I enjoy reading classic stories to get a feel for what
gives them such enduring qualities. Stone
Soup by Ann McGovern is my latest read. (Original edition in 1936. current Edition by Aladdin Picture Books, 1997.)
I heard someone recently mention that their father had read
it to them as a child and it was a favorite. My wife and her sister confirmed
that it was also a favorite in their family.
What makes a story enduring? If anyone knew, they’d become
the next Hans Christian Andersen. But perhaps I can speculate on this story.
For those who may not know the story (warning a little bit
of a spoiler), it is about a hungry boy who asks an old lady for food. When she
has none, he proposes to make stone soup. Little by little ingredients are
found until the soup becomes delicious.
Before discussing what this story is really about, consider
how the plot unfolds. The boy has a problem. He is hungry. We know that on the
first page “He was tired. And he was hungry.”
How can the problem be solved? The boy finds an old woman’s
house and asks for food, but she claims to have none – an escalation of the
problem. This poor fellow is going to starve! The old lady has no interest in
helping the boy … she has said no, and that’s it.
But wait, he doesn’t give up. No does not necessarily mean
no. The boy offers an idea. He asks for a stone. How could the old woman deny that simple
request… but why a stone?
The boy proposes to make soup from the stone.
It is highly irregular, but it gets the old woman’s attention.
She plays along. They get a pot and some
water and begin boiling the stone in the water.
As they watch it boil, the boy mentions that it would boil
faster if it had some onions.
The old lady is intrigued, and finds some onions to put in
the boiling water.
“Soup from a stone,” said the little old lady.
“Fancy that.”
The soup begins to smell good. Perhaps the old lady’s taste
buds begin to talk to her. When the boy
suggests that it would be even better with carrots, the old lady finds some,
and puts them in the pot.
Little by little, the progress of the soup stirs hunger in
the old lady, and she puts a number of ingredients in the pot. By the time a
fine soup is cooking, she decides that she must set a grand table to eat the
delicious soup that is “fit for a king.”
“Soup from a stone,” said the little old lady.
“Fancy that.”
The boy and the old lady enjoy the wonderful soup. When the
boy leaves, he takes the stone with him.
“Why are you taking the stone?” said the little old lady.
“Well,” said the young man. “The stone is not cooked enough.
I will have to cook it some more tomorrow.”
That’s the story… but why is it enduring? I believe because in a subtle way (the best
way to teach a life lesson) it illustrates persistence. Every child, every
person, encounters many “No’s” in their lifetime. Some people take no to mean
no. Other people take no to mean maybe. Maybe there is a way to turn no into a
yes. It is a skill that successful people have mastered. It is the “If like
gives you lemon, make lemonade” kind of thinking. Some people, of course, may think this a crass
lesson, but other experienced parents know that persistence is a great skill
for a child to acquire, and so they like this book. Children like the book
because it is full of imagination.
“Soup from a stone,” said the little old lady.
“Fancy that.”
Who could have believed it could happen? Any yet, it does
happen – slowly the “can’t happen”
becomes a “maybe” and then “yes” and furthermore “soup fit for a king.”
Even a children’s book writer can learn something from this
story. Rejection notes are a daily reality to most writers.
Writer's Lesson 1: Writers receive many rejections.
But sometimes when we make a proposal, a small door is opened. Maybe this story
will work. Let’s edit it a little. Let’s add some onions, maybe some carrots.
Pretty soon the story begins to taste good, and if we are persistent, and
imaginative, it might become a story fit for a king.
Writer's Lesson 2: An enduring story often teaches a life lesson in a way that is not obvious. But books that ring true to how life really works tickles some of the gray matter in the brain, and the story endures.
Writer's Lesson 3: Imagination is a powerful tool. When our brain encounters something unusual, or maybe impossible, like making soup from a stone, we are intrigued. We must find out how. We become anxious to hear the resolution... and that is the germ of a good story.
For more about Alan Elliott visit www.alanelliott.com
Thanks for your comments.
