Editorial Content for Jack: The True Story of Jack and the Beanstalk
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Jack lives with his mother, father and little sister, Annabella, in a small, poor village. Jack finds it very boring to work in his father’s fields all day, and dreams of becoming a giant slayer, just like his great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather, Jack.
The giants live Above, in the sky, and the regular people live Below. It’s been a long time since the giants have come Below, but when strange things start happening in the village --- buildings are damaged and some people, including Jack’s father, completely disappear --- people think the giants may be back. Jack is determined to find a way to go after the giants, live out his dreams and bring his father back.
Shurtliff does a great job of putting a “new twist on an old tale.”
Author Liesl Shurtliff combines elements of two old tales, Jack and the Beanstalk and Jack the Giant Slayer, to bring us this “true” story of Jack and the beanstalk. In this version, Jack does climb a giant beanstalk into the sky, but the events leading up to his climb and what comes after are different than what you would expect. For instance, Annabella goes up the beanstalk looking for Jack.
This is a truly delightful story, one that is well-written and easy to read. Shurtliff does a great job of putting a “new twist on an old tale.” I’m sure you will enjoy it as much as I did.
Teaser
All work and no play makes Jack extremely bored. And when Jack gets bored, he makes mischief. It’s not that he’s bad; he just longs for adventure. One day, adventure finally arrives in the form of giants, and soon Jack is chasing them to a land beyond the clouds, with his little sister, Annabella, in tow. But Jack and Annabella are on a mission. The king of the giants has taken something that belongs to them, and they’ll do anything to get it back.
Promo
All work and no play makes Jack extremely bored. And when Jack gets bored, he makes mischief. It’s not that he’s bad; he just longs for adventure. One day, adventure finally arrives in the form of giants, and soon Jack is chasing them to a land beyond the clouds, with his little sister, Annabella, in tow. But Jack and Annabella are on a mission. The king of the giants has taken something that belongs to them, and they’ll do anything to get it back.
About the Book
Fans of Adam Gidwitz and Chris Colfer will give a giant cheer for this funny fairytale retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk!
All work and no play makes Jack extremely bored. And when Jack gets bored, he makes mischief. It’s not that he’s bad; he just longs for adventure --- and there’s nothing adventurous about toiling day and night to grow yucky green stuff.
Adventure finally arrives one day in the form of giants, and soon Jack is chasing them to a land beyond the clouds, with his little sister, Annabella, in tow. The kingdom of giants is full of slugs the size of sheep, venomous pixies as tall as grown men, and a chatty cook with the biggest mouth Jack has ever seen. There’s giant fun to be had, too: puddings to swim in, spoons to use as catapults, monster toads to carry off pesky little sisters...
But Jack and Annabella are on a mission. The king of the giants has taken something that belongs to them, and they’ll do anything --- even dive into a smelly tureen of green bean soup --- to get it back.
