131 pgs. illus. 2002. i Elementary, middle school.

Jack is the universal folk hero and adventurer. Tales of Jack's adventures are as timeless as bedrock but as fresh as dawn in the Appalachian hills. Whether Jack is outsmarting ogres, besting card sharks, wrestling with ornery witches, or even taking on Old Man Death himself, the plainspoken hero's common sense, goodness, and hill-country humor help him come out on top every time.

Haley's "spirited retellings are salted with backwoods language..., and illustrated with wood engravings that ... are full of energy, comedy, and magical creatues." —Kirkus Review

"In a lucid, vibrant voice, Caldecott Medalist Haley (A Story, A Story) recounts stories which originate in the rugged North Carolina mountain country. ... Haley's use of metaphor, hyperbole and dialect captures the playful spirit of mountain lore. Her emotive elaborate wood engravings — as well as her afterwords about the stories, the art and the language itself — enrich this buoyant anthology." —Publishers Weekly

Curriculum Applications: 4th & 5th Grade Social Studies; Grades K-5 Language Arts

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