Pumpkin Soup

    Do you have children at home or in the classroom who might need a little help with the concept of sharing?  Well, then Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper may just be your ticket to success.  Cooper's clever tale depicts the adventures of three animals and their encounters with the twists and turns of friendship.
     Readers meet the Cat, Squirrel, and Duck  in a cabin in the woods, playing music late into the night.  Frequently the three friends work together to make pumpkin soup and each friend has their own job.  The Cat slices the pumpkin, the Squirrel stirs the water, and the Duck measures just a "pipkin of salt".  After eating their soup the animals play their tune and drift off to sleep under a blanket made with the help of all friends.  The Duck's technique for measuring a "pipkin of salt" caused memories of my great grandmother to flood into my mind.  My mother frowns upon me when I am too precise while baking, telling me stories of how my great grandmother would measure salt and other dry goods in the palm of her hand.  Anything she baked turned out absolutely perfect, regardless of the precision of her measuring. 
         Back in the story, the animals are sleeping happily in their bed until little Duck is struck with an awfully tempting idea and he makes his way to the kitchen, his mind fixed on a wish to become the head chef of pumpkin soup.  Grabbing the spoon he announces to his sleeping friends that he wishes to stir the soup today and a terrible quarrel unfolds.  The illustration of the animals attacking one another with spoons and spouting curse words (cleverly depicted by symbols) perfectly portrays the ruckus that has unfolded in the kitchen.  However, this illustration is not the first drawing to extend the text and illustrate the little creatures' emotions.  In fact, each page is festooned with large pictures to the left or right of the text and smaller drawings between sections of text. These tiny drawings create a scene-by-scene description of the occurrences in the story and will likely engage readers such that they do not miss a beat.
         The quarrel subsides and the Duck announces that he is running far away from his friends.  The Cat and Squirrel soon begin to search for their missing friend, but after no luck they head in for the night and cook soup that tastes absolutely horrid.  The illustration depicting the Squirrel crying over his soup and looking at himself in his spoon would create great discussion in regards to the emotions the animals are feeling.  Teachers reading the story aloud may wish to probe their students to see whether they understand the hidden meaning found in the Squirrel looking at himself and broach the topics of friendship and sharing with one another.
           When there still is no sight of the Duck, his friends make their way deep into the woods (which seemed to be an interesting reference to the Wizard of Oz), worrying about their friend.  Still no luck the two return back to the cabin telling themselves that the Duck possibly found a better life without them.  To their surprise the Duck is home waiting for his friends and the three joyously make soup together, allowing the Duck to stir regardless of the mess he makes.  All seems back to normal until the Duck proclaims his wish to play the bagpipes and the animals break into a fight on the final page of the story.
             At the very end of the story one will find a recipe for pumpkin soup, a version for humans, of course.  After reading the story aloud it would be especially fun to make and eat the soup together as a class.  While making the soup children could practice their sharing and direction-following skills.
              If you liked Pumpkin Soup then you might consider reading these other books by Helen Cooper: The Boy Who Wouldn't go to Bed, Delicious, or A Pipkin of Pepper.