Jack and the Beanstalk by Carol Ottolenghi, McGraw-Hill Childrens Publishing (Manufactured by)

Synopsis

Jack only wants to help his poor mother. But when he decides to sell the family cow for a handful of magic beans, he finds himself in a giant-sized mess!

Beautifully illustrated, this classic tale will capture children’s interest and spark their imagination page after page, encouraging a love of reading that is vital to success in school and life!

This title is also available in an English/Spanish bilingual edition!

Children will find hours of entertainment in the pages of these timeless tales! Our Brighter Child® Keepsake Stories are delightfully illustrated classic stories of magic, imagination, and inspiration that will delight children again and again! Collect all of the titles in this wonderful series today!

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Marilyn Courtot - Children's Literature

Jack's mother asks him to sell the cow because their finances are exhausted. Along the way to the market, Jack decides to sell the family cow for a handful of magic beans. In frustration his mother tosses them out the window. Being magic beans, they do indeed grow to a fantastic height. Jack climbs the beanstalk and faces the giantess and her husband. He takes a bag of gold coins. Warned not to go again, Jack can't resist and on this trip he takes the goose that lays golden eggs. Although severely warned by his mother, Jack makes yet another trip and takes the magic singing harp, who alerts her master to the theft. Jack and his mother chop down the beanstalk, killing the giant, and live very happily ever after. In this version the author makes it clear that the giant had stolen things from the family and killed the father, so Jack is merely retrieving what is rightfully his. The version of this fairy/morality tale is the one I remember hearing as a child and it will probably stand up better than most versions. A "Brighter Child Keepsake Story." 2002, McGraw-Hill Children's Publishing,

Biography

Carol Ottolenghi has written nonfiction and fiction books for adults and children for almost 20 years. In 1996, she won the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators Magazine Merit Honor Award. One of her stories was selected for Best of the Children's Market by the Institute of Children's Literature. She currently lives in Ohio.