Jack - Review
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.
-from the book jacket
This a sequel to Rump, a retelling of the story of Rumplestiltskin. And by combining and retelling Jack & the Beanstalk and Jack the Giant Killer, Shurtliff does it again. Jack is a bored troublemaker who lives on a farm. When giants come out of the sky and take his whole village, including his dad, Jack finds a way to go after them and try to find him. How can this be a sequel you say, with none of the same characters we saw in Rump? I'm glad you asked. Funny thing is, when Jack gets to the giant kingdom, we realize that Jack is in the world of Rump, in King Barf's kingdom. It is an ingenious way to tie the books together.
Another great fairytale retelling. The story is fun and moves quickly. There are some very funny moments and a few surprises. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and I'm looking forward to her next book which will be a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood.
Recommended to:
Grades 3 - 5 through to adults. Anyone who likes fairy tales really. It's a very fun book.
