A Bean, a Stalk, and a Boy Named Jack

A Bean, a Stalk, and a Boy Named Jack

by William Joyce

Illustrated by Kenny Callicutt

Genre: Picture book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Synopsis: Here's Jack, a smallish boy.

Here's a smallish bean, last one outta the pod.

Here's a smallish giant kit with a great big problem.

But with a smallish wave of a wand and a lotta courage, maybe this pair can make a GIANT difference...Let's give it a go!

from the book jacket

Review:  It's hard to call this book based on Jack and the Beanstalk because nothing in the story is the same except for the fact that there is a boy named Jack and he plants a bean that makes a giant beanstalk.  That's about it in similarity.  They do introduce Jack to Jill at the end of the book and it turned into the nursery rhyme.  This was just a fun, quirky book full of humorous language.  I love that the author made up some words like math-ing, used the word soooo, used phrases such as "no great shakes" and that the illustrator added some fun language to his pictures too.  It's really hard to describe but it's fun and cute!  This book was written to be read aloud.  Now the one thing I didn't particularly like was the use of non standard words like atcha, lotta, outta, etc.  Since those aren't real words, I have a hard time with them being used in print.  Overall, this was a really fun read that my kids enjoyed.

Rating: 4 stars