The Story of the Old Woman and the Pumpkin No Dinner

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

An old woman sets off through the forest to visit her granddaughter, when "Boo!" - one by one, out jump a hungry fox, a hungry bear and a hungry tiger. The old woman escapes by telling them she'll taste even better on the way back, once she's eaten her dinner. But later on, at her granddaughter's, she wonders what to do... Jessica Souhami uses the brilliant colours of India to illustrate her vibrant retelling of a traditional story known all over Southern Asia.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

An unusual pumpkin does double duty as both delectable dish and handy disguise in this retelling of an Indian folktale. Feeling especially frail and thin, an old woman longs to visit her granddaughter, but a forest filled with vicious, hungry animals separates the two. When she can wait no longer, the old woman decides to make the perilous trip anyhow. Along the way, she convinces a tiger, a bear and a fox that, being as thin as she is, she wouldn't be worth eating; the animals should wait to eat her on the way home when she'll be "nice and fat." The woman arrives safely at her granddaughter's and feasts until she is satiated and plump. For safety's sake, the granddaughter suggests that the woman hide in an enormous, hollowed-out pumpkin and roll her way home. The squash suit (and some quick-thinking) serve the woman well, leaving the forest animals with no dinner. Souhami's (The Black Geese) watercolor-and-charcoal compositions--grainy-textured swatches of color, with characters often peeking out from unusual perspectives--give a tale with a familiar feel some snap. Ages 5-8. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

School Library Journal Review

PreS-Gr 2-In this retelling of a folktale from India, an old woman must travel through a forest of fierce animals to visit her granddaughter. Since she is nothing but "skin and bone," she is able to persuade the animals not to eat her until she returns, when she will be "nice and fat" from eating. When it is time for her to go home, she climbs into a huge pumpkin and rolls through the forest, past the tiger and the bear. However, the wolf isn't fooled by talking pumpkins. The cunning old woman tricks him by offering her thin, hard cane when he asks to feel her leg. She escapes as the animal howls, "Bother! Bother! Bother! No Dinner!" This colorful story presents many interactive opportunities for storytime use. Children can join in the repetition, "Boo!-Old woman, I'm going to eat you up" and the refrain, "-don't be too long. I'm hungry!" Bold colors and simple shapes outlined in black charcoal and placed on stark white backgrounds create a lively, dramatic effect and match the vibrant tone of the tale. A satisfying and delightful retelling that's tailor-made for sharing.-Carolyn Stacey, Jefferson County Public Library, Golden, CO (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

Ages 3^-6. Young readers will find elements of Little Red Riding Hood in this retelling of a South Asian folktale. Grandma, all skin and bones, wants to visit her granddaughter on the other side of a forest filled with hungry, wild animals. She encounters a wolf, a tiger, and a bear, but convinces them she'll be a much tastier meal on her return trip, after her granddaughter has fattened her up. Luckily, the granddaughter has a plan to return Granny safely home after the visit. She puts her grandmother in a large pumpkin and sends it rolling back through the forest, right past bear and tiger. Wolf is too clever for the stunt ("Just a minute . . . I've never heard a TALKING pumpkin"). He discovers Granny inside and asks for an arm or leg to test for fatness. Granny extends her walking stick instead, fools the disappointed wolf, and makes it home safely. Basic, opaque shapes make up the spare, naive-style paintings that adequately convey a sense of the woman, the animals, and the forest. Kids will have fun comparing this simple, well-told story to other familiar versions. --Gillian Engberg

Horn Book Review

In a traditional tale from India, an elderly woman takes a perilous journey across the forest and back. With the help of her granddaughter, she outsmarts the wolf, bear, and tiger that would like to eat her for dinner. Brilliantly colored illustrations, rendered in watercolor ink and charcoal, use the page in varied and effective ways and emphasize the dramatic confrontations between the characters. From HORN BOOK Fall 2000, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Kirkus Book Review

Readers who remember Betsy Bang's 1999 retelling of the Bengali folktale The Old Woman and the Red Pumpkin (not reviewed) will recognize the same tale told here, based on 'a traditional story told throughout southern Asia.' An old woman who is nothing but skin and bones is on her way to her granddaughter's house to fatten herself up when out jumps a wolf, then a bear and last a tiger. Each one shouts the American 'BOO!' rather than the 'Ury-bop!' of its predecessor. The old woman convinces each animal not to eat her until she is fat. On her way home, her daughter hides her in a giant red pumpkin, where, rather than singing as she goes, she speaks, and the wolf mistrusts a talking pumpkin. In a twist on the ending, instead of the animals fighting about who is strongest among them, the old woman outwits the wolf by presenting her walking stick instead of her own leg to be eaten. The retelling has plenty of pleasing repetition, but lacks the cultural detail, flavor, and rhythm of Bang's edition. Nevertheless, young readers will find this a suspenseful read-aloud with large, expressive, curry-colored illustrations sure to glow bright across a room. (Picture book/folklore. 4-8)