with a clever trick. They announced to the villagers that they would make a soup made of stones. The curious villagers prepared firewood and a large pot for them, and the soldiers really began to cook the soup with three large round stones! Of course, to make the soup tastier, they also needed some seasonings, such as salt and pepper. Of course, a little carrot would be even better. Cabbage, potatoes, beef, and some other vegetables would also be good. If they could also add some barley and milk, even the king could drink a magical stone soup! Marcia Brown tells us a particularly cheerful story, and readers will gradually get excited as the story progresses, even unable to help but dance along with the protagonists. She gives this traditional story a new meaning: telling how people can find joy in cooperation and sharing. This series of excellent book selections features a rich variety of genres, carefully curated to highlight four key characteristics: More than half of the modern and contemporary foreign literary works from the 20th century, making up for the lack of modern and contemporary excellent literary works in China’s "New Curriculum Standards" recommended reading materials. To address the current trend of overly "advanced" children’s books in China, a collection of top-tier international children’s classics has been published for children aged 2-8. Diverse genres: including novels, poetry, essays, drama, picture books, fairy tales, and biographical novels. The novels include science fiction, animal fiction, fantasy fiction, treasure-hunting fiction, detective fiction, horror fiction, as well as modernist and romantic novels reflecting contemporary life. Lively and brilliant content, exquisite packaging, and illustrated with vivid visuals.