Story of Paul Bunyan, The

by Barbara Emberley, Ed Emberley (Illustrator)

Tells how Paul Bunyan, the mighty lumberjack, cleared the States of Iowa and Kansas, dug the Mississippi River, and performed other feats with his blue ox, Babe

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

Paperback

First published January 28, 1963

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looking at the cover, Neo wanted to learn a little more about Paul Bunyan. The story speaks a little more about this giant of a man, whose strength and focus made him the perfect logger. When he was not eating enormous meals, Bunyan was clearing the state of Iowa for the farmers or creating the mighty Mississippi to move logs down to New Orleans. But Paul Bunyan did not do it alone, as he had a trust ox, Bebe, whom he found in Canada. Neo was quite enthralled to learn about this man who seems to have helped create much American geography. Well-written and easy to comprehend, with great woodcuts that are sure to attract the eye of the reader and listening alike.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paul Bunyan, the giant who shaped our American landscape with the help of his big blue ox, babe, is as tall a tale as they come. According to legend, Paul Bunyan was a giant who lived and logged in the northern states of the US, dragging his axe to carve out the Mississippi River for his logs to float down and swinging that axe to clear the state of Iowa in one morning so the farmers could plant their corn.

Characteristic of traditional literature, the author speaks as though the story is being told aloud. Emberley says, "Paul was strong. And you won't forget it when I tell you that he could squeeze water out of a boulder, and drive stumps into the ground with his bare fists." Reading the book gives the feel of listening to stories told by men just returned from logging camp. The gross exaggeration of this man's size and strength is the epitome of a tall tale.

Teachers can use this book when discussing Minnesota History. The tall tales and legends are a significant piece of our past that give us clues to the thoughts, ideas, and way of life of the first settlers here. This book lends itself perfectly to a readers theater activity. Students will love to tell these tall tales and use exaggeration in such a fun way. As a follow up, students can draw a scene from the book to be displayed in the classroom. Students could also be given a creative writing assignment in which they create their own tall tale about the way some land formation came to be.

I did not find any information on reading level for this book, but I believe that young children would love to listen to the story and decide for themselves whether it is real or imagined and older students will also enjoy the tales and more sophisticated activities to go with it. I would incorporate it into my classroom at any grade, K-6.

[♥♣Mary♦♠ If She So Pleases · Rating 5 out of 5]

The American tall tales of Paul Bunyan.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was a bit disappointed in this as the only reason I bought it was that I thought it was a new interpretation of my pals Paul and Babe. I started reading it and thought it seemed a bit dated; which it is having been first published in 1961. Now, if I’d grown up with this edition of the story, I may have given it a “5” as the woodcut illustrations are so remarkable. Just wasn’t what I thought it was going to be.

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

We love Paul Bunyan tales and this one was especially unique and “folky” with cyan and brown woodcut art throughout.

This would make a fun read for a reluctant early reader due to the tall tale factor and some truly laugh out loud humor. Two thirds into what is obviously a bold-faced fable, the author inserts a caveat: but then you can’t believe *everything* you hear. 😉

As always, I’m looking for squeaky clean and well-written. 4 stars plus on both.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of how Paul Bunyan, the mightiest, the biggest, and the strongest of all the lumberjacks. This yarn tells of how he dug the Mississippi river, cleared Iowa, and Kansas of the trees for the farmers to plant corn, and wheat, and various other feats along with his Blue Ox Babe.

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great introduction to the tall tales. Woodcuts are lovely and very distinctive.

[Kaylynn Johnsen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The primitive art style woodcuts are made from Maine pine, that's cool.

[Lisa Engebretson · Rating 3 out of 5]

An iconic figure in Minnesota history, the tale of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox is told by Barbara Emberley and illustrated by her husband Ed Emberley through the use of pine woodcuts. This unique way of illustrating lends itself to the lumberjack legend of Paul Bunyan. The use of browns and blues draw the reader into the whimsical qualities of the illustrations as the story unfolds. Paul Bunyan's story tells of his life as a lumberjack using his size to aid his work with the tall tale of his digging a river one afternoon which is now called the Mississippi. Weighing in at 104 or 105 pounds at birth, Paul was a happy but restless baby who grew up loving to read. When one day a snowflake fell the blue snowflake turned an ox blue and melted to form what we now call the Great Lakes. Paul cared for Babe the blue ox and they became the best of friends clearing and logging lands for miles and miles. The legend in the book says that when the two finished their work they went deep in the woods to take a long rest and could still be resting to this day.

This is a great whimsically illustrated that young kids enjoy to learn about the tall tale of Paul Bunyan and Babe the blue ox. Students, especially those in Minnesota, can relate the legend of Paul Bunyan to stories they may have heard from their parents growing up. While being a tall tale, this book falls well into traditional literature through the portray of Paul Bunyan and his larger than life actions and demeanor. The ideas in the book go beyond the obvious as the author weaves the tall tale and the word choice instills images in the reader's mind of the size of the big blue ox, the enormity of Paul Bunyan as a baby and an adult, and descriptive actions of Paul's logging work. Using pine wood cuts, the illustrator provides a unique presentation to the story that engages children page after page. This book lends itself easily to social studies lessons about Minnesota history and legends, math and science courses to talk about whether or not size and actions within the story can be realistic or completely erroneous, and for reading and writing to increase oral language and fluency while having students create their own legend and tall tale.

[Zakiya Ray]

This is a classic folklore story about a giant logger-Paul Bunyan who reshapes the American landscape. He is strong and hard working. He clears forests for farmers in Kansas and Iowa. He digs out rivers such as the Mississippi river. He works hard and eats hard. One time he ate a "light" lunch of 19 pounds of sausage, 231 flapjacks, and 8 loaves of bread. He has a blue Ox named Babe to help him shape the landscape. What resonates with me is the differences of the workforce in the past and present. In the past, men labored away cutting down forests to make fields, using logs to create homes, using animals to help with work. Today we rely heavily on technology and machines to do much of our building. I would recommend this book to my studies. It is a great book that correlates to the history of this country. I could use the story to have discussions about American history and geography. There are many learning experiences students could draw from the story.

[Lindsey Kelly- · Rating 2 out of 5]

This version of the Paul Bunyan tale tells bout Paul Bunyan, the mighty lumberjack, who cleared the States of Iowa and Kansas, dug the Mississippi River, and performed other adventures with his blue ox, Babe. This book is an extremely funny and entertaining book, that children will not only love to read, but also learn new words that they may not understand. Mostly, this book is just meant for your pure enjoyment. I think that this book could only really be used for correcting and clarifying words that maybe unknown or difficult.

[T Crockett · Rating 3 out of 5]

The kids were very interested in the woodcut illustrations. We had fun discussing the differences between this version and others we've read + seen. Some of the expressions used in the rhymes were confusing to the younger kids (ages 5 + 7)

[Bob Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The beautiful woodcut prints by Ed Emberley make you feel that this famous legend could not be illustrated in any other way.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great illustrations! Not my favorite telling of the Paul Bunyan story...but still fun.

[Morgan Seifert]

Title: The Story of Paul Bunyan
Author: Barbara Emberley
Illustrator: Ed Emberley
Genre: Non-European Folktales
Theme(s): Fiction
Opening line/sentence: “When this country was young most of it was one great big forest stretching from Atlantic to the Pacific.”7
Brief Book Summary: This book talks about Paul Bunyan and how he was a lumberjack that cleared forests in the early United States. It also details his journey with Babe his blue Ox.

Professional Recommendation/Review #1:
Name of Reviewer: Horn Book
(2) K-3 Illustrated by Ed Emberley. Reissue, 1963, Prentice. The Emberleys paint the tall-tale figure as a strong and mighty but also a "kind and gentle," larger-than-life hero. Barbara Emberley's text is appropriately folksy and engaging, while Ed Emberley's iconic woodcuts--using pine hand-split by the illustrator himself--in browns and blues stand up to The Horn Book Magazine's original assessment: "A striking graphic arts achievement."
http://www.hornbookguide.com.ezaccess...

Professional Recommendation/Review #2:
Name of Reviewer: SLJ Reviews
Name of Source: NYPL
2016 February
PreS-Gr 3 "Ed Emberley's style and media have changed over his six-decade-long career making picture books and how-to-draw instructional titles, but all of his work shares a distinctive artistry, compelling design, and child-friendly exuberance. The Story of Paul Bunyan, written by his wife Barbara, is illustrated with bold three-color woodcuts and came out in 1963; and the 1967 Caldecott Honor book One Wide River to Cross was also written by his wife. Emberley is a giant in the illustration field, and it's grand and exciting to see new editions of his early output sitting side by side on picture book shelves with his new titles. School Library Journal
https://browse.nypl.org/iii/encore/re...

Response to Two Professional Reviews: I agree with the first review’s comments on the illustrations, it is quiet beautifully done, the black and whites allow for simplicity, but the detail in the illustrations creates a graphic look. The second review also discusses the illustrations in the book, which yes they are great, but I would like to hear more about the story itself. These reviews were the only two profession reviews written on this book, and it would have been more interesting if they would have discussed the comparison to this story and the original story of Paul Bunyan.

Evaluation of Literary Elements: Upon first glance at this book, I love the use of a cardboard type background for the cover this relates to the lumber jack story and almost creates a manly type of look for the book, which reflects the main character. Relating to Molly Bang’s principles, I really like how the author only uses black and white to illustrate the book, because of this it almost makes the reader feel like you are being taken back in time to when the story happened. I like the element of solely using blue as the only color that shows up in the book. Because of this Paul’s Ox is highlighted and looks much less intimidating due to the soft baby blue the illustrator uses.

Consideration of Instructional Application: Because Paul has his trusty sidekick Babe the Ox, I think it would be interesting with younger students to have them come up with who/what their sidekick would be if they had one. The students would on a sheet of paper draw the person or animal that they would what to be there sidekick. Once complete they would describe what it is that they would call their sidekick and why. As a class we would come together and discuss everyone’s response