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The Tale of Meshka the Kvetch
A woman who spends all her time complaining soon finds her complaints coming true.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 1980
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37 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
October 11, 2012
Cute, funny Yiddish story about Meshka, the woman who couldn't open her mouth without complaining. One day she contracts "the Kvetch's Itch," which makes everything she says come true. When she complains that her son is as useless as a bump on a kosher pickle, he turns into a pickle. When she moans that her feet feel like ten-pound melons, they turn into ten-pound melons. Finally the rabbi tells her that, though she can never be cured, if she can say positive things for the rest of her life she'll be able to live in peace.
(With my own kids, I would make the point that this doesn't mean you should never talk about things that bother you. But there's a difference between venting occasionally, or expressing hurt or frustration, and always looking at the negative side of things the way Meshka does.)
(With my own kids, I would make the point that this doesn't mean you should never talk about things that bother you. But there's a difference between venting occasionally, or expressing hurt or frustration, and always looking at the negative side of things the way Meshka does.)
September 17, 2019
A delightful tale that teaches how an attitude of complaint creates misery and an attitude of gratitude fosters joy.
August 29, 2015
As a gentile reading this book, it is hard not to feel like you are stereotyping, but the book has a good message, and teaches you a few Jewish terms in the process. It is told in a clear and visually captivating way, with quite a bit of humor. (Love the pickle and the melons!)
March 22, 2018
A short Yiddish story about how it is always better to talk about how things are good instead of complaining all of the time.
January 16, 2021
I always love a picture book of shetl life, but I honestly felt like part of the message of this book is that a man is telling a woman to stop complaining and accept things she really really really doesn't like about her life. :(
September 5, 2024
It is an older book but one needed by many. It is a lesson in finding the good things in life every day! If you don't know it, find this one at your library! By Carol Chapman and illustrated by Arnold Lobel, one to savor!
January 31, 2018
I love this book! It's so fun to do Meshka's voice and it has a wonderful message of being grateful for what you have.
August 16, 2018
Can't believe this old book is new to me. Great life lesson.
Want to read
September 1, 2019CURRICULUM: RR/Classics
January 24, 2021
What a great book
April 20, 2022
I want to give this book for my mom.
April 13, 2024
Don't be a kvetch!
June 6, 2019
One day all of Meshka's exaggerated complaints unexpectedly come true.
Based on the Yiddish folktale, this is the story of Meshka who is the village kvetch. All she does from morning till night is complain. The house that her deceased husband built is too small. Her daughter is too busy with her own family to pay Meshka as much attention as she feels she deserves. Her son is a lazy layabout (although as an adult male still living at home with his mother who appears to be unemployed, she may be on to something here). Her feet hurt, and her back aches.
Then one day her tongue itches in a strange itch, and her every exaggerated complaint literally comes true. Luckily, the local rabbi comes to her rescue, explaining how she must express the positives in everything about which she kvetched in order to reverse the situation.
The clear and obvious moral is not to complain and to be grateful for what one has. It's the classic message to count your blessings because you don't know what you've got till it's gone. Only after Meshka loses everything about which she kvetches does she realize how good she really had it.
The story also illustrates the only thing you can control is your reaction principle. At the very end of the story, when Meshka is forced to voice only the good in her life in order to avoid the consequences of "the kvetch's itch" with which she has been struck, she actually becomes a happier person, demonstrating how shifting one's point of view and changing one's behavior can actually alter how one feels. (This is the basis of cognitive-behavioral therapy.) Focusing on the negative can make one more depressed while focusing on the positive can make one feel happier, so it's important to attempt to reign in one's thoughts if they become excessively negative. This can help one avoid sliding into a funk.
The illustrations are great. Their folksy style complements the story. My favorite is the son as a giant dill pickle.
Based on the Yiddish folktale, this is the story of Meshka who is the village kvetch. All she does from morning till night is complain. The house that her deceased husband built is too small. Her daughter is too busy with her own family to pay Meshka as much attention as she feels she deserves. Her son is a lazy layabout (although as an adult male still living at home with his mother who appears to be unemployed, she may be on to something here). Her feet hurt, and her back aches.
Then one day her tongue itches in a strange itch, and her every exaggerated complaint literally comes true. Luckily, the local rabbi comes to her rescue, explaining how she must express the positives in everything about which she kvetched in order to reverse the situation.
The clear and obvious moral is not to complain and to be grateful for what one has. It's the classic message to count your blessings because you don't know what you've got till it's gone. Only after Meshka loses everything about which she kvetches does she realize how good she really had it.
The story also illustrates the only thing you can control is your reaction principle. At the very end of the story, when Meshka is forced to voice only the good in her life in order to avoid the consequences of "the kvetch's itch" with which she has been struck, she actually becomes a happier person, demonstrating how shifting one's point of view and changing one's behavior can actually alter how one feels. (This is the basis of cognitive-behavioral therapy.) Focusing on the negative can make one more depressed while focusing on the positive can make one feel happier, so it's important to attempt to reign in one's thoughts if they become excessively negative. This can help one avoid sliding into a funk.
The illustrations are great. Their folksy style complements the story. My favorite is the son as a giant dill pickle.
September 8, 2014
4.5 stars
I can't believe I haven't added this book yet. We first discovered it at a public library in Houston, Texas back in the 1980's and immediately fell in love with this story. Back in the day I made this into a flannel board story and re-told it in K-6 library story times.
"Kvetch" is the Yiddish word for complainer and that's what Meshka (the protagonist) does - complain, "from morning until night, nothing was right!" Fun story with a great little message for people of all ages.
The book is out of print now but I found two hardback books (old library discards) and bought them for my daughters for Christmas and they were both delighted to have their own personal copies!
I can't believe I haven't added this book yet. We first discovered it at a public library in Houston, Texas back in the 1980's and immediately fell in love with this story. Back in the day I made this into a flannel board story and re-told it in K-6 library story times.
"Kvetch" is the Yiddish word for complainer and that's what Meshka (the protagonist) does - complain, "from morning until night, nothing was right!" Fun story with a great little message for people of all ages.
The book is out of print now but I found two hardback books (old library discards) and bought them for my daughters for Christmas and they were both delighted to have their own personal copies!
July 3, 2019
This is a fantastic picture book for kids of any religious faith. It is an old, traditional Jewish tale about a woman who kvetches (complains) too much, but the message easily translates to modern times. The story highlights Jewish traditions and lifestyle, rather than Jewish religion, so anyone of any faith can relate. My six year old, who whines a bit more than she should, reflected on her own behavior after we read the book. It's a good read-aloud picture book (not too wordy) with dynamic illustrations. I highly recommend.
February 26, 2017
I love this story even more now than I did when I was a child! The Tale of Meshka the Kvetch is a simple, easy to understand story that, with both words and wonderful, at times humorous, illustrations, offers to readers an important lesson on how we create our own realities-- how the things that we believe to be true about our lives, are. Everyone should have a copy of this book!
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews