Jack and the Beanstalk

This story lends itself well to Steven Kellogg's illustrative style! I like it, but it's not my favorite Kellogg book. ( )

Join young Jack as he climbs a giant beanstalk to a magic castle in the clouds. Meet a hen that lays golden eggs and a harp that sings by itself, and don't forget the ogre. A classic fairy tale with a that will leave you chanting "Fee-fi-fo-fum!"

Lots of different versions of this story out there, but Kellogg's is my favorite. His storytelling is superb, and the giant and his wife are suitably grotesque. ( )

Steven Kellogg, reteller of "Jack and the Beanstalk" is widely known for his illustrations. Therefore, I think his version is a positive influence on children because his illustrations are breathtaking! They are full of detail and color which really catches the readers' eye. His illustrations the main focus of the story. Reading a piece of traditional literature with wonderful illustrations allows readers to fully understand the text, especially when older words are used that are unfamiliar to young readers. For example, "...his father, a gallant knight, whom had been slain by the giant...". The words such as gallant, and slain are most likely unfamiliar to the young reader so having the detailed illustrated scenes available allows readers to better understand the text.

This folktale is extremely popular, as it is a traditional story. This story is great to provide in the classroom because it offers tradition, and excitement. Many students will have probably heard this story before but it would be neat for international students to read the American version of the story. This author's story particularly offers great pictures therefore, this version would be very beneficial to have in any classroom.

Jack and the Beanstalk is a classic fairy tale that begins once upon a time and ends with a happily ever after. In the story, a poor young boy infuriates his widowed mother when he exchanges their cow for some "magical" beans.In anger, the mother tosses the beans out of the window and by morning the beans had grown into a big beanstalk that reached the sky. After climbing up the beanstalk Jack meets a great big tall woman and her husband, the ogre. On this trip, he manages to steal a bag of gold. On two subsequent trips, he steals a hen that laid golden eggs, and a magical golden harp. He narrowly escaped from the ogre when he chopped down the beanstalk, and the ogre fell and broke his crown.

I like to use this book as a read aloud to introduce the genre of fantasy. It can be used to show that although fantasies are known to have elements that could not possibly happen in real life, they also have some realistic fiction. Fantasies often involve magic and are humorous. Also, the illustrations in this book are engaging and capture the imagination. ( )