The man who cooked for himself

The Man Who Cooked For Himself Written by: Phyllis Krasilovsky Illustrations by: Mamoru Funai
Just what is cooking in the man’s house in the forest with no wife, no children and a hungry cat? That’s the big question on everyone’s mind when they read this short, cute, and realistic book about a man whose laziness leads him to find great passion. The man in our story is middle aged and won’t leave his house in the forest for anything; he’d rather sit around and be lazy. When his friend who brings him all his goods from the civilized world leaves for a summer trip the man is left to fend for himself. He actually ends up running out of food and having to fish, pick berries, and gather apples from a nearby forest tree. As he does he discovers that he has a passion for gardening as well as cooking and in the end plants a glorious garden to feed both him, his cat, and his friend!
This book is short, cute, and has a good theme. The theme in this book shows children the rewards of their hard work. The man whom spent a hard summer planting his garden would be rewarded with fresh vegetables everyday and feel good about himself in the process. This could help a child to do things that they didn’t think they could do and encourage them to not give up when they think they’ve done all they can to solve a problem; seeing this when the man is out of food and has to solve the issue right away on the account of his growling tummy. Not only that but the book also showcases a healthy life style which could bring a lot of children back to reality who have been eating large amounts of fast food and candy. The book has colored cartoon drawing that define and develop the characters of the story; the man being lazy in the beginning and turning hard working in the end, the friend being loyal, and the man’s’ cat being a good friend at all times even if he has to suffer from hunger with his master. I would have this book on my browsing shelf in my classroom and encourage children to read it during silent reading or possibly read it during a read aloud to encourage students to a healthy life style. We could start growing tomatoes artificially in our class as a project.