Amazon.com: Giants!: Stories from Around the World (9780152008833): Paul Robert Walker, James Bernardin: Books

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1995

Encompassing folk traditions ranging from Europe to the Middle East, Africa, Hawaii, and the Pacific Northwest, a collection of seven folktales about giants includes ""The Giant Who Had No Heart"" and ""Kana and the Stretching Wonder,"" among others.

#outer_postBodyPS { display: none; } #psGradient { display: none; } #psPlaceHolder { display: none; } #psExpand { display: none; } Encompassing folk traditions ranging from Europe to the Middle East, Africa, Hawaii, and the Pacific Northwest, a collection of seven folktales about giants includes ""The Giant Who Had No Heart"" and ""Kana and the Stretching Wonder,"" among others.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 6?Seven stories from around the world. "David and Goliath," "Jack and the Beanstalk," and "The Cyclops" from Homer's Odyssey are here, but with significant changes from the familiar versions. For example, in "David and Goliath," the narrative is more developed than the biblical narrative, with more motivation. Even Jack's story, based on its first published version, makes more sense?the giant stole the riches from Jack's father in the first place. Of greater significance is the remainder of the tales, from South Africa, the Pacific Northwest, Hawaii, and Norway. These giants are unknown to many readers and therefore their behavior is less predictable, their functions more varied. Usually, it is the human reaction to the giant in any Western fairy tale that is the real focus. Not necessarily so here, where there may be no people at all, or where the giant may simply be a mutant human. At the end of each selection Walker notes its genesis and reasons for any changes he made. The range of behaviors, the lively narration, as well as the unobtrusive scholarly references make this a satisfying collection. The painterly illustrations, one full-color vignette per story, with a few line drawings interspersed, are as realistic as they can be, given their subjects. The creatures' gaping, gross features are bold and terrifying, and the perspectives are dizzying.?Ruth K. MacDonald, Bay Path College, Longmeadow, MA
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 3^-6, younger for reading aloud. In this companion to Big Men, Big Country: A Collection of American Tall Tales (1993), Walker presents seven classic giant stories. His choices, both familiar ("Jack and the Beanstalk," "The Cyclops," and "David and Goliath" ) and lesser-known ("Kana the Stretching Wonder," "Coyote and the Giant Sisters," "The Cannibal's Wonderful Bird," and "The Giant Who Had No Heart" ) hail from Europe, Africa, North America, the Middle East, and the Pacific. Walker has researched the better-known variants of each tale; his own retellings represent composites of several versions. Each story is appended with source notes that will be of interest to children as well as adults, and a bibliography of original editions. James Bernardin's gouache paintings and pencil drawings make for elegant bookmaking, although the stories will be just as successful presented orally. A solid choice for family reading or as a resource for storytellers. Kay Weisman

More About the Author

› Visit Amazon's Paul Robert Walker Page

Paul Robert Walker has written more than twenty-five books on subjects ranging from the American West and the Italian Renaissance to folklore, baseball, and miracles. His newest adult publication is The Feud That Sparked the Renaissance, the story of four great artists who forged a new art in Quattrocento Florence (William Morrow 2002; pbk 2003). Kirkus Review called the book, "A convincing account of one of the defining moments in art and history," while Library Journal judged that "using an estimable cache of documentary materials...Walker makes a fine circumstantial case for an artistic feud." Alan Prince, former travel editor of the Miami Herald, wrote enthusiastically in BookPage, "His newest work is sure to bring such sheer pleasure to people interested in history, architecture and art that many of them will regard the book itself as a work of art."

Other recent adult titles include The Southwest, which explores 11,000 years of human history amid the rugged landscapes of the American Southwest, Trail of the Wild West, a reexamination of the American frontier, and "Rivers to the Pacific," a photo-illustrated essay for Exploring the Great Rivers of North America (National Geographic 2001, 1997, & 1999).

Walker's newest books for young adult readers are three volumes in the award-winning National Geographic "Remember" series, which documents key events in American history through eyewitness accounts and archival images. Walker's contributions to the series include Remember Little Rock (2009), Remember the Alamo (2007), and Remember Little Bighorn (2006). Remember Little Rock and Remember Little Bighorn both received coveted starred reviews in School Library Journal, while Remember the Alamo received the 2007 June Franklin Naylor Award from the Daughters of the Republic of Texas for the best book for children and young adults on Texas history. Walker's middle-grade and young adult books also have been honored by the American Library Association, the National Council for the Social Studies, the Children's Book Council, the American Folklore Society, and Storytelling World.

Born in Oak Park, Illinois, Walker studied acting at Boston University School of Fine Arts and graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa in Anglo-American literature from Occidental College. He is a member of the Authors Guild, American Mensa, and the NAACP. A former teacher, journalist, and rock musician, Walker lives in Escondido, California.

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