Synopsis
You may know that Paul Bunyan was taller than a redwood tree and stronger than fifty grizzly bears--but you may NOT know that he also had a wife and two kids who helped him create some of the most striking natural wonders of North America! With warmth, humor, and dazzling landscapes, award-winning writer Audrey Wood and acclaimed illustrator David Shannon team up to present the tall-tale beginnings of Niagara Falls, the Rocky Mountains, Old Faithful, and more. The Bunyans are a family you will never forget!
Publishers Weekly
One of the rootin'-est, tootin'-est, riproarin'-est heroes of American tall tales is given a whole new lease on life as Wood imagines an entire family of Bunyans. When Paul, the legendary lumberjack, meets Carrie McIntie, a giantess "banging a behemoth pickax against a wall," it's love at first sight. They produce two children, a "jumbo boy" named Little Jean and a "gigantic girl" named Teeny. Wood (The Napping House) exuberantly blends outrageous exaggeration with fantastical geography lessons: Pa Bunyan scoops out Niagara Falls to enable Teeny to shower an infestation of pesky bears from her maple syrup-ridden hair; Ma Bunyan creates Old Faithful by poking holes in Wyoming with her pickax to release hot water for the laundry and dishes; and so on. Shannon (The Amazing Christmas Extravaganza) joins Wood in this rollicking ride with archly humorous illustrations. Who can resist a retired Ma and Pa Bunyan, for example, dressed in leisure wear and playing croquet in the desert? Author and artist clearly had fun here, and readers undoubtedly will, too. Ages 4-9. (Oct.)