Jack and the Beanstalk

Jack and the Beanstalk
Joseph Jacobs
Source/Date: Authorama 2003
Page #: 2
Reading Level: 1st Grade
Genre: Fairy Tale

Summary:

The story begins with Jack and his mother and their milk cow. Jack's mother tells him to go into town to trade their cow for some money so they can have food on the table. When Jack takes the cow into town, he meets an old man and trades him the cow for some magic beans. When Jack goes home his mother is upset that he has traded the cow for what she thought to be worthless beans. The next day Jack woke up to find a giant beanstalk outside of his window where his mother had thrown the beans the night before. Jack decides to climb up the beanstalk. At the top he finds a house and a very tall woman. He asks her for some food and she brings him in to feed him. Then her husband, a hungry ogre comes home and the woman hides Jack from him. The ogre could smell Jack, but his wife told him not to worry about it. She then told Jack to wait until her husband was sleeping before he left. When the ogre was sleeping Jack left and took one of his bags of gold with him. He and his mother were able to live off of the gold for some time. However, when the gold is depleted, Jack decides to climb back up the beanstalk. When he gets to the top he asks the tall woman again for something to eat. She again brings him in to feed him when her husband comes home. Jack hides again from the ogre. He again thinks he smells the boy, but he eats his breakfast and falls asleep. This time when Jack goes to escape he takes a chicken that lays golden eggs from the ogre. As he's leaving the chicken cackles, waking the ogre up, but Jack is able to escape without being caught. Some days later, Jack decides to go back up the beanstalk to try his luck. Instead of going right up to the house, he waits til the wife comes out, and he sneaks into the house to the copper. The ogre comes home and says he smells the blood of an English man. He and his wife look for Jack, but they don't find him hiding in the copper. This time when the ogre falls asleep, Jack escapes and takes with him the ogre's magic harp. As he's leaving the harp wakes up the ogre. The ogre chases him down the beanstalk, but Jack gets to the bottom first. When he does Jack gets an ax to chop down the beanstalk. The ogre falls and breaks his crown, Jack and his mother become rich, and Jack marries a princess.

Who would benefit from reading this story?

Again, anyone who enjoys fairy tales would benefit from this story. I think it is a classic one that everyone should include in their collection of fairy tales. It is mild enough that young children would enjoy this particular fairy tale.

What conflicts/problems would this book potentially cause?

One problem this story could cause is the bad example of Jack. Young kids might think that it is alright to steal nice things because Jack did it, and he got away with it.

My Reaction:

I always enjoyed reading this story when I was younger. I had forgotten that Jack cut down the beanstalk at the end and kills the ogre, so reading it again was a fun refresher. I think this is one of those classic fairy tales that all children would have a good time reading.