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Clever Beatrice
Clever Beatrice: An Upper Peninsula Conte
What happens when a very little girl makes a bet with a very LARGE giant?
"Good afternoon, Mister Giant, Sir. I have come to make a bet with you."
"Good afternoon, Mister Giant, Sir. I have come to make a bet with you."
Can a very little girl beat a very large giant in feats of strength? That's what clever Beatrice bets on when she marches through the north woods to the home of the giant, hoping to win some of his gold to help her mother buy porridge. The giant heartily agrees to a contest, never imagining the wisp of a girl could out-muscle him. But what he hasn't counted on is how clever Beatrice is...and that brains beat brawn every time.
This tall tale from Michigan's upper peninsula is told in delicious dialect, and introduces a heroine who's as irrepressible as Eloise.
40 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2001
About the author
Margaret Willey
19 books18 followersI am the author of 9 Young Adult novels, 6 picture books & more on the way in both genres. I have also published reviews, essays and poetry. My best known books are the CLEVER BEATRICE picture books, for which I received many awards and prizes, including the CCBC Charlotte Zolotow award for best writing in a picture book. Recently, I was given the Gwen Frostic Award by the Michigan Reading Association for my contributions to literacy in my home state of Michigan. I have two grown children and live in Grand Haven with my husband Richard Joanisse.
I am the author of FOUR SECRETS,a book about the aftermath of a school bullying incident with graphic novel-inspired illustrations by Bill Hauser.
I am currently promoting my new title with Carolrhoda Lab, BEETLE BOY, about a different kind of bullying, the parental kind, and one boy's long journey out of childhood to escape it. Kirkus called the book "Disturbing and riveting" in a starred review. Starred review Publishers Weekly. Cited as a book of week for Sept 1 from PW.
I am the author of FOUR SECRETS,a book about the aftermath of a school bullying incident with graphic novel-inspired illustrations by Bill Hauser.
I am currently promoting my new title with Carolrhoda Lab, BEETLE BOY, about a different kind of bullying, the parental kind, and one boy's long journey out of childhood to escape it. Kirkus called the book "Disturbing and riveting" in a starred review. Starred review Publishers Weekly. Cited as a book of week for Sept 1 from PW.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
January 1, 2015
The subtitle of this picture book identifies this story as “an Upper Peninsula
conte
”[emphasis mine]. A “conte” is defined as “a short tale of adventure” and sometimes as a “medieval” or “fanciful tale”. Well,
Clever Beatrice
certainly isn’t medieval, but it is set over a hundred years back in time, when Michigan’s forested northernmost peninsula was still being settled and tamed by people of European extraction, mostly Finns, Swedes, Irish, and French Canadians. To the north of this strip of land is Lake Superior; on its east is the St. Mary’s River, and to the south are Lake Michigan, the Straits of Mackinac, and Lake Huron.
In the author’s note that prefaces her book, Margaret Willey notes that French Canadians were attracted to Michigan in the 1800s by a lumber boom, and that they regaled the men of the lumber camps and iron mines with their “contes,” tales of wild exaggeration, comic detail, and rhyming dialect. The author writes that Clever Beatrice is an amalgam of several stories about voyageurs, the boatmen employed by companies involved in Canada’s fur trade. The twist is that it’s got a whip-smart girl as its heroine
Beatrice, who is known for her ability to “think fast on her feet” lives with her mother in impoverished circumstances. When she learns that food is running out, she resolves that she’ll get the money that’s needed to buy food. But there are really only two ways to do so: work with the lumberjacks, cutting down trees, or challenge the rich giant who lives on the other side of the woods. He can’t resist gambling on his own strength, but he’s known to be none too sharp. “When you’re a rich giant,” Beatrice’s mother tells her, “you don’t have to be smart.”
The next day, Beatrice walks deep into the woods, deeper than she’s ever been before, encountering lumberjacks felling a mighty tree just before she reaches the giant’s house. She rouses him from his nap in the late afternoon sun and directly challenges him to a contest. “Who can strike a harder blow?” she’d like to know. She proposes that they strike the giant’s front door, “a door as big as a boat, made of long planks of pine.” The huge man is initially amused, but less so when she points to a nearby tree, which she says she knocked over, knowing he’d need the wood for a new front door.
As it turns out, Beatrice doesn’t need to strike a thing. Her suggestion about what she can do is quite enough for her to win ten gold coins from the giant. He doesn’t want a new front door!
He then proposes a second challenge: Who can carry the most water from the well to the house? The giant fills and carries a dozen buckets, but when Beatrice prepares to lasso the well itself, planning to pull the whole darned thing to the house, the giant is alarmed: Where will he get his water in the future? He’d rather relent and cough up the coins than have his well relocated.
A final challenge involves throwing a heavy iron bar. When it’s Beatrice’s turn to throw, another of her ideas frightens the highly suggestible giant. She shouts to his brothers miles away in Sault Ste. Marie (and in every other direction) to mind their heads; an iron bar is on the way. The giant does not want trouble with his brothers.
And so, in no time at all, Beatrice’s foreknowledge of the big man’s stupidity and her perceptiveness about what makes him tick—fearfulness and a desire to preserve what he’s got—earn her a fortune: thirty gold coins. When she leaves, he’s relieved to still have his well and a house with a door.
Willey’s telling is lively with dialogue and detail. Heather M. Solomon’s attractive art complements and amplifies the tale. She is particularly good at emphasizing the size difference between the two main characters: Beatrice, with her walnut-sized fist, and the giant, with two mighty arms that can hold hold six buckets each.
Possessing the flavour of both French Canada and the northern-Michigan woods, this is a terrific picture book that would make for a great read-aloud.
In the author’s note that prefaces her book, Margaret Willey notes that French Canadians were attracted to Michigan in the 1800s by a lumber boom, and that they regaled the men of the lumber camps and iron mines with their “contes,” tales of wild exaggeration, comic detail, and rhyming dialect. The author writes that Clever Beatrice is an amalgam of several stories about voyageurs, the boatmen employed by companies involved in Canada’s fur trade. The twist is that it’s got a whip-smart girl as its heroine
Beatrice, who is known for her ability to “think fast on her feet” lives with her mother in impoverished circumstances. When she learns that food is running out, she resolves that she’ll get the money that’s needed to buy food. But there are really only two ways to do so: work with the lumberjacks, cutting down trees, or challenge the rich giant who lives on the other side of the woods. He can’t resist gambling on his own strength, but he’s known to be none too sharp. “When you’re a rich giant,” Beatrice’s mother tells her, “you don’t have to be smart.”
The next day, Beatrice walks deep into the woods, deeper than she’s ever been before, encountering lumberjacks felling a mighty tree just before she reaches the giant’s house. She rouses him from his nap in the late afternoon sun and directly challenges him to a contest. “Who can strike a harder blow?” she’d like to know. She proposes that they strike the giant’s front door, “a door as big as a boat, made of long planks of pine.” The huge man is initially amused, but less so when she points to a nearby tree, which she says she knocked over, knowing he’d need the wood for a new front door.
As it turns out, Beatrice doesn’t need to strike a thing. Her suggestion about what she can do is quite enough for her to win ten gold coins from the giant. He doesn’t want a new front door!
He then proposes a second challenge: Who can carry the most water from the well to the house? The giant fills and carries a dozen buckets, but when Beatrice prepares to lasso the well itself, planning to pull the whole darned thing to the house, the giant is alarmed: Where will he get his water in the future? He’d rather relent and cough up the coins than have his well relocated.
A final challenge involves throwing a heavy iron bar. When it’s Beatrice’s turn to throw, another of her ideas frightens the highly suggestible giant. She shouts to his brothers miles away in Sault Ste. Marie (and in every other direction) to mind their heads; an iron bar is on the way. The giant does not want trouble with his brothers.
And so, in no time at all, Beatrice’s foreknowledge of the big man’s stupidity and her perceptiveness about what makes him tick—fearfulness and a desire to preserve what he’s got—earn her a fortune: thirty gold coins. When she leaves, he’s relieved to still have his well and a house with a door.
Willey’s telling is lively with dialogue and detail. Heather M. Solomon’s attractive art complements and amplifies the tale. She is particularly good at emphasizing the size difference between the two main characters: Beatrice, with her walnut-sized fist, and the giant, with two mighty arms that can hold hold six buckets each.
Possessing the flavour of both French Canada and the northern-Michigan woods, this is a terrific picture book that would make for a great read-aloud.
December 8, 2018
An engaging folktale adaptation from the French Canadian tradition of northern Michigan, Clever Beatrice follows its eponymous heroine as she outwits a local giant, and wins a fortune for herself and her mother.
Tales of clever girls are not uncommon, but Willey's introductory note seems to indicate that the original tale featured a young boy. However that may be, this was an entertaining story, with clever, sharp illustrations from Heather M. Solomon. Beatrice's face is particularly expressive. Thank you, Constance, for recommending this to me!
Tales of clever girls are not uncommon, but Willey's introductory note seems to indicate that the original tale featured a young boy. However that may be, this was an entertaining story, with clever, sharp illustrations from Heather M. Solomon. Beatrice's face is particularly expressive. Thank you, Constance, for recommending this to me!
February 6, 2010
Approximate Interest Level/Reading Level: Early Elementary
Format: Picture Book
Awards: ALA Notable Books for Children (2002), Charlotte Zolotow Award (2002), Horn Book Fanfare (2002)
In this “Upper Peninsula Conte,” a young heroine outsmarts a giant, conning him out of his fortune, in a quintessential brains vs. brawn tale. The author’s note on the opening pages offers an introduction into the history and traditions relating to the story, noting her choice to make the protagonist a “clever, persistent girl,” rather than a more traditional young male figure. The illustrations, which are a combination of painting and collage, are absolutely beautiful. The photographs and paint intermix seamlessly, creating these wonderful earthy images. Great book for a read-aloud.
Format: Picture Book
Awards: ALA Notable Books for Children (2002), Charlotte Zolotow Award (2002), Horn Book Fanfare (2002)
In this “Upper Peninsula Conte,” a young heroine outsmarts a giant, conning him out of his fortune, in a quintessential brains vs. brawn tale. The author’s note on the opening pages offers an introduction into the history and traditions relating to the story, noting her choice to make the protagonist a “clever, persistent girl,” rather than a more traditional young male figure. The illustrations, which are a combination of painting and collage, are absolutely beautiful. The photographs and paint intermix seamlessly, creating these wonderful earthy images. Great book for a read-aloud.
March 21, 2021
This story is inspired by folklore from Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and is very clever and entertaining. The structure is perfect, and even though the illustrations aren't my style, they suit the story. The key difference from the original sources of inspiration is that this author chose a girl main character, but the story is a winner even aside from that element of audience appeal, just because the way that Beatrice outsmarts the giant is so inherently amusing and inventive.
August 17, 2008
A lovely picture book illustrated by my friend Matt's talented sister Heather.
January 13, 2026
This story is a folk literature and is a great book I would definitely read for a 3rd or 4th grade classroom. This story is about a young girl named Beatrice who is very intelligent. She knows her family is not rich and wants to help her mom get some money. She ends up making bets with a giant and tricks him every time into forfeiting the bet so he would have to pay her money and she would not break his things. She ends up winning a fortune through these bets and takes it back to her mother, hoping she would be proud of her. I would use this book in a fourth-grade classroom.
I think this book is great for predicting and identifying character traits. I also feel like this book is very engaging to children. It is funny and very fast-paced, and it would hold children’s attention. In a fourth-grade classroom, we could talk about folk literature and have multiple examples, including this one. Then, students could write their own short folk story by doing some research. Although, I would probably do this at the end of the year for something fun.
I would give this book a 4/5. This is a great, empowering story, but the vocabulary and sentence structure might be challenging if you read it for a younger crowd. It's a great book to build comprehension skills, but it could require some extra support for kids who are still developing their reading abilities.
I think this book is great for predicting and identifying character traits. I also feel like this book is very engaging to children. It is funny and very fast-paced, and it would hold children’s attention. In a fourth-grade classroom, we could talk about folk literature and have multiple examples, including this one. Then, students could write their own short folk story by doing some research. Although, I would probably do this at the end of the year for something fun.
I would give this book a 4/5. This is a great, empowering story, but the vocabulary and sentence structure might be challenging if you read it for a younger crowd. It's a great book to build comprehension skills, but it could require some extra support for kids who are still developing their reading abilities.
November 5, 2020
When Beatrice and her mom were running out of food she made three bets with a giant to earn money. This story has a great moral message of how important it is to work smarter and not harder. Even though the giant had more physical strength than Beatrice, she was more clever than him. This is a great message that will resonate with many young children, especially girls. I would recommend this story to students in first and second grade.
May 25, 2018
"When you are a rich giant, you do not have to be smart." Yep. So true.
Cute story about a girl who uses her brain to outsmart the extremely dense giant. Nothing revolutionary, but I did like it, and the illustrations went very well with the story.
Cute story about a girl who uses her brain to outsmart the extremely dense giant. Nothing revolutionary, but I did like it, and the illustrations went very well with the story.
January 14, 2019
Super cute. So seldom do you get trickster type characters who aren't jerks. Beatrice is very tricky, and really not a jerk.
July 8, 2019
Classic story of brains overcoming adversity. Beatrice uses her wits outsmart the wealthy giant. Funny and inspiring.
September 29, 2020
Clever Beatrice outwits the giant of his gold coins.
November 12, 2022
Clever? More like con artist. I really didn’t enjoy the protagonist being heralded for running a scam. It’s not the lesson I want to teach my daughter. Why not a moral about honesty and hard work?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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March 1, 2016Title: Clever Beatrice
Author: Margaret Willey
Illustrator: (Heather Solomon)
Genre: European Folktale
Theme(s): Family, Cleverness
Opening line/sentence: Sure, she was little, but Beatrice loved riddles and tricks and she could think fast on her feet.
Brief Book Summary: Beatrice and her mother have run out of money to buy food. Beatrice, being the clever girl she is, heads out to challenge a giant to gamble on feats of strength. On three different occasions Beatrice outwits the giant and earns money for wining the feat of strength. After the third challenge the giant relents and Beatrice heads home with newfound riches to her mother.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1: Nancy (BookHive (www.bookhive.org))
Is it possible for a tiny girl to trick a brawny giant out of his wealth? Beatrice and her mother are so poor they have slowly eaten their last bowl of porridge. So in her red dress, spunky Beatrice heads for the north woods in search of the giant. Using her cleverness and wit, she attempts to win the giant's gold with three humorous bets. The unusual illustrations composed of collage, watercolor, acrylic, and oils creates a textured surface of this tall tale from Michigan's upper pennisula. A humorous battle between brains and brawn will have readers laughing and wishing for one more trick. Category: Folklore; NCCBA. Grade Level: Primary (K-3rd grade). 2001, Atheneum. Ages 5 to 9.
(PUBLISHER: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (New York:), PUBLISHED: 2001.)
Professional Recommendation/Review #2: Gillian Engberg
(Booklist, Jul. 1, 2001 (Vol. 97, No. 21))
In this Northwoods tall tale, a sassy, intelligent child uses her wits to defeat a wealthy giant. Little Beatrice is smart, but her family is poor and they have just run out of food. Her mother tells her there are only two ways to make money in the region where they live: lumbering and wagering with the "rich giant who likes to gamble on his own strength." Beatrice sets off, and through lies and the power of suggestion, she convinces the giant of her superior strength and returns home with a bag of gold. The ending is weak, but the story is spiced with a singsong dialect and sparkles with the brash, good-humored improbability of the genre. It's the illustrations that are really unusual. Intriguing paint-and-paper collages show Beatrice's swagger and shining eyes, the sympathetic giant's oafish bumbling, and the richly textured, wooded landscape. This lively, beautifully illustrated book is a good choice for story hours. An author's note explains more about Canadian contes--the story's form. Category: Books for the Young--Nonfiction. 2001, Simon & Schuster/Atheneum, $16. Ages 4-8.
(PUBLISHER: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (New York:), PUBLISHED: 2001.)
Response to Two Professional Reviews: I really enjoyed this story. The pictures were beautifully done and the overall story was humorous and quite enjoyable. I think this would be a great book for young students and I agree with the two reviews above.
Evaluation of Literary Elements: I think by far my favorite literary element contained within this book was the tone. Just as Beatrice contains a playful "witty-ness" throughout the story so do the words that depict her adventure. I enjoyed how the author took the aspects of Beatrice herself and worked them into the fabric of the writing of the story.
Consideration of Instructional Application: This book focuses on this idea of solving riddles/problems. I think it would be a great introduction to some form of mathematical word problems. Relate it to the students by taking the idea of a certain challenge/task that Beatrice was faced with and conjoin it to the idea of a clever math word problem.
Author: Margaret Willey
Illustrator: (Heather Solomon)
Genre: European Folktale
Theme(s): Family, Cleverness
Opening line/sentence: Sure, she was little, but Beatrice loved riddles and tricks and she could think fast on her feet.
Brief Book Summary: Beatrice and her mother have run out of money to buy food. Beatrice, being the clever girl she is, heads out to challenge a giant to gamble on feats of strength. On three different occasions Beatrice outwits the giant and earns money for wining the feat of strength. After the third challenge the giant relents and Beatrice heads home with newfound riches to her mother.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1: Nancy (BookHive (www.bookhive.org))
Is it possible for a tiny girl to trick a brawny giant out of his wealth? Beatrice and her mother are so poor they have slowly eaten their last bowl of porridge. So in her red dress, spunky Beatrice heads for the north woods in search of the giant. Using her cleverness and wit, she attempts to win the giant's gold with three humorous bets. The unusual illustrations composed of collage, watercolor, acrylic, and oils creates a textured surface of this tall tale from Michigan's upper pennisula. A humorous battle between brains and brawn will have readers laughing and wishing for one more trick. Category: Folklore; NCCBA. Grade Level: Primary (K-3rd grade). 2001, Atheneum. Ages 5 to 9.
(PUBLISHER: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (New York:), PUBLISHED: 2001.)
Professional Recommendation/Review #2: Gillian Engberg
(Booklist, Jul. 1, 2001 (Vol. 97, No. 21))
In this Northwoods tall tale, a sassy, intelligent child uses her wits to defeat a wealthy giant. Little Beatrice is smart, but her family is poor and they have just run out of food. Her mother tells her there are only two ways to make money in the region where they live: lumbering and wagering with the "rich giant who likes to gamble on his own strength." Beatrice sets off, and through lies and the power of suggestion, she convinces the giant of her superior strength and returns home with a bag of gold. The ending is weak, but the story is spiced with a singsong dialect and sparkles with the brash, good-humored improbability of the genre. It's the illustrations that are really unusual. Intriguing paint-and-paper collages show Beatrice's swagger and shining eyes, the sympathetic giant's oafish bumbling, and the richly textured, wooded landscape. This lively, beautifully illustrated book is a good choice for story hours. An author's note explains more about Canadian contes--the story's form. Category: Books for the Young--Nonfiction. 2001, Simon & Schuster/Atheneum, $16. Ages 4-8.
(PUBLISHER: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (New York:), PUBLISHED: 2001.)
Response to Two Professional Reviews: I really enjoyed this story. The pictures were beautifully done and the overall story was humorous and quite enjoyable. I think this would be a great book for young students and I agree with the two reviews above.
Evaluation of Literary Elements: I think by far my favorite literary element contained within this book was the tone. Just as Beatrice contains a playful "witty-ness" throughout the story so do the words that depict her adventure. I enjoyed how the author took the aspects of Beatrice herself and worked them into the fabric of the writing of the story.
Consideration of Instructional Application: This book focuses on this idea of solving riddles/problems. I think it would be a great introduction to some form of mathematical word problems. Relate it to the students by taking the idea of a certain challenge/task that Beatrice was faced with and conjoin it to the idea of a clever math word problem.
Read
September 15, 2016Title: Clever Beatrice
Author: Margret Wiley
Illustrator: Heather Solomon
Type of Book (format and literary genre): Picture Book/ Fiction
Awards the book has received (national): Charlotte Zolotow Award
Short original summary of the main plot, describe the content and themes of the book: There was a little girl who lived in the woods with her mom. They were very poor and could no longer afford food. But there were only two ways to make money in her village: cutting down trees with the lumber jacks or the rich giant who lived on the hill. The girl was too little to cut down trees so she decided to try her luck with the giant. The girl went up to the giant and made a bet with him. If he lost he had to give her money. The little girl was very clever and managed to trick the giant out of all of his money.
Critique the book backed by one reason: The book does not have a very clear moral or lesson to teach children like most other books of it’s style/type. The only lesson I see in the story is to trick others for your gain which is not a lesson anyone wants to teach their children. Never did the story say the giant was bad and deserved to loose all his money.
Prompts or questions you could pose when reading the book aloud to children:
1. Discuss the meaning of the word clever.
2. How else could you have outsmarted the giant?
3. Retell the ways Beatrice tricks the giant.
Craft elements of the book that could be addressed in a reading or writing lesson: This story would be really good for a read aloud with the younger grades. You can have the children predict what will happen next and discuss the ways in which Beatrice tricks the giant. Tall tales are always good stories for read alouds with children.
Author: Margret Wiley
Illustrator: Heather Solomon
Type of Book (format and literary genre): Picture Book/ Fiction
Awards the book has received (national): Charlotte Zolotow Award
Short original summary of the main plot, describe the content and themes of the book: There was a little girl who lived in the woods with her mom. They were very poor and could no longer afford food. But there were only two ways to make money in her village: cutting down trees with the lumber jacks or the rich giant who lived on the hill. The girl was too little to cut down trees so she decided to try her luck with the giant. The girl went up to the giant and made a bet with him. If he lost he had to give her money. The little girl was very clever and managed to trick the giant out of all of his money.
Critique the book backed by one reason: The book does not have a very clear moral or lesson to teach children like most other books of it’s style/type. The only lesson I see in the story is to trick others for your gain which is not a lesson anyone wants to teach their children. Never did the story say the giant was bad and deserved to loose all his money.
Prompts or questions you could pose when reading the book aloud to children:
1. Discuss the meaning of the word clever.
2. How else could you have outsmarted the giant?
3. Retell the ways Beatrice tricks the giant.
Craft elements of the book that could be addressed in a reading or writing lesson: This story would be really good for a read aloud with the younger grades. You can have the children predict what will happen next and discuss the ways in which Beatrice tricks the giant. Tall tales are always good stories for read alouds with children.
October 15, 2011
Genre: Folklore
Awards: 2002 Charlotte Zolotow Award
Age Group: Nursery - Primary
Summary: After hearing that her family had eaten the last of their food, clever Beatrice comes up with a way to make some money. She challenges a giant to several physical challenges that the giant obviously believes he is capable of winning. Each time, Beatrice finds a way to outwit the giant without even having to engage in physical activity. In the end, Beatrice comes home with a large pouch of silver coins and a great sense of satisfaction.
Evaluation: I gave this book five stars because I loved the idea that a young girl was smart enough to outwit a giant on numerous occasions. It left me with a real sense of girl power. The artwork combined impressionistic and realistic styles. The characters were painted in an impressionistic style but small elements like flowers and wood were very realistic and detailed. The artist used a very muted color palate with the exception of the color red, most vibrant in the dress Beatrice wears. Even the endpages are decorates with a map of the Northern United States where Beatrice and the giant reside. The quality of the artwork in this book greatly enhances the storyline.
This book is an example of a fairy tale and meets the criteria of having mythical creatures (the giant) and a simple plot where intelligence and good prevail. Even small children will enjoy this story because there are no scary plot elements.
Awards: 2002 Charlotte Zolotow Award
Age Group: Nursery - Primary
Summary: After hearing that her family had eaten the last of their food, clever Beatrice comes up with a way to make some money. She challenges a giant to several physical challenges that the giant obviously believes he is capable of winning. Each time, Beatrice finds a way to outwit the giant without even having to engage in physical activity. In the end, Beatrice comes home with a large pouch of silver coins and a great sense of satisfaction.
Evaluation: I gave this book five stars because I loved the idea that a young girl was smart enough to outwit a giant on numerous occasions. It left me with a real sense of girl power. The artwork combined impressionistic and realistic styles. The characters were painted in an impressionistic style but small elements like flowers and wood were very realistic and detailed. The artist used a very muted color palate with the exception of the color red, most vibrant in the dress Beatrice wears. Even the endpages are decorates with a map of the Northern United States where Beatrice and the giant reside. The quality of the artwork in this book greatly enhances the storyline.
This book is an example of a fairy tale and meets the criteria of having mythical creatures (the giant) and a simple plot where intelligence and good prevail. Even small children will enjoy this story because there are no scary plot elements.
September 9, 2011
This is a cute folklore book for primary readers. It’s been awarded the Horn Book Fanfare in 2002. It’s a cute story about a little girl who tricks a giant, thereby having brains win over brawn. I think children would love it because it reminds them that they don’t need to be the biggest or the strongest, sometimes being the smartest is the best thing to be. The one drawback I have with it is the simple fact that I feel like I’ve read it before, when I know I haven’t. It didn’t bore me, but it had a very expected plot. I can’t be too harsh with that because most of folklore has the same sort of theme running through it, smarts are more important than muscles, but in as clever as Beatrice was I don’t feel the book was that clever. It’s a good book and I enjoyed it, but it could become a yawn fest if used in a class room that’s already read a number of folklore.
June 17, 2009
loved this story & pictures. girl beats the giant with her wit. only thing i never figured out was how to say 'you' at the end of the phrase. i think its a northern accent kind of thing. love the pictures, fav line "when you are a rich giant, you do not have to be smart" maggie likes that' beatrice didnt care that the giant would get in trouble with his brothers, she just wanted to win the bet and the coins'."she bet three times against the strength of a giant and three times won". this is like a girls version of jack and the beanstalk.
June 5, 2010
Beatrice really is clever. And poor, of course (they're always poor, have you noticed?), at least, she is until she heads up to bet her strength against a giant.
Let's see... little girl... big giant - yeah, the giant thinks this is really funny too. Pity he's not as clever as she is. Through intelligence and plain old chutzpah, Beatrice convinces the giant three times that if she competes she's bound to destroy his property, so she wins her bets three times and goes home relatively wealthy. Not bad, not bad at all.
Let's see... little girl... big giant - yeah, the giant thinks this is really funny too. Pity he's not as clever as she is. Through intelligence and plain old chutzpah, Beatrice convinces the giant three times that if she competes she's bound to destroy his property, so she wins her bets three times and goes home relatively wealthy. Not bad, not bad at all.
July 7, 2010
This book is a winner of the Charlotte Zolotow Award. It is a very cute story about a little girl named Beatrice who outsmarts a giant. You've got to love a story where a little girl is the "hero". I love the illustrations. I think that this book could be used in combination with teaching map skills as it is set in the Northern Country of the USA and refers to the Giants brothers to the North, South, East, and West. The book may also be useful in teaching story prediction skills....(How will Beatrice outwit the Giant this time?)
May 21, 2012
This is a "conte", or tall tale from Michigan. The book tells us that these tend to have rhythmic repetition, and over-exaggeration. In this story a little girl outsmarts a giant (just a really tall man not a monster) three times is increasingly hilarious and unbelievable ways. She wins enough gold to help her family survive. This book would be good for any child past toddler age and could be told with or without the picture book. I was partial to the gorgeous, colorful illustrations, though.
December 23, 2013
Like Paul Bunyon stories, this is a good read aloud for Michigan students. Beatrice, a small girl in the Great Lakes area turns the table on tall tales. She uses her wit and outsmarts a rich giant in order to get his gold. This book is more understandable to young children if they are given a short map lesson on some of the areas around the Great Lakes including Michigan's upper peninsula and Wisconsin. It's a funny read and works well to illustrate that tall tales don't always require physical strength - mental strength can also be important.
February 1, 2014
After Beatrice's mother feeds her the last of the porridge in their home, Beatrice decides it's time to go out into the north woods and get some money. Her mother warns her that there are only two ways for little girls to earn money up there: as a lumberjack, or to gamble against a giant who lives on the other side of the woods. Clever Beatrice decides to take her chances with the giant. Good thing he's a chucklehead, because she tricks that big ol' guy out of all his gold. Clever Beatrice, indeed.
This will be part of my 2nd grade unit of multicultural folk tales.
This will be part of my 2nd grade unit of multicultural folk tales.
March 18, 2014
"Clever Beatrice" by Margaret Willey is a cute and fun to read folktale. The story is of a young girl who takes on a giant in a bet so that she can help her mother feed her family. Using her wit and cleverness, Beverly outsmarts the giant in a test of strength. I love that the protagonist is a girl, giving the story a great girl power feel. I would use this in the classroom as a read aloud to introduce folklore or to invoke discussion of how one can overcome their size/circumstances.
April 18, 2016
Classic tale of outsmarting a big strong giant of a person. I love that the main character is a girl, I love her spunk, I love the excuses she uses to trick the giant.
I wish the liner notes told us what kind of art this is, because I am not always great with knowing that, and I really like the art by this first time children's book illustrator. The saturation of colors and the shapes were really nice.
I wish the liner notes told us what kind of art this is, because I am not always great with knowing that, and I really like the art by this first time children's book illustrator. The saturation of colors and the shapes were really nice.
June 4, 2010
This is a fun folktale that demonstrates that brains can win out over brawn. The little girl, Beatrice, is precocious and tricks the giant out of his precious gold coins. Our girls enjoyed watching the story on the Tumblebooks website. (tumblebooks.com) We've also borrowed this book from the library - our girls really enjoy hearing this story.
December 4, 2010
This is an Upper Peninsula conte which were tall tales told in Canada full of exaggeration and rhyming dialect. This conte is about a clever little girl that tricks a rich giant out of his money in order to get money for her poor mom after they have run out of food. This is a cute story to use while teaching folktales/folklore in the classroom.
February 22, 2012
This was recommended to me by a friend who thought my daughter would like it because her name is the same. If she did, she didn't mention that.... but I think she did like the story. She was prepared to be scared because giants freak her out, but this giant wasn't really scary -- just a good old fashioned story.
March 19, 2013
This book started off with a sexist comment. The mother told her little girl that she could not be a lumberjack because that was a mans work. So the little girl instead turned to gambling for cold coins with a giant. I don't like the message that the book portrays to young children but I did like the little girls imagination in the story.
October 14, 2008
I liked the story of the girl who cleverly tricked the giant into giving her gold. I loved the illustrations. It was a marvel to find all the enchanting details in the pictures. I found the artwork stunning.
March 17, 2009
This book gets five stars because it is set in my home state, Michigan, and because the illustrations (by a BYU graduate) are unique and beautiful. When you get on the level of a clever little girl competing with a strong, but not so smart giant it's a fun story!
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