Turnip

by Walter de la Mare, Kevin Hawkes (Illustrator)

This retelling of The Turnip, originally a Grimm's tale, first appeared in Walter de la Mare's well-known Tales Told Again. Here are two one greedy and duplicitous, the other selfless, poor. Their fates are forever altered by a giant turnip that springs from the good brother's field.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Folklore

Hardcover

First published October 1, 2001

About the author

Walter John de la Mare was an English poet, short story writer and novelist. He is probably best remembered for his works for children, for his poem "The Listeners", and for his psychological horror short fiction, including "Seaton's Aunt" and "All Hallows". In 1921, his novel Memoirs of a Midget won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction, and his post-war Collected Stories for Children won the 1947 Carnegie Medal for British children's books.

Reviews

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the author's poems, and it's about time I catch up on his stories. I wasn't overly charmed by Hawkes' illustrations (they're a different style than, say, Chicken Cheeks) but they suited the story fine. However, the story is in Told Again: Old Tales Told Again on Open Library to borrow online for free here: https://openlibrary.org/search?q=Tale.... Having learned that, I'll put the collection on my list.

In any case, yes, I do recommend the story. A classic fable of the compassionate brother and the greedy, each earning his just reward. Told in a very slightly, very charmingly, old-fashioned language. A tiny bit long for the rugrats but great for children.

[Kitty · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is super fun and hilarious. The toddler boy is a little too young to appreciate it.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely retelling of the Brothers Grimm. Now I’m off to read the original!

[Nancy Kotkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story: 3 stars
Illustrations: 3 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. Unfortunately, the text, which was first published in 1927, sounds old-fashioned, is much too wordy, and uses some vocabulary that will have to be explained by an adult. The illustrations appear fuzzy and contain borders, which makes the art (which is copyright in 1992) seem old-fashioned as well.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

What does it say of me that I like Grimm brothers fairy tales? This is the story of two brothers, one greedy and sneaky, and the other kind and penniless. As always in fairy tales, good triumphs over evil. Ages 8 and up.

[Samantha Penrose · Rating 3 out of 5]

Be kind.
Be generous.
Be humble.
Do good for the sake of doing good, not for recognition or reward.

[Godine Publisher & Black Sparrow Press · Rating 5 out of 5]

"With bold, expressive paintings, Hawkes magnificently captures the parody and irony of de la Mare's unusually lyric prose."
—Publisher's Weekly (starred review)

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was silly and it has great illustrations.

[Mckinley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Greed

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read 8/19
Read again 5/30/22