The Generous Fish

by Jacqueline Jules, Frances Tyrrell (Illustrations)

Inspired by Jewish folklore, The Generous Fish is the story of a young boy named Reuven who takes a verse from scripture to “cast your bread upon the waters” (Ecclesiastes 11:1) quite literally. The result of his daily act is a giant talking fish with golden scales! Boy and fish spend idyllic days together until the villagers realize those scales are real gold. Every villager has good reason to ask for one. Devorah needs clothes for her children. Old Joseph needs money for a cane. The fish says he has plenty to share. But he grows weak from giving away too much, too fast. Can Reuven stand up to the village and save his friend? Through a unique friendship between a boy and a magic fish, award-winning author Jacqueline Jules has created an environmental fable sure to generate discussion in the classroom and at home. What happens when we want something that depletes another's resources? Frances Tyrrell's finely detailed illustrations delightfully capture a child's innocent love for the natural world. An author's note provides biblical sources on human interaction with the environment.

Genres: Picture Books

40 pages, Hardcover

First published January 7, 2020

About the author

I am a children's author, teacher, librarian, and poet. My books include the Zapato Power series, the Sofia Martinez series, Pluto is Peeved, Unite or Die: How Thirteen States Became a Nation, Duck for Turkey Day, Never Say a Mean Word Again, and Feathers for Peacock. Please visit me at http://www.jacquelinejules.com

Reviews

[robin friedman]

Cast Your Bread Upon The Waters

Ecclesiastes 11:1 says "Cast your bread upon the waters, for you shall find it after many days." These Scriptural words become the inspiration for "The Generous Fish" a book for children between 4 and 8 years of age, that teaches the importance of generosity, of protecting the environment, and of not demanding too much of others. Jacqueline Jules, the author of over 40 children's books wrote this tale based on two Jewish stories and Frances Tyrell did the lovely watercolor illustrations.

The story is set in a little Hasidic village by the sea. A father about to go on a long journey teaches his son, Reuven, the value of generosity and kindness using the Ecclesiastes text. Reuven begins sharing his daily bread with a small fish. Soon the fish, Nissim, becomes large and strong. Nissim, a talking fish, befriends Reuven, and the two romp and play in the waters every day. When it is discovered that Nissim's scales are made of gold, each of the villagers naturally want Reuven to pluck them off. Nissim is only too happy to comply. But soon he becomes weak and dispirited and nearly dies. Reuven courageously stands up for his friend and, with the assistance of the town rabbi, gradually is able to nurse Nissim back to health.

The story is simply and poignantly told with lovely illustrations of the golden fish, of the East European townspeople and their clothing, and of the sea.

Children and their adult readers will enjoy this tale and find much to discuss about generosity and about not overburdening nature and one another. When the villagers at last realize the error of their ways, the rabbi tells Reuven, "you reminded us", "all creatures are important".

Wisdom Tales Press publishes children's books from religious and spiritual traditions around the world. It has published two earlier books by Jacqueline Jules, "Feathers for Peacock" and the award-winning "Never Say a Mean Word Again". I am always inspired when I have the opportunity to read Wisdom Tales children's stories. Wisdom Tales kindly sent me a review copy of this book.

Robin Friedman

[Vera Godley]

A sweet story told as a fable that teaches more than one lesson. Firstly, it is simply a sweetly told story. Secondly, it teaches sharing with others, it can also teach an environmental lesson of caring for our world and life in it. Lastly, it teaches that we can be too demanding of those willing to share with us.

The illustrations are soft pastels and quite artistically lovely. They bring a sweetness to this gentle story that enables the reader and listener to experience the joy of the story as well as understanding the need of the lessons.

While inspired by scripture, “Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.” it is not meant to be a literal Bible lesson. The story begins with a boy's father sharing this scripture with him and the boy actually does cast bread upon the waters (feeds the fish).

A lovely book and one I can easily recommend.

I received a complimentary copy to facilitate a review of my own opinions which are freely given.

[Jackie]

What a great story! Loved the pictures and the colors as well as the beautiful story. I love finding books like this to read to my son. Be kind to others!

[Andrea Northam]

An emotional and timely read. Author Jacqueline Jules combines two Biblical tales to create this story about the importance of environmental stewardship. A boy's father tells him to "cast bread into the water" and so he begins feeding fish with bread. The fish then grows into a beautiful gold-scaled fish. When the boy hugs the fish too hard, one of his scales falls off--IT IS MADE OF REAL GOLD! Soon all the villagers want some of the scales for themselves, and the generous fish obliges because he can regrow scales. But before long, the villagers are taking the scales faster than the fish can regenerate, and the boy must intervene before it is too late. Will he be able to save the fish?
This book was so excellent and will go a long way in teaching children empathy and the importance of protecting the environment and conserving resources. Definitely I highly recommend!

[Tracey Kyle]

THE GENEROUS FISH was inspired by Jewish folklore, and tells the story of a young boy who meets a talking fish with scales of real gold. While the obvious theme is care for the environment, the story could also be used to generate conversations about friendship, generosity, tenacity and kindness. The illustrations are delicate and blend perfectly with the tone of the text, which is poetic and soothing.

[Jessica]

Loved it. A boy is friends with a fish. The boy's family is poor. The fish has gold scales and gives the boy one. The village finds out about the fish with the scales and takes advantage of the fish. A wonderful ending, great lesson! I loved the pictures of the fish.

[Aolund]

A beautiful story about generosity and sustainability drawn from Jewish folklore.

Themes: Generosity, Sustainability, Ocean, Fish, Sharing
Age range: Kindergarten-Early Elementary