A Jar of Pickles and a Pinch of Justice

This volume of four short stories is subtitled Stories from India and continues the exploits of Prince Veera and his friend Suku, begun in A Dollop of Ghee and a Pot of Wisdom.  In the absence of the King, Prince Veera’s father, the two friends help to settle some of the problems his subjects bring to the court.  Each tale sees the boys thinking their way through various moral and ethical problems caused by greed, jealousy or anger to find a fair solution.  These Indian versions of trickster tales present a range of characters and dilemmas from a pickle-swapping thief, a wicked uncle and five fools to the problem of how to wash an elephant in a cooking pot.

This title forms part of Walker’s ‘Racing Reads’ series for newly confident readers with the text of each short story broken up by black and white illustrations.  The stories, combining Indian folklore, culture and storytelling with themes of problem-solving and fairness, should prove to be a useful classroom resource.