American Tall Tales

I love Mary Pope Osborne!  What young child does not enjoy the adventures of Jack and Annie in the Magic Tree House?  However, did you know that Osborne has written several other books for young people other than her popular series?  In 1991 she published American Tall Tales.  It is a collection of stories about some famous fictional characters such as Paul Bunyan and Pecos Bill, as well as actual people such as Johnny Appleseed and Davy Crockett.  She also introduces the reader to lesser known personalities in American culture.

The stories are full of action and humor and the violence is kept to a minimum.  This is a great collection of tall tales to share with your child.  When I was teaching,  I was always amazed how many of my students had never heard of the classic personalities that are presented in this collection.  This collection will help build your child's schema (background knowledge) and will help familiarize them with the characteristics of a tall tale.   This collection of stories are also great to make text-to-self and text-to-text connections. When sharing these stories with your child, let this collection just be your spring board.  There are so many great stories out there about these wonderful characters.  This is a great opportunity to compare the stories and see what themes they have in common.

In America, exaggerated storytelling began in the 1800s.  The stories people told were about the land of America - the large mountains, dry deserts, and thick forests.  The stories were told about the heroes who showed courage and ferocity to overcome the obstacles of the great land.  What I love about American tall tales is that the characters are usually part fiction and part historical fact.  The stories are tales that were created and shared (usually orally) from generation to generation about the trials and tribulations of early Americans.

They are really great stories and stories I strongly believe are still relevant in today's society.  We can learn a lot from our tall-tale heroes!