Davy Crockett

by Constance Rourke, Michael A. Lofaro (Introduction), Walter Seaton (Illustrator)

Blending myth and reality, Constance Rourke aimed to get at the heart of Davy Crockett, whose hold on the American imagination was firm even before he died at the Alamo. Davy Crockett , published in 1934, pioneered in showing the backwoodsman’s transformation into a folk hero. It remains a basic in the Crockett literature.

Genres: Biography, History, Childrens, Classics, Historical, Nonfiction, Juvenile

276 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1934

About the author

1885-1941

Reviews

[Mckinley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wasn't very engaging. A mix of biography with hunting, fighting (Indians and at the Alamo), tall-tales about the man. Didn't seem to be written for children.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rated PG.

This book was good, as biographies go, but I am really not in love with biographies. I learned lots and lots about Davy Crockett, though, so it fulfilled its purpose.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Pros: Thus book does an excellent job of distinguishing between narrative, tall tale, and documented fact. This is shockingly unusual in these early nonfiction books for children, so I was glad to see it here.

I'm sure all of the hunting and adventure stories were wonderful for boy readers in 1935.

The Cons: This 42-year-old woman in 2022 started skimming the hunting scenes and the tall tales. I found them boring.

Racism. The racism you would expect from a 1934 book about the settling of the frontier. That schizophrenic admission on one page that the United States was totally reneging on a treaty, then taking about how Crockett was heading forth into wild, untamed land that had no government at all until they started selling there on the next. The noble savage idea was constant, with Native Americans talked about in a childlike way while pretending to show them respect.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars. While this a biography, it's one of a man who has been mythologized. Crockett figures in many tall tales of the frontier; it's hard to tell which stories are fact, which are fiction, and which are both. He's a hero of the US's westward expansion, the ideal of manifest destiny, and an Indian fighter. Yet, in this book he is portrayed as a friend to the Indians - disagreeing with Jackson's proposal to move them off their ancestral lands (the Trail of Tears). He was also the epitome of the mountain man, who then and now was a caricature of an uncouth hillbilly. Rourke does a good job of relaying his story, but after awhile the tales and the truth became a blur. I read this for my 2018 Reading Challenge and my Newbery Challenge (Honor Book 1935).

[Shella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very solid biography. I was not expecting that with it being written in the 1930’s. Davy Crockett has an almost a mystic cloud around him. Despite this, the author did a very good job distinguishing between face and talk tales. The back of the book has many solid primary sources. While known as an “Indian Fighter”, I was impressed that he stood against popular opinion as a statesman and went against Jackson and the Trail of Tears. Crockett is the type of politician we need today.

[Landon Schofield · Rating 5 out of 5]

Davy Crockett is a great book that I really enjoyed reading. It is a biography that shows a very eventful like of a congressman. Davy also fought in wars and was believed to have been killed at the battle of the Alamo

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
this was a kids book about davy crockett so I just expected some fun (which it was) but the ending made me a lil sadder than I expected. dang.

[Michael J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book , well written , Davy Crockett is one of my heroes.

[Camden Watts · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first 3/4 is great but the last bit drags on.

[Desiree']

1935 Newbery honor book

[Thomas Bell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was pretty good for an old book. This is mostly a history of Davy Crockett, and I must say I learned a lot about him. There are a lot of Tall Tales thrown in, but the author is pretty clear about what is true, what is not, and what is likely the truth just stretched a bit. The author also does a good job after the book explaining her references, which I found impressive.

However, it just didn't grab me. Not a bad book, but just not for me really. I think some people could really enjoy this one.

There was one part though that I found quite racist. Some Black people came in, and when people started making animal noises, the Blacks started acting like animals. Didn't see where that fit into the story either. But other than that the author praised Davy Crockett's conviction to try to help the Natives keep what was theirs.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt the beginning of this book was more interesting than the middle and ending. If you're really interested in hunting, you would find this interesting, but I'm not that interested in hunting, so those parts were not that riveting for me. The life of Davy Crockett. I remembered with about two chapters to go that this was the guy who died at the Alamo, so that was a bummer ending.

[Natalie Reiter · Rating 3 out of 5]

This would be a good book for ages 12 and up. It is a biography with some novel-esque elements in it as well. I was happy to learn more about the iconic figure of Davy Crockett and read some good literature from 1934.

[Jill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decent; not awesome. Read it because it's a Newbery Honor. It did help fill in some of the gaping holes that exist in my knowledge of our country's past, so that's something.

[Scott Williams]

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