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13th out of 55 books
—
26 voters
It Could Always Be Worse: A Yiddish Folk Tale
Once upon a time a poor unfortunate man lived with his mother, his wife, and his six children in a one-room hut.
Because they were so crowded, the children often fought and the man and his wife argued. When the poor man was unable to stand it any longer, he ran to the Rabbi for help.
As he follows the Rabbi's unlikely advice, the poor man's life goes from bad to worse, with...more
Because they were so crowded, the children often fought and the man and his wife argued. When the poor man was unable to stand it any longer, he ran to the Rabbi for help.
As he follows the Rabbi's unlikely advice, the poor man's life goes from bad to worse, with...more
Paperback, 32 pages
Published
September 1st 1990
by Square Fish
(first published September 1st 1976)
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I consider picture books to be the 7" singles of the book world. Every now and then you come across the 3-minute gem called the Perfect Pop Record. And so it is with its equivalent among picture books.
Margot Zemach's IT COULD ALWAYS BE WORSE is one of them.
I should frame it and hang it on the wall, in case I have a bout of thinking things couldn't be worse. I should hang a copy on the wall of my office as well.
Speaking of which: this story helped me in dealing with an office situation. A tempor...more
Margot Zemach's IT COULD ALWAYS BE WORSE is one of them.
I should frame it and hang it on the wall, in case I have a bout of thinking things couldn't be worse. I should hang a copy on the wall of my office as well.
Speaking of which: this story helped me in dealing with an office situation. A tempor...more
It Could Always Be Worse is a cute folktale where a man is very unhappy with his life. He says that his house is too crowded and noisy. He went to his Rabbi for help. The Rabbi would have him add animals to the house, and each time the man would go back to the Rabbi and say that his life is miserable and couldn’t be any worse. The cycle continues, and finally at the end of the book the Rabbi tells the man to take the animals out of the house…how do you think the man felt? It was enjoyable to rea...more
The title page says this is a Yiddish folk tale retold. I would not have known this story was Yiddish without this information because the story could be about any family. The setting is vague; the story starts with “once upon a time in a small village” and it does not say the location of this village, so it is obvious this story was passed down orally. As I read the first two pages I felt like a first grader that figured out the answer; I already knew the moral of the story because the title ga...more
Jan 13, 2009
Mary
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone who wishes they had a larger house
Oh, this is a deliciously rollicking story that teaches a GREAT moral in a vividly funny way. A Yiddish folk tale, but universally applicable because we always want more than what we have. The wise Rabbi knew just how to help the "poor unfortunate man".
The favorite page for the children, of course, is the naked-kid falling out of the bathtub, but mine is the last page, when they are all "alone" again with just the nine of them, and their 2 cats. Quiet, peaceful, roomy. When I asked kindergarten...more
The favorite page for the children, of course, is the naked-kid falling out of the bathtub, but mine is the last page, when they are all "alone" again with just the nine of them, and their 2 cats. Quiet, peaceful, roomy. When I asked kindergarten...more
I really enjoyed this Yiddish Folk Tale. This man is overwhelmed by his living situation-he lives with his parents, wife and six children all in one room. He goes to the rabbi for advice and each time the rabbi says to have a certain animal move in with them. Eventually, there are so many animals and his poor man can't take it anymore. The rabbi says to let all the animals out and eventually the poor man is happy to simply be with his family. It is a wonderful tale of simply accepting what you h...more
This Yiddish folktale is much different than other familiar Western folktales. Its theme – to be happy with what you have – is not new, but the context of not actively striving for something better rather sticking to your station and being glad, even thankful, that you have so little because, hey, things could always get a hundred times worse is. The artwork for the story is in cartoon style. For children, I think it would be appropriate to help them understand the Rabbi’s advice to the poor unf...more
This is a favorite Yiddish folktale of mine. I have heard it, read it, and seen it performed in various forms. My favorite version was with puppets by puppeteer and storyteller named Marilyn Price. The title is actually one of my personal mottos I try to live by. Just as the Rabbi gets the poor man to understand as he has the man put more and more animals into the house, it is important to remember that when things are just about as bad as they can be, just remember, things "could always be wors...more
This book is funny! Zemach unfolds a hilarious story filled with irony about learning to appreciate what one has. The author employs repetition of actions and dialogue to build humor, and she ends the story with a piece of dialogue that seems to create a secret between the reader and the Rabbi: of how silly the main character has been throughout the whole process to not realize the circle he progressed. Or did he realize? The illustrations are definitely laughter-provoking and busy! The cut-out...more
A man fed up with the noise of living in close quarters with his wife, his mother and his 6 children approaches a wise Rabbi and asks his advice. The Rabbi instructs the man to bring a rooster, a goat, a cow, and chickens into his hut. The noise level becomes even more unbearable! The Rabbi then instructs the man to release all of the animals and the man feels blessed. Great read loud. Pictures mirror this cumulative tale as they begin to crowd the pages with text as the house becomes fuller and...more
This Yiddish folk tale reminded me a lot of a childhood favorite called Too Much Noise. The structure of the two stories are basically the same. Of course I have to love the one I grew up with more and look at this one as a not-quite-good-enough wanna-be. :) But I did enjoy the story and the lesson it teaches. I also enjoyed many fun details in the illustrations as the chaos in the house intensifies with each new piece of advice from the Rabbi. I really felt for the poor mom who never gets a spe...more
As the title implies, this story is an old Yiddish folk tale. The pictures look like someone tried to put as many people and objects into one tiny spot as possible; however, this makes the reader feel as though the pictures truly match the story. As the pictures get more and more crowded, you realize that there is always room for something else. The authenticity of the clothes and buildings also make you think that they illustrator did some research before creating the pictures.
During my years as an elementary school librarian I taught a unit on Folktales. I'd read six to eight folktales (one per week) and have the classes vote on which one to retell. Then I'd write up their retelling, print it out one sentence to a page, and have the class illustrate their story.
This was always one of my favorites to read. It's a simple tale of how life is actually pretty good, regardless of your current circumstances.
This was always one of my favorites to read. It's a simple tale of how life is actually pretty good, regardless of your current circumstances.
This story reminded me of one I read in childhood entitled "Too Much Noise". Kids will get a kick out of the rabbi's advice but what will really get a reaction is the bare bottom of the toddler, shown on the cover and several times throughout the book. Younger elementary students are sure to dwell upon this in their bathroom humor stage.
so what if i could see where this one was going from the 2nd page (and my 4 year old did too)--that was half of the joy. complaining man consults rabbi and is told to add more strife to his situation. by the end of the book, of course, the original situation looks golden. fun to read aloud despite sort of boring illustrations.
PB 32: I liked this one a lot too! It had good illustrations, and a great story. It teaches about being grateful for the things we do have, and also for the things we don't have! It is also a good book because it has a Rabbi as one of the main characters and so can teach kids who might not have any Jewish friends about Judaism!
It’s all about perspective, isn’t it? This sweet story is accentuated by the wonderful, whimsical illustrations of Morgot Zemach. There’s so much going on in these pictures that every time you read this book something wonderful, from piggybacking goats to wally-honking geese, will jump and surprise you.
GR Level: P
Elementary: 398.27 ZEM
This story is a great one to read when you think it won't get any worse. A wise Rabbi helps a man realize how nice he has it, by helping him recognize it could be worse!
Elementary: 398.27 ZEM
This story is a great one to read when you think it won't get any worse. A wise Rabbi helps a man realize how nice he has it, by helping him recognize it could be worse!
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What a fun text this book offers and I love reading it as a read aloud and then having a discussion and follow up art activity with this book as our point of reference. 2006 Caldecott Honor book
This was a family favorite growing up. Often, even today with myself and siblings grown up, my father will shout out: "Holy Rabbi!" if we all are crowded together in one room. Good times. :-)
This story is a great one to read when you think it won't get any worse. A wise Rabbi helps a man realize how nice he has it, by helping him recognize it could be worse!
This book underscores the fact that we should be happy with the circumstances we are in whenever we are surrounded by loved ones. Things are not always as bad as they seem.
We once acted this one out during a workshop and it was lots of fun and played really well to the audience. I would say that this one plays best as a read-aloud.
Read this to my kindergarteners class in February. They understood the lesson here. Extremely funny, and yet so true: things are not as bad as you think they are.
Oct 15, 2010
Jannay123
added it
they have so many animals that the rabbai kept on telling im to put into his house but then they could finally breath again it started out to be wose then it got worser
A Yiddish folktale that lends itself well to telling out loud, sans book. Try the Rabbi's advice if you are ever feeling bad about your life -- it works!
I have always loved this story about a poor man who learns gratitude through the wise and funny council of his rabbi. I enjoyed this version.
A great visual representation of the adage "it could always be worse". A reminder tale to adults and an easy way for children to understand being thankful for your current situation.
This book has a good moral to remind us that it literally could always be worse. Very good folk tale!
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Oct 05, 2010 06:50pm