Story Giant

by Brian Patten

A large-format, colour edition of this magical novel which weaves together over fifty world tales -- of immense appeal to both adults and children. One day a story fell from heaven and landed on a giant's tongue... ' The Story Giant is a master illusionist and the ur-storyteller. In his memory exists every tale ever told in the world -- except for one, which has eluded him for millennia. In a last desperate attempt to track down this lost tale, he draws four children from the different corners of the globe into his castle while they sleep, there to exchange the tales they know from their own cultures, to see if between them they can piece together the elusive missing story. For if he cannot track it down and install it in his memory, the whole facade of the castle will crumble and fall, and the Story Giant himself will die. And if he does, so will all the stories, and the world will be a poorer, duller, grimmer place. Fifty tales are told within this magical framework in Brian Patten's inimitable style -- from Bruh Rabbit to the tale of how St George killed the Dragon (except it wasn't St George -- it was his mother, with a pudding... ) but none of them are the missing tale. The ca

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Childrens, Death

222 pages, Hardcover

First published November 5, 2001

Reviews

[Raquel Pilar · Rating 5 out of 5]

"All things perish if they are left unnourished: stories without retelling, humans without love".

"I don't think there's ever just one point or meaning to any story... Just as there is no right way or wrong way to interpret them."

In a hidden castle, there lives a giant. The Story Giant. He collects all the stories from the world since the very beginning of human race. He knows all of them, but one. And because of that the giant is dying and with him, the stories.
When 4 kids go to sleep and 'wake up' in their dreams, they are in the Story Giant's castle, ready to help him survive by sharing the stories they know.
This book is treasure, full of knowledge, of possible reflections!
Filled with stories from the world, I was fascinated by both the tales shared by the characters and the main story, making me anxious about the giant.
Chris Riddell's illustrations, as always, make each page a delight! ❤

[Busy Mummy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful book full of tales, fables, myths and legends from around the world. A collection that is a keepsake for any KS2 class. Teachers can promote short discussions from any of these short stories when in need of a quick time filler. However, some stories I did prefer compared to others. One of my favourites was ‘The man who followed his dream’.

[Ken Priebe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stumbled upon this book un-expectedly at a used book shop in Vancouver, drawn to the wonderful pen & ink illustrations and concept behind the story. All at once a fantastic collection of folk tales from all around the world, drawn together by a story of four children and a giant who collects all stories, except for one which eludes him. The ending will surprise, unsettle and delight you.

[Adrian Buck · Rating 4 out of 5]

probably too dark for my 9yo

[Jhon Del Pino · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buen libro, una gran colección de historias que te hacen ver y pensar sobre varios aspectos de la vida, actitudes generales y sobre todo nos hace reflexionar sobre lo bueno y lo malo.

[Pablo S. Martín · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sin duda alguna, este es un libro completo.
¿A qué me refiero? Bueno, principalmente, a que el libro puede ser apreciado por cualquier tipo de lector de cualquier rango etario y seguramente de cualquier cultura.
Para todos tiene algo que decir, para todos resuena ya que las historias aquí reunidas son universales, y la sátira, mordaz por momentos, lúgubre en otros, e incluso realmente oscura en algunas partes, hace del libro un viaje entre todo lo que compete a la humanidad como solo pocos lo han hecho.

Sin duda alguna, puedo decir que, solo un poeta de gran conocimiento en el arte y que ha indagado profundamente en los orígenes de la poesía misma pudo escribir algo así.
Todos los humores están aquí: alegría, miedo, pasión, amor, rechazo, envidia, egoísmo, etc.
Y en cada una de las pequeñas narraciones, se encuentra el conocimiento humano acumulado tras generaciones y generaciones.

Es un libro que, desde mucho ante de conocer su existencia, soñé con leer. Así como soñé con las Mil y Una Noches antes de saber siquiera que existía, de igual forma me sucedió con este pequeño libro. Que, incluso, me atrevo a decir, puede incluso a superar en magnitud a lo logrado en el mencionado libro, y en otros de similar estatura y contenido como Los Cuentos de Canterbury, El manuscrito hallado en Zaragoza, o incluso la Sagrada Biblia.
Lo único que puedo criticar es que el final fue cantado, es decir, muy predecible, para mí.

Gracias, Brian Patten, por este libro tan bello.

[Kitty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this as a child, and reread it because I lent it to a friend ages ago and she only just gave it back, which reminded me how good it was. It's just as good as I remember, the stories are amazing and the ending very fitting.

[Saraí Estacio · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will always hold a special place in my heart.

[Alastair Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Made a personal connection like few others, great collection of stories with morals, laughter and tears.

[Aïda · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully-written book. Such warm memories, it brings.

[TCC · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mi memoria borró por completo este libro 🫠

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a lovely book having lots of stories within a stories. It also shows how important it is to keep telling stories and how we come across all these different stories. The stories within it quite often have a moral or a message behind. I found this book gripping to see what happens to the story giant and what stories the children from all over the world had to tell.

[Lucy_k_p · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of short stories joined together by an over-arching narrative. The stories were from all over the world, often retold in engaging and interesting ways. Some old favourites and some I'd never seen before. The short stories were entertaining and engaging. Some were funny, some scary and most made you think.
The frame plot was interesting, but I worked out the solution well before the end and I was left wondering why those familiar with stories hadn't worked it out before. It also verged on being too preachy, and didn't flow as well as the short stories it contained. It felt slightly awkward.
The description of the giant's castle was very detailed and made it easy to visualise. Both sight and sound were used.
I liked the characters of the children, and I appreciated that they came from all parts of the world and all walks of life. But we didn't find enough out about their personal stories. Except for Hasan these seemed incomplete.
Very enjoyable, the frame story wasn't bad, but the short stories contained in it are the real gems.
The illustrations were detailed, attractive and slightly caricature-ish. They really added to the atmosphere and my enjoyment. The pictures of the main characters were especially helpful is getting me to visualise them.

[Seth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this aloud to my 8 year old. We got just over half way through before it was due at the library with no renewals. The Story Giant is a mythical creature who catalogues and archives stories from all over the world, across all cultures and through all times. But there is one story he hasn't been able to find, and so he is slowly wasting away into oblivion. On his last night alive, the Story Giant draws a group of children into a mutually shared dream in his magically hidden castle somewhere in England, and they tell stories through the night. There is very little plot here--the premise with the giant and the kids is basically a setup for the author to retell a bunch of folk stories from different cultures, with an original own thrown in occasionally. Since we had to return it, I skipped ahead and read the ending (I NEVER do this, for the record). The "missing story" the giant dies without ever finding is the one where a group of children meet in the giant's castle to tell stories all night long.... In the end, the kids retell their own experience with the Story Giant and thus bring him back to life.

There are a handful of interesting stories in the mix that my son enjoyed. It was worth a partial read, but wasn't particularly memorable.

[Andrea Hickman Walker · Rating 3 out of 5]

This I picked up at an Exclusive Books sale, because it looked like great fun. I was right. This is a lovely book for children, particularly for reading to younger children. It's well illustrated and filled with various tales from around the world.

I really don't know what to say about this, beyond: buy it and read it to your children or grandchildren, nephews or nieces or cousins. It's a wonderful book.

[Rebekah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the packaging story. Though at times it did seem a little forced, I found the book more interesting as a whole to have the short stories - which were from a wide variety of origins and cultures - tied together in that way. A good read, with nothing too heavy.

[Joel Tone · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a stitched-together collection of short stories. It was cute but I think it would have been better as a straight up anthology.

[Rosemary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting selection of short stories woven together quite well via an overarching narrative.

[Luis Rojas]

I read this as a kid, and I liked it.

[Rosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best way to read a lot of different stories with a lot of learning, and crying at the end!!

[Adrian · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely story and brilliant collection of tales from around the world

[oliwia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I JUST LOVE THIS SO MUCH