The Tale of the Turnip

by Brian Alderson, Fritz Wegner (Illustrator)

When a poor farmer grows a gigantic turnip and the king pays him handsomely for it, the envious town squire tries to get an even bigger reward for one of his horses.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Humor, Folklore

32 pages, Hardcover

First published August 4, 1999

About the author

Brian Alderson is the chief children's book reviewer for the London Times and a lecturer and writer on the history of children's literature.

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brian Alderson, whose many projects in the field of folklore include his work on editing Andrew Lang's color fairy books, here turns his attention to the traditional English tale about a humble farmer and his massive turnip. The old farmer knows that such a champion turnip should go to the king, and he is handsomely rewarded for his decision, causing the arrogant (and envious) squire who lives next door to make his own gift to the king - with hilarious results...

The story of two neighbors, each of whom gets their just deserts, The Tale of the Turnip is simply told, and suitable for younger children. It is accompanied by Fritz Wegner's delightful illustrations, in which the highly expressive faces of both man and beast wonderfully convey the humor of the situation.

[Shiloah · Rating 5 out of 5]

We love folktales! “Folktales can be used to help children develop strong reading skills, study other cultures, model positive character traits, and discover a love of stories.”*

This was a short and sweet tale. 🌷

* https://www.augusthouse.com/why-are-f...

[Nancy Kotkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Story: 5 stars
Illustrations: 5 stars

A re-telling of the German folktale collected by the Grimm Brothers (NOT the Russian folktale of the same name). This version, which leaves out the murderous plot and trading places with the trickster, is well-suited for children. The text is distilled into just the right amount for a picture book. Beautiful, detailed illustrations.

[Karli Mittel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cute book follows the life of an old farmer who doesn't have much, but works hard for what he has. He lives by a greedy and arrogant Squire. The old farmer ends up growing an award winning Turnip. In which the king awards him with a plentiful amount of gold. The squire is filled with jealousy and tries to sell his horse and ends up getting awarded with the old farmers turnip. This is a great story to teach kids not to be greedy with what they have. The old man worked hard to finally be awarded and it paid off in the end. Not everything is handed to you. Great little book.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my new favorite children's books. It is full of fantastic old-fashioned exclamations like "Hen's teeth!" and "Stone the crows!" and the ending is so satisfying you can't help but chuckle. The artwork is enjoyable and inviting as well.

[Molly Cluff (Library!) · Rating 5 out of 5]

So funny! This is a very short story with wonderfully detailed illustrations. A farmer grows an enormous turnip and is rewarded by the king, making his neighbor jealous. It had all sorts of old-school vibes. I can imagine my jokester grandpa liking this book.

[Kest Schwartzman · Rating 5 out of 5]

so seldom does a picture book have a twist ending that surprises me, an adult, on first reading. I laughed hard enough to startle the ducks to whom I was reading picture books.

[Y.Poston]

Very cute!
Gorgeous illustrations

[Sem · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need a shelf for stories about root vegetables.

[Hannah Scego · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shows that hard work pays off and comparing yourself may not get the results you were hoping for.

[Zoe Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of repetition of words I.e pulled, held, old.

Some rhyming.

[Memory Kopp · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is a wonderful traditional old English tale that takes place in a beautiful English countryside and teaches that good is rewarded and hard work pays off. It is the tale of a humble, hardworking farmer who goes to his garden to find that he has grown the biggest turnip in all the land. He takes the turnip to the King who gives him a wagon full of gold. Then the farmer’s arrogant, crotchety and jealous neighbor the squire feels slighted so he takes his prize horse to the king so he can get a reward and feel important too. Then, in a funny turn of events the king feels that the prize horse deserves the highest reward he can give and he gives the squire his huge turnip. The wonderful cartoon illustrations by Fritz Wenger are so colorful and detailed. You can see the expressions in the faces of the characters. You can see how the farmer’s family is full of love and happy. You can see the age in the farmers face from all of his hard work. You can also see the fear in the squire’s family’s faces to show he is not very fun to be around. The illustrations also show a beautiful English countryside with lush trees everywhere. This is a great simple story with a fast moving plot for young kids to learn to root for the underdog and learn to not to be greedy. The author uses some phrases that show the time period of the story like great swanky house, ramshackle cottage, old codger and stone the crows. There are many fun projects you could use to go along with this story such as a science unit on plant stages.

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is a traditional English folktale and as the reader you immediately get that impression from the cover and pages of the book. The font that is used to tell the tale gives the book and old English feel and the images drawn by Wegner compliment the story and suit its context well. The moral of this tale is that hard work pays off and gets the best rewards. I agree with the rating that the Horn Book Guide gave this folktale as it is a wonderful story and the illustrations suitably complement the tale. I think that this is a great book to share with children as it clearly portrays its moral, which is a valuable lesson for children to learn. There are a few words in this book that I feel would need an extra explanation when reading this to young children, such as, ‘arrogant’ and ‘squire’, but I think that these new words along with the story also help children to learn a little bit about English heritage.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A note in the book says that this is a traditional English tale retold by the author.
In this story, a farmer grows an enormous turnip, but instead of having problems pulling it out of the ground, he has help from a block and tackle and other men, they pull it out, and he takes it to the king. The king gives him a cart full of gold in payment. His jealous neighbor, a squire, decides to take one of his nice horses to the king so he can get gold as well, but instead, the king rewards him with the enormous turnip.

[Janet · Rating 2 out of 5]

As one reviewer informed me there are two sources for this tale from folklore, a version from Russia and a version from the Grimm Brothers of Germany and this variant is of German origin. Obviously I prefer the Russian variant more. This one is too complex and weighted with "political" overtones. I much prefer a basic cumulative story of people working together to harvest a giant common vegetable of the peasant class.
Ah, but I will be pursuing more versions of this classic tale and looking at differences between the Russian and German origins

[Rachel K · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is a cute little tale, with fun illustrations. I wish it was a larger size, but the size is good for a lap reading. This is a good book to put out for folk tales, for sharing, and for not being a green eyed monster.
A farmer grows a huge turnip, gives it to the king and receives a bunch of gold for it. His rich neighbor wants a bunch of gold, so gives the king one of his fancy horses, for which the king gives him the huge turnip.

[Tricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book has the feel of a classic fable...intricate and funny illustrations add to the enjoyment of the story.

[Stephanie Smoot · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Russian folktale of how it’s always nicer to have others helping you when you are struggling with a problem. I would use this to teach students teamwork and to never be afraid to ask for help.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great illustrations, very full characters, and the ending is too perfect.

[Mommywest · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny little tale about a farmer who grows a massive turnip and the rewards for humbly doing and giving your best.

[Frieda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was funny.

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This the enormous turnip with a sense of humor.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The poetic justice in this book is sublime! And the drawings are captivating.