Children’s folktale

Stone Soup

by Ann McGovern

32 pages · First published 1986

A hungry young man asks an old woman for food, but she insists she has nothing to give him. Undeterred, he offers to make soup from a stone and a pot of water. As it simmers, his suggestions persuade her to produce one ingredient after another, turning an improbable recipe into a hearty meal. Ann McGovern’s humorous retelling pairs a resourceful trickster with repetition that invites children to anticipate what comes next. On a rainy afternoon, gather the family for a read-aloud that may leave everyone laughing—and asking what’s for supper.