John Henry

by Stephen Krensky, Mark Oldroyd (Illustrator)

Retells the life of the legendary African American hero who raced against a steam drill to cut through a mountain.

Genres: Folk Tales, Childrens, Picture Books

48 pages, Library Binding

First published June 1, 2006

Reviews

[Benson · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is a really good book too

[Brian Cortes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Krensky, Stephen. Oldryod, Mark. John Henry. (2007). The story begins begins with an explanation of tall tales and folk tales, and the authenticity of John Henry’s story. The development of the story progresses from the time John Henry was a child until he reached adulthood. His parents encouraged him and supported him throughout his childhood as he became attached to the hammer at an early age. It is even rumored that he was born with the hammer in his hand, while this may not be completely true, he did carry the hammer everywhere he went. He eventually comes of age, and is able to swing the hammer, while at first he made a lot of destruction, he finally put his skill to good use by working on building fences and later on in the railroad. While working on the railroad, he is challenged by a salesman and his drilling machine to a contest of drilling holes. John Henry eventually wins, but that becomes the cause of his end. The illustrator does a good job of illustrating key and descriptive text in the story, and allowing the reader to visualize the key point in the story. The story is good, not very interesting at the beginning and middle, but finally climaxes at the end of the story. The story should have included more on his childhood, whether he went to school or did he have any friends growing up. I had heard of the tale of John Henry, but had never read the story, and now I wonder if other books tell the story differently. This was a mediocre story that left details out of his life, but the illustrations were interesting and descriptive. Target audience: ages 7 and up.

[Tim Hackbarth]

This is a story about John Henry. Some say he was a folk hero. Some say he was a real man. This is a book for early readers exploring folk material. It examines the adventures of John Henry and how his story came to be complete with the extraordinary characteristics of a tall tale. It follows the progress of the railroad expansion. I would use this book to introduce students to some of the characteristics of the period of expansion in our history. It is a book that details the social attitudes of the time as well. I would use this book in conjunction with a social studies lesson for 3-5 graders.

[Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book for beginning readers captures the essence of the famous story of John Henry while exaggerating a few details. The simple illustrations with little variety of color serve as a complement to the simple text. Though simple, the words tell a powerful story of the struggle between man and machine--a struggle that still concerns many people today. This story would be an excellent choice for launching a unit on how technology has changed our lives and our workforce.

[Bethe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Each version of John Henry's life/legend is a little bit different, this one had some focus on his youth. Yellowish/greenish/grayish palette for illustrations may not hold children's interest during a read aloud.

[CML OSU]

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[Leslie Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historical Fiction. 2007

[Jessica Van Vleet · Rating 5 out of 5]

We read these for homeschool. Get tall tale! Well written for younger readers with lots of great pictures.