Beanstalk: The Measure of a Giant

McCallum, Ann. Beanstalk: The Measure of a Giant . Illustrated by James Balkovek. Charlesbridge, 2005. ISBN 1570918937. $16.95. Ages 7-10.

McCallum takes the original story of Jack and the beanstalk and makes the giant friendly. When Jack first climbs the beanstalk he realizes that Ray the giant is only a kid like him. They become friends and learn how to deal with their height differences by using ratio’s to help them play together. McCallum uses fairly simple language, while being able to incorporate math skills wonderfully. She is able use the imagination of the story and involves her own sense of the story using her unpretentious writing. The picture style that is being used is playful and cheerful. The pictures are being shown with jovial colors. She uses many colors and bright and vibrant colors at that. Characters have their own qualities that are being presented by the pictures. The characters are a big part of what makes the pictures so powerful, the way the illustrator puts the expressions on the characters' faces. The book in my opinion did a great job of combining an older tale of Jack and the Beanstalk, into a very creative way for a child to learn a little about ratios. The pictures in the book gave an overall warm feeling about the book; it was suitable for what the author was intending for the book.

Michael Seitz, BGSU student