“When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace.” ~ Jimi Hendrix
photo by Sharon Auberle
Syria. Shootings. Shutdown. Stand-off.
What to do when your government is broken and the world has gone mad? While everyone duked it out in public this week, our neighbor Jack quietly battled for his life in the privacy of his own home.
Jack was a writer and a recluse. Fourteen years living next door and I may have spoken to him three times. Amidst the din of discord and crazy agendas, foreign wars we’ll never understand, and a brand of racism and intolerance that continues to rear its ugly head, we all have our personal battles. Sickness and suffering aside, what saddened us the most was that Jack died alone.
Looking for solace, I was happy to discover new-to-me Ohio poet and photographer Sharon Auberle. Her poem offered comfort, and her wonderful photos captured the tangible beauty in the world, reminding me how important it is to hold onto yourself by simply doing what you know and what you can, and being present in each moment.
Friends, you need to get your big fat paws on this brand new picture book. Talk about a roarin’ good time!
Here I was, my meek, mild-mannered self minding my own business, when this ferociously funny SOUP BOOK growled at me. Open me, read me, devour me, it said, slurp. up. every. word! Who am I to ignore such a request?
Seriously. I didn’t stand a chance from the get-go. When I opened the book, I saw this:
Aahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
See what I mean? Look at the endpapers! I want to marry them.
InTiger in My Soupby Kashmira Sheth and Jeffrey Ebbeler (Peachtree Publishers, 2013), a young boy left in the care of his older sister begs her to read his favorite tiger book to him. Alas and alack, she is too absorbed in her own book to pay him any attention, prompting the boy to pull out his most imaginative stops to get her to change her mind.
Cornelius found Rosalyn Carter’s recipe for peanut soup in this book.
I would be terribly remiss if I didn’t serve up an extra special peanut butter recipe this month. With winter nipping at our heels and holiday stress rearing its ugly head, only one thing will do: SOUP! Hearty, comforting peanut soup!
photo of King’s Arms Tavern via history.orgKing’s Arms Tavern Cream of Peanut Soup
I had my first bowl of peanut soup at King’s Arms Tavern in Colonial Williamsburg back in the early 80’s. For our first Christmas in Virginia, it was positively magical savoring spoonfuls of rich creamy broth in a firelit 18th century dining room. I remember thinking it was odd to have soup made from peanuts, then being pleasantly surprised at the marvelous flavor.
I just learned this Southern favorite probably wouldn’t have been on the menu back in the 18th century. Peanut soups, mushes and stews were likely part of the slave diet, but peanuts would not gain national acceptance as something more than animal feed or simple fare until after the Civil War. Still, Jefferson did raise peanuts at Monticello, and Washington liked peanut soup enough to eat it daily as a first course.
Cornelius found the King’s Arms Tavern recipe for Cream of Peanut Soup in this book.
The earliest peanut soups prepared in this country were probably more stew-like; slave recipes may have been styled after tomato-based soups popular in central Africa or a Sudanese soup made with lamb bones, garlic and rice. Sarah Rutledge’s version (CarolinaHousewife, 1847) included oysters.
There’s nothing like having a party guest gleefully glide into your kitchen with a big smile, a cool poem, and a pot of soup! And this girl knows how to party!
Heidi’s critically acclaimed debut picture book, Come to My Party (Henry Holt, 2004), is a jubilant montage of rollicky-fun shape poems, with words curving and careening and wiggling and drifting and see-sawing across the pages — a perfect reflection of Heidi herself, who’s a nature-lovin’, rock climbin’, kick boxin’ children’s author always on the move. Zip, Pump, Fly! I’m giddy with excitement that Heidi decided to come to our party today!
She’s brought an ice skating poem that proves she’s just as agile and graceful on the page as she is in the rink. She was also the perfect person to co-edit an upcoming sports-themed poetry anthology. But I’ll let her tell you more about that project after serving up her poem.
Mmmmm! My keen olfactories have detected the heady aroma of a brand new soup picture book simmering on the shelves. As your friendly self-appointed soup reporter, I’ll gladly give you a taste of this toothsome charmer cooked up by Leda Schubert and Bonnie Christensen.
Ruthie’s grandmother, hospitalized with pneumonia, would rather starve than eat the food there. She has a hankering for homemade borscht, and even though Ruthie has never made any before, she promises to bring some to Grandma by 5 p.m. But first, she must track down Grandma’s secret recipe!
After searching high and low in Grandma’s apartment without success, Ruthie asks one of the neighbors for help. Mrs. Lerman, the self-proclaimed Empress of Borscht, is only too pleased to oblige. They begin by cooking and peeling fresh beets.
In no time at all, two other neighbors appear: Mrs. Rosen (First Lady of Borscht), insists onions should be added, and Mrs. Goldberg (Tsarina of Borscht), swears by lemons, sugar and salt. Since Ruthie is still unable to find the secret recipe, she adds everything they suggest to the pot. All this regal bickering makes Ruthie’s head spin. Will too many cooks spoil this soup, the one-and-only soup that will make Grandma feel better?
After they leave, Ruthie tastes for herself and decides something is missing. After sniffing a few of Grandma’s herb jars, she throws in something that smells pickly. Ruthie and her Dad, who thinks beets are yucky, transfer the soup to a thermos, stopping on the way to the hospital at Mr. Lee’s corner store. When he gives Ruthie a container of sour cream, she wonders if he’s the King of Borscht.
You must read the book for yourself to find out whether Grandma likes Ruthie’s borscht. Let’s just say that when it comes to this particular soup, the most important ingredients are the good intentions of loved ones buoyed by caring friends and neighbors. As with all things in life, a little pinch of salt, a squirt of sour, and a dash of sweet keep things happily abubble and unpredictable.
Soup-loving munchkins will easily identify with Ruthie’s earnestness and savor Christensen’s vibrant, zesty illustrations. Her thick charcoal outlines and rich jewel tones echo the strong personalities in the story and invite the reader right into Grandma’s kitchen, establishing an easy familiarity with all the characters. It’s likely readers will clamor for repeated servings of this heartwarmingly delicious offering. All hail the kingdom of Borscht!
THE PRINCESS OF BORSCHT written by Leda Schubert illustrated by Bonnie Christensen published by Roaring Brook Press, 2011 Full color Picture Book for ages 4-7, 32 pp. Includes Borscht Recipe on back cover Cool themes: Cookery, families, friendship, illness, grandmothers, ethnic foods On shelves now!
Heidi’s critically acclaimed debut picture book, 
THE PRINCESS OF BORSCHT
Jama's Alphabet Soup 