Paul Robert Walker

Jacket illustration by James Bernardin

Contents


• Jack and the Beanstalk (England)
• Kana the Stretching Wonder (Hawaii)
• The Giant Who Had No Heart (Norway)
• The Cyclops (Ancient Greece)
• The Cannibal's Wonderful Bird (South Africa)
• Coyote and the Giant Sisters (Pacific Northwest)
• David and Goliath (Ancient Israel)

Other Books in the Walker-Bernardin Folklore Series


GIANTS! Stories from Around the World

Illustrated by James Bernardin
Harcourt Brace • 1995 • OSI

ISBN 0-15-200883-7 • 80 pages • Ages 8-12

American Bookseller Pick of the Lists
• American Folklore Society AESOP Accolade List
• California Collection, 1997 & 2000

These well-told stories will please just about everyone: The large format works for story hours, the selection hits some multicultural notes, the interesting variations and source notes aid researchers.
—Kirkus Reviews

A solid choice for family reading or as a resource for storytellers.
—Booklist

There's a grandeur and purity in the writing that transports you right out of regular life and onto another plane—gigantic no doubt.
—San Diego Union-Tribune

Long ago, in the time before time, a race of giants walked upon the earth. Then, not quite so long ago, a new race appeared—the human race—and the two races struggled for control of the world. Or so it was told in myths and folklore from the Pacific Northwest to the Middle East, from Scandinavia to South Africa.

Drawing from a wide variety of sources, Paul Robert Walker has researched and retold some of the best tales of giants. From foolish Jack who climbs the beanstalk and retunrs a wiser boy, to gallant David who slays Goliath, to kindhearted Boots who saves his brothers from a giant's curse, the stories are peopled with human beings who outwit the giant through cunning and bravery. There are stories, too, of an earlier time before people—of the great hero Kana who stretches to the Hawaiian sky, and crafty Coyote who frees the fish from the five giant sisters, preparing the way for the human race.

James Bernardin's imaginative and exuberant illustrations capture the power and wonder of Giants!, a collection of stories perfect for reading aloud.

Selected Works

*Narrative Nonfiction
THE FEUD THAT SPARKED THE RENAISSANCE: How Brunelleschi and Ghiberti Changed the Art World
The story of two brilliant artists whose lifelong conflict jumpstarted the Renaissance in Quattrocento Florence.
American History / Photography
REMEMBER LITTLE ROCK: The Time, the People, the Stories
The 1957 desegregation crisis at Little Rock Central High School, told through eyewitness accounts and contemporary photographs.
REMEMBER THE ALAMO: Texians, Tejanos, and Mexicans Tell Their Stories
The story of the battle in the context of the Texas Revolution, told through eyewitness accounts and powerful historical images. Ages 10 and up.
REMEMBER LITTLE BIGHORN: Indians, Soldiers, and Scouts Tell Their Stories
The compelling story of the battle told though eyewitness accounts and striking historical images. Ages 10 and up.
TRUE TALES OF THE WILD WEST
Ten true stories of the American western experience written in an appealing narrative style. Ages 10-14.
THE SOUTHWEST: Gold, God, & Grandeur
Eleven thousand years of human history among the sun-baked deserts, canyons, rivers, and mountains of what is now the American Southwest.
Biography
PRIDE OF PUERTO RICO The Life of Roberto Clemente
The inspiring story of a Hall of Famer who rose from poverty in Puerto Rico to set new standards of excellence and integrity on and off the field. Ages 8-12.
Educational Publishing
AMERICAN FOLKTALES series
Five folktale collections representing five regions of the United States

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