The Tale of the Turnip

Alderson's (The Swan's Stories) retelling of a traditional English tale is seasoned with casual, homespun phrases from its opening page: ""Once, a good time ago, there was an old farmer. He lived in a ramshackle cottage, with a few chickens and suchlike, and he looked after a few fields."" When the farmer grows an enormous turnip, he presents it to the thrilled king, who gives the farmer a cartload of gold for the prized crop. The wealthy squire across the way, seeing his neighbor's riches, vows to upstage the farmer. The king, impressed with the squire's gift of his best horse, presents the squire with a cherished treasure: his champion turnip. Wegner's (The Better Brown Stories) cartoon illustrations depict a bustling, leafy English countryside with thatched roofs, plenty of farm animals underfoot and a host of mild, friendly-looking farmers. The final endpapers juxtapose the farmer's modest house, bags of gold stacked out front, with the squire's spacious compound, into which the turnip is being wheeled. Kids will happily root for the farmer in this tale of vegetables and just deserts. Ages 3-7. (Aug.)