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Mean Soup
It has been a bad day for Horace. A very bad day. He’s come home feeling mean. But his mother knows just what to do! “For the book Mean Soup, the recipe is as (1) clever text spiced with one or two outrageous bits; (2) a grand message about getting out anger instead of locking it inside; and (3) exciting artwork as full of life as the story.”-- Booklist
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
February 28, 2017
Oh my goodness. This book. I just don't know what to say.
I love the lesson. Horace has had a bad day and comes home grumpy. His mother notices and helps him to purge those negative feelings in a healthy way and everything ends well. (Oh hush about spoilers, it's kids book, it wasn't going to end with him running away from home or killing a puppy.)
The only quarrel I have with the story is that one of the 'bad' things that happens is that he gets a love note from a girl. I'm sure some little boys will understand why that is so horrible but mine did not. DD7 and DS5 both asked me why that upset him. It was hard for me to explain because I don't want to be the one to introduce the idea to them that the opposite sex has cooties, or whatever they have these days. Maybe it'll come, maybe it won't, but at this point they didn't understand why Horace wouldn't like to get a love note.
The book is a little surreal. I don't know if it is in the literary and artistic definition of the term, but that word fits how I feel about it. One example, there is a show-and-tell cow. Dude. If you know what that is you need to comment and explain it to me, because we had nothing like that in my school growing up.
The art. Boy, I gotta admit I hated the art. It made me want to cry so that tears would fill my eyes and blur the images because I just couldn't force myself to look away. It defies explanation but I'll try. Each page has a gaudy border that reminds me of those crappy borders that everyone but me was putting on photos they uploaded to Facebook a couple of years ago. You know, the ones that are so bright that you don't notice the photo itself. The mom looks like her body was made from clothes stuffed with other clothes, like a scarecrow. Everything is so bright and in your face that I felt like a bird in a cloud of butterflies, not knowing where to look next. So horrible. But I can't stop looking at the images. My first thought was that they were repulsive. My second thought was that they were probably worthwhile because they look like nothing, and I mean NOTHING, that my kids will see anywhere outside of a modern art museum. I believe it is worthwhile to look at different styles of art, even if they make my eyes bleed.
I love the message of the book. I love the absurdity of the text. I hate the bizarre images. The message, text and images fit together perfectly. I have no idea how that works. We checked this out from the library, but if we owned it I think it might be the one kid's book I'd keep just because I can't stop looking at it. I wish I could understand why I can't stop looking at it.
I love the lesson. Horace has had a bad day and comes home grumpy. His mother notices and helps him to purge those negative feelings in a healthy way and everything ends well. (Oh hush about spoilers, it's kids book, it wasn't going to end with him running away from home or killing a puppy.)
The only quarrel I have with the story is that one of the 'bad' things that happens is that he gets a love note from a girl. I'm sure some little boys will understand why that is so horrible but mine did not. DD7 and DS5 both asked me why that upset him. It was hard for me to explain because I don't want to be the one to introduce the idea to them that the opposite sex has cooties, or whatever they have these days. Maybe it'll come, maybe it won't, but at this point they didn't understand why Horace wouldn't like to get a love note.
The book is a little surreal. I don't know if it is in the literary and artistic definition of the term, but that word fits how I feel about it. One example, there is a show-and-tell cow. Dude. If you know what that is you need to comment and explain it to me, because we had nothing like that in my school growing up.
The art. Boy, I gotta admit I hated the art. It made me want to cry so that tears would fill my eyes and blur the images because I just couldn't force myself to look away. It defies explanation but I'll try. Each page has a gaudy border that reminds me of those crappy borders that everyone but me was putting on photos they uploaded to Facebook a couple of years ago. You know, the ones that are so bright that you don't notice the photo itself. The mom looks like her body was made from clothes stuffed with other clothes, like a scarecrow. Everything is so bright and in your face that I felt like a bird in a cloud of butterflies, not knowing where to look next. So horrible. But I can't stop looking at the images. My first thought was that they were repulsive. My second thought was that they were probably worthwhile because they look like nothing, and I mean NOTHING, that my kids will see anywhere outside of a modern art museum. I believe it is worthwhile to look at different styles of art, even if they make my eyes bleed.
I love the message of the book. I love the absurdity of the text. I hate the bizarre images. The message, text and images fit together perfectly. I have no idea how that works. We checked this out from the library, but if we owned it I think it might be the one kid's book I'd keep just because I can't stop looking at it. I wish I could understand why I can't stop looking at it.
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November 11, 2017Text-to-Self Connection: This book teaches about how to handle yourself when you are having a bad day. The boy in the book felt mean because he was having a bad day and his mom made him feel better by making mean soup. The ingredients for the soup were how he felt. His mom taught him that being mad is ok but make something good come from it. I connected to this book when I experienced a bad day. When I was in 3rd grade I left my bookbag at home with my homework. By lunch time I realized I left my lunch box too. I went to school with nothing but myself and I felt mad and started being mean to everyone. My teacher pulled me to the side and said it was going to be ok I was just having a bad day and tomorrow is a new day. I remember I couldn’t wait to go home to see my mom. This is a very good book for when you see one of your students having a bad day.
December 10, 2014
I like the premise, but the illustrations are very dated. and what the hell is a show-and-tell cow?
November 5, 2011
The little boy in this book, Horace, comes home after a bad day. He’s feeling so mean that he hisses at his mother then throws a temper tantrum. So, his mom puts a pot of water on the stove and proceeds to make soup. She tosses some salt over her shoulder then playacts anger into the pot, inviting an intrigued Horace to join her. Together they scream and act out their anger into the pot.
I pulled this book out when my 3 year old was really mad and we read it together. We hissed, screamed and blew dragon breath into the book to get all the mean out. It was a safe, playful place for him to handle the mean feelings that we threatening to overwhelm his preschooler mind. And I didn’t lose my patience with his emotional outburst.
My 5 year was entranced. So, we immediately read it again. And again. And again. This time with my 15 month old latched on and giggling at us all while we made mean sounds into the book. Mean Soup has turned out to be a go to favorite for my kids.
If I am ever at a loss to use play to handle big emotions, having this book on hand is going to be a useful tool. This is one I’m buying instead of borrowing from the library.
This review is an excerpt from my review on my blog, which includes activities to do with kids. Please feel free to stop by.
I pulled this book out when my 3 year old was really mad and we read it together. We hissed, screamed and blew dragon breath into the book to get all the mean out. It was a safe, playful place for him to handle the mean feelings that we threatening to overwhelm his preschooler mind. And I didn’t lose my patience with his emotional outburst.
My 5 year was entranced. So, we immediately read it again. And again. And again. This time with my 15 month old latched on and giggling at us all while we made mean sounds into the book. Mean Soup has turned out to be a go to favorite for my kids.
If I am ever at a loss to use play to handle big emotions, having this book on hand is going to be a useful tool. This is one I’m buying instead of borrowing from the library.
This review is an excerpt from my review on my blog, which includes activities to do with kids. Please feel free to stop by.
March 25, 2018
This book is about a boy named Horace and his mother. It discuses how he had an awful day and was so angry. The mom told Horace that it was time to make the soup and together they made "Mean Soup". He put all of his anger into this soup by screaming into it and sticking out his tongue and even banging the pot. He then felt better and decided to smile and so did his mother.
I gave this book a 3/5 because it wasn't my favorite book and the meaning of it is not something I would suggest to my students or children but the illustrations helped with the meaning of the story and it showed connection with family. Those are very important to young readers as they begin to learn about emotions and connections with their family.
I gave this book a 3/5 because it wasn't my favorite book and the meaning of it is not something I would suggest to my students or children but the illustrations helped with the meaning of the story and it showed connection with family. Those are very important to young readers as they begin to learn about emotions and connections with their family.
October 15, 2024
i too feel like screaming into pots of boiling salt water also miss pearl needs her license revoked.
September 2, 2015
Horace had a bad day. He had been humiliated in front of his classmates. He had been stepped on during show-and-tell. And when he was picked up from school, he had feared for his life – as well as the life of three poodles – because of Miss Pearl’s crazy driving. Horace felt angry. Horace felt mean. Thank goodness Horace’s mom knew just the right recipe to help him feel better.
Mean Soup is a brightly colored book that helps children (and some adults) deal with their angry feelings. The illustrations are abstract, featuring bright colors, simple figures and drawings, and a fun patterned border. The draw the reader into the story, and seem to tell the story even better than the text does. The sentences all seem pretty straightforward (she threw in some salt, Zelda game him a love note, etc…) but the pictures show a more detailed story (how happy the mom is as she throws some salt in a pot, how embarrassed Horace is about the love note, etc…).
When I was looking for picture books to read and review, I was immediately drawn in by the neon pink cover. The colors on the cover grabbed my attention immediately, and when I flipped through the pages, I was further surprised by how artistic the illustrations were. I felt that the art was something the adults could appreciate, even as the story entertained the kids.
This book focuses on dealing with anger, a common theme in many children’s book. But what makes this book unique is how the mom lets her child deal with his meanness. Under his mom’s watchful eye, Horace is able to stir away his anger and make a mean pot of soup (pun intended).
Mean Soup is a brightly colored book that helps children (and some adults) deal with their angry feelings. The illustrations are abstract, featuring bright colors, simple figures and drawings, and a fun patterned border. The draw the reader into the story, and seem to tell the story even better than the text does. The sentences all seem pretty straightforward (she threw in some salt, Zelda game him a love note, etc…) but the pictures show a more detailed story (how happy the mom is as she throws some salt in a pot, how embarrassed Horace is about the love note, etc…).
When I was looking for picture books to read and review, I was immediately drawn in by the neon pink cover. The colors on the cover grabbed my attention immediately, and when I flipped through the pages, I was further surprised by how artistic the illustrations were. I felt that the art was something the adults could appreciate, even as the story entertained the kids.
This book focuses on dealing with anger, a common theme in many children’s book. But what makes this book unique is how the mom lets her child deal with his meanness. Under his mom’s watchful eye, Horace is able to stir away his anger and make a mean pot of soup (pun intended).
January 22, 2014
I think this is a lesson we should remember as children and as adults - how to control our feelings, how to distract ourselves when we do get upset, and how to resolve these feelings. I love the nice big illustrations too as it makes it easy for kids of all age groups to read and follow along.
October 16, 2019
I need to say this because I feel like nobody else is going to: that soup is nasty and unhygienic. I get that this book is about venting your anger and then eventually calming down but really? SCREAMING AT SOUP? I sure would not want to eat that saliva filled soup. If this was me I would pour some of that soup on my arms or face so it would distract me from the anger momentarily and eventually I would forget about why I was angry (although this would only last a few hours because I am petty and I remember everything). I don't feel bad for Horace, his day didn't seem that bad to me. Sure he forgot to answer a few questions on his homework but that shouldn't ruin his entire day. Why he mad about Zelda giving him a love note? I would be ecstatic but that's because I'm lonely. Horace shouldn't take love for granted or else he gonna end up alone on valentines day watching nothing but Adam Sandler movies and chomping down rotten apples. Horace got his foot stepped on? Try working in retail you get stepped on every day. Miss Pearl does seem rather nutty so I can understand Horace's agitation for her...I mean she almost ran over three dogs. One dog I could see, two dogs seems like a stretch and 3 means this woman is a raving lunatic. The author, Mrs. Everitt writes well and the illustrations were vibrant and clean. White borders framing every page and an entertaining book overall, just think that Horace is over dramatic and he shouldn't be hissing at his mother.
September 13, 2019
This story shows how one mom uses humor and a little bit of channeling of aggression into an inanimate object to relieve stress and to improve her son's mood.
The illustrations, created using gouache on watercolor paper, are colorful and cartoonish. They are a bit abstract and rudimentary for my taste, but complement the story well.
Overall, I thought it was a good story. For some reason, I felt a bit anxious reading how the mom encouraged her son to yell and scream into the hot boiling water. It seemed a bit unsafe to me, that if he were to be a bit too enthusiastic or if he lost control, that he could spill the water and suffer an extremely painful burn.
I'm not sure that I would encourage a child to get out their frustration while cooking, but the message of the story is a worthwhile one.
The illustrations, created using gouache on watercolor paper, are colorful and cartoonish. They are a bit abstract and rudimentary for my taste, but complement the story well.
Overall, I thought it was a good story. For some reason, I felt a bit anxious reading how the mom encouraged her son to yell and scream into the hot boiling water. It seemed a bit unsafe to me, that if he were to be a bit too enthusiastic or if he lost control, that he could spill the water and suffer an extremely painful burn.
I'm not sure that I would encourage a child to get out their frustration while cooking, but the message of the story is a worthwhile one.
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January 22, 2023Hoss was very unhappy that day. His mother didn't criticize, lecture, or ask questions. She knew that she should not resist the kid's emotions, but teach the kid to self-guidance. So she cooked a big pot of soup to help her son dispel his grievances. She didn't ask her son to "stop being angry", but tried to find a way to help him vent his anger. After the anger subsides, the kid will find out, oh, it turns out that anger is like this, and it's not a big deal. Sometimes, it is inevitable for children to be in negative emotions. Parents should accept and understand their children's emotions, and at the same time help them find appropriate ways to relieve them. I really like the truth that this book tells parents. In fact, anger is also a natural emotional expression of children. How we can help them to go out by themselfs is the key.
February 21, 2019
Mean Soup was about a young boy who is angry due to what happened at school earlier and when he comes home his mom has him make soup while yelling and letting go his anger. It was good to see a picture book that showed how a child can deal with anger because this is something that my brother faced. He was an angry child and didn't know how to let go of his anger, but if I or my parents knew of this picture book we could've showed that it's okay to have anger sometimes. The illustrations were primarily shapes and was very colorful, which I kind of wish it had shown more of an emotional reaction by having darker colors while he was angry and had gotten lighter when he became happy. But, overall the book was good and had a good message.
September 26, 2018
This book had no dust jacket and can be a either a hardcover or paperback. What I found very interesting was how colorful the book was. The colors were basically all the same such a green, brown, blue and so on most of the colors were repeated, but it made it seem as if there was so many different colors even if they were the same ones. There was repetition on every page because of the frame that was used around every picture. The frame was there for every page and had the same shapes throughout. The characters in Mean Soup looked very different because they didn't look realistic. They had small heads and big bodies and had a line across for their nose.
September 4, 2019
We read this at the library as part of our semi-annual puppet show. This book shows a way to get rid of one's anger through making Mean Soup, which is definitely a cute idea. However, there's a lot of upset and rudeness toward the parent that I didn't enjoy. I wasn't in love with the illustrations either, but the story was cute to act out.
For: readers who want a book about expelling one's anger in a nonviolent way.
Possible red flags: tantrums and being rude to a parent.
For: readers who want a book about expelling one's anger in a nonviolent way.
Possible red flags: tantrums and being rude to a parent.
October 15, 2019
Mean Soup talks about a little boy named Horace who spent a terrible day at school. When he returned home, his mother cooked soup with him to help him release his anger. I think this story can be recommended to children of any age. Because everyone will be angry. This story conveys a good message to the children that you can do something interesting and release anger in a positive way.
I really like this book.
I really like this book.
February 19, 2021
Like other reviewers, I didn't like the aspect of Horace's bad day that involved him getting a love note from a girl. My girl is baffled by that page every day, and we have to guess at why that would have made Horace's day bad. "Maybe he doesn't love her back?"
However the message about getting your bad feelings out is powerful. At three, managing her emotions is a big theme in our house right now. She likes this one a lot.
However the message about getting your bad feelings out is powerful. At three, managing her emotions is a big theme in our house right now. She likes this one a lot.
February 14, 2023
The artwork... gah! It's like bad Picasso.
The story, though... The mom in the story must have been through an amazing parenting class. This could be straight out of a Karyn Purvis/Empowered to Connect conference. She lets her kid be human. She doesn't launch into a lecture. She connects with and feeds her child, and his bad day is no longer bad. She helps him process his emotions in a safe way. Excellent story that makes the bleeding eyes worthwhile.
The story, though... The mom in the story must have been through an amazing parenting class. This could be straight out of a Karyn Purvis/Empowered to Connect conference. She lets her kid be human. She doesn't launch into a lecture. She connects with and feeds her child, and his bad day is no longer bad. She helps him process his emotions in a safe way. Excellent story that makes the bleeding eyes worthwhile.
December 26, 2018
Filled with some of the strangest looking people I've seen in a while. The message about not bottling up anget is good, though I think it would be improved if the book indicated that the mom and her child were going to talk about what made the kid angry instead of just sublimating it into wacky kitchen time.
October 16, 2019
The pictures in this book are really great for young readers to connect because this are the types of colors and drawing they do. I love how the border kept t constant throughout the book and the positive message it gives children. At first I didn't understand the name of the book and why they were yelling at the pot until the very last page when I saw that the book tried to portray.
March 26, 2021
The story is about a boy named Horace who is having a bad day. When he goes back to his mother house he still is feeling moody. Until he does a mean soup where his mother and him do screamed and did silly faces on top of the pot. Both shake off a bad day by making “mean soup.” The voice I heard was Horace, Horace’s mom, and the narrator.
May 31, 2024
I'm not into books where people justify bad behavior when they are mad. And I don't buy into the philosophy that yelling at inanimate objects makes you feel better. In fact, some studies prove the opposite. With so many other great books for children on how to manage anger, I think I'd skip this one and turn to one of those.
June 19, 2024
Copyright date: 1992
Star rating: 3
Award: N/A
Genre: picture book
Summary w/ themes: This book is about a boy who has had a bad day and is feeling mean, so his mom helps him to calm down as they make mean soup. This book has a theme of family.
Use for future classroom:This would be a book for my bookshelf
Thoughts of book: I thought this book was okay, nothing really stood out to me
Star rating: 3
Award: N/A
Genre: picture book
Summary w/ themes: This book is about a boy who has had a bad day and is feeling mean, so his mom helps him to calm down as they make mean soup. This book has a theme of family.
Use for future classroom:This would be a book for my bookshelf
Thoughts of book: I thought this book was okay, nothing really stood out to me
December 4, 2017
Genre: contemporary realistic
Reading Level: lower elementary
Horace had a bad day at school and his mom is there to save the day. This is a cute story and can teach children that even if they have a bad day, they will get through I️t. I will have this book on my shelf!
Reading Level: lower elementary
Horace had a bad day at school and his mom is there to save the day. This is a cute story and can teach children that even if they have a bad day, they will get through I️t. I will have this book on my shelf!
February 26, 2019
This book is about how a little boy named Horace has a bad day and comes home felling mean. I really this story because I think it show children that sometime it not good to keep in there emotions and that it okay to let them out. I however didn't really the illustrations in the book.
October 16, 2019
This book was a real representation of how small things can really affect a kids day. I think it taught a really heartwarming lesson in a healthy way to release your anger and make a bad day into a good one.
October 8, 2018
The vocabulary in this book makes it great for emergent readers. The themes of emotion and anger in this book make it a great tool for discussing emotions and how to react when we get upset.
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January 12, 2020I know the idea for this story probably comes from a real-life experience, but I'm not sure letting a young child bang on a boiling pot of water is the wisest idea.
October 15, 2021
I was initially not too sure about this book. It makes one hesitate a bit. But if you just hang on, you'll see!
November 24, 2021
I wasn’t a fan of the illustrations or story much but it would be good to explain how to express your emotions to a young child
December 22, 2021
Wow dang this is amazing. What a terrifically weird book.
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