John Henry: An American Legend (Paperback)

by Ezra Jack Keats (Author) "As he grew up, he did a man's work with his father..." (more)
Key Phrases: John Henry, L'il Bill

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Collage art and folk literature combine seamlessly in this work by the Newbery Medalist. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"The heroic figure of John Henry is captured in a simple rhythmic picture book. Dramatic pictures with large bold figures express the feeling of this tall tale."--(starred) School Library Journal. -- Review

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Dragonfly Books (May 12, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394890523
• ISBN-13: 978-0394890524
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 7.7 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #226,676 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars John Henry is a classic man vs. machine folktale., January 19, 1998

By A Customer

I originally read this book when I was a boy and I remember how hauntingly beautiful I found the story. John Henry is still one of my favorite heroes and I collect everthing I can find on him. The book has burned itself into my soul!
I have no idea where my original book is, but when I recieved a new copy as a present I was a wash with memories. It's a very cool folktale and I can't wait to read it to my kids someday, like my mom did for me.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Illustrations and Words, April 19, 2000

By	Jessica Kruczynski (Clemson,South Carolina) - See all my reviews

Jessica Kruczynski English 385.04 Dr. Michelle H. Martin March 29, 2000

Keats, Ezra. John Henry: An American Legend. Toronto, Canada: Random House, Inc, 1965.

John Henry, written and illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats, tells the story of a fictitious American legend. Through the powerful illustrations, Keats portrays John Henry as a heroic man with much importance in society. Keats uses bold colors throughout the story, which help stimulate the reader's emotions. John Henry's importance is first revealed in the opening of the story. Unusual, marbalized paper illustrations accompany the words that tell of the night noises welcoming John Henry into the world. Even as a newborn child, he is the focus of the story, taking up an entire page in the book. When John Henry realizes his own strength, he makes the decision to leave his family and go out into the world. The illustration during this part of the story shows that a change is because of the bright colors and the image of waves rolling into the next page. When a storm strikes, John Henry's first act of bravery comes into play. Black and grey colors give a feeling that things are not quite right. The storm nearly causes a ship to sink, but John Henry is able to gain respect and admiration from others by bringing their ship to safety. John Henry, who was born with a hammer in his hand, feels called to go help build railroads. The illustration of him helping with the railroad tracks is much different thtn the other illustrations because John Henry is not the center of attention. Perhaps the reason for this is because helping build the railroad with a hammer in his hand is where John Henry belongs. Henry's next opportunity to be the hero occurrs when a lit fuse burns closely to dynamite in a cave, causing a very dangerous situation. Trying to put out the fuse, John Henry first trips and falls, but recovers by putting out the flame with his hammer. In this illustration, the hammer takes up and entire page! This shows that the hammer and John Henry are of equal importance; without his hammer, he is only an ordianry man. After proving himself to be a hero, John Henry develops a feeling of much confidence in himself. When told about an extremely powerful steam drill, John Henry states that he is more powerful and can drill more holes faster than six men combined. The illustrations of Henry's "race" with the machine are very effective in portraying motion. The hammer appears to be moving so fast that it becomes almost a blur. The pictures show how tired John Henry is becoming, and eventhough the steam drill is ahead of him at one point, he continues to work harder and faster. With much determination, John Henry picks up another hammer so that he can get twice as much done. In this illustration, John Henry and the two hammers take up two pages. Keats uses a bright orange color to offset Henry and the hammers. The bright color gives a feeling of excitement and makes the reader feel confident that John Henry can beat the steam machine. Througout John Henry's battle with the machine, people watch with admiration. John Henry continued to hammer, even after the steam machine collapsed. His goal was to break through the tunnel and when light began to shine through, everyone saw that his goal was reached. With hard work and determination, John Henry once again proved himself to be a hero. He died while walking out of the tunnel, carrying not one, but two hammers.

4.0 out of 5 stars John Henry, Steel Driving Man, October 19, 2005

By	A. Zerbach (Phoenix, AZ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This was a good story. It added some life to the charachter that I was trying to portray to my students.