Helen is a fine hand with a slingshot, and more than at home in the woods. After all, she was raised by bears for a time. When she stumbles on the castle of three evil giants, she comes up with the perfect plan to rid the land of them. Well, almost perfect.... The biggest and meanest giant catches her, and forces her to help him kidnap the Princess Antoinette. Always quick on her hairy bare feet, Helen manages to save the sleeping princess and finish off the giant, before heading quietly back to the woods. No one knows who the giant killer is, and Helen isn't talking. Antoinette and her father, the king, are determined to find the hero, and come up with a plan of their own.
Andy Jones's hilarious new folktale adaptation/middle reader Barefoot Helen and the Giants is jam-packed with adventures and tales of adventure. It celebrates brave and resourceful girls, blended families, and storytelling itself.
Jack, the delightful, mischievous, big-hearted hero of so many Newfoundland folktales, is worried about his parents. They aren't getting any younger; in fact, they're really quite old. So, Jack and his brothers Bill and Tom decide to set out and find a magic fruit that will make the old young again.
Told with the humor, warmth, and sly wit that have made Andy Jones one of Newfoundland's finest and best-loved storytellers, The Queen of Paradise's Garden follows Jack on his way to the land of the Queen of Paradise, three miles this side of the end of the world, where he finds the magic fruit and quite a few other hand things as well.
Jack o' Hearts is the top card player in the parish, and is feeling pretty sure of himself. When a he is challenged to a card game with stakes higher than high by a mysterious green man, well, Jack can't resist. Sure, he's never lost a tournament yet, has he?
Jack is as saucy as saucy can be, and he's twice as lucky as that-but the game is trickier than it looks. Luckily, Jack finds he's got an ace up his sleeve: the menacing green man's beautiful daughter Ann. She's got as much magic as her father (or so that enchantment crowd says), and she likes the look of Jack. A hilarious re-imagining of a traditional Newfoundland folktale, Jack and the Green Man is jam-packed with magic, romance, transformations, impossible tasks, unforgettable characters, a love ballad or two, and the ever-present threat of Jack's head ending up on a spear.
This audio book includes a special treat-be sure to listen in to the end!
Jack and Mary in the Land of Thieves finds Jack, that everyman of folktales, married to his sweetheart Mary, the best woman ever born and a mighty fine baker to boot. Their lives are as happy and successful as can be, until an underhanded sea captain and Jack's own bragging get the better of our hero. Jack is sent the once to work on Slave Islands and Mary is turned out of house and home. But Mary is resolute and resourceful, and has plans to find Jack and restore their fortunes.
Inspired by several traditional and classic works, including Shakespeare's Cymbeline, the medieval tale of Frederick of Jennen, and the Newfoundland story "Jack and the Slave Islands," Andy Jones has crafted a funny, moving, and delightfully original story about love, treachery, perseverance, and cherry cake.
With a hidden key, a storm at sea, and a singing mynah bird named Baxter who carries more than his share of tunes, Jack and Mary in the Land of Thieves will delight youngsters and oldsters alike.
In the wake of his highly acclaimed book Jack and Mary in the Land of Thieves, Andy Jones is back with Jack, the King of Ashes, another riotously funny Jack tale that is as moving as it is hilarious.
This time Jack, the "King of Ashes," spends all his time hove off in the coal box, until one day he shakes off his ashes and sets out on an adventure that includes sneaky robbers, a "famous missing princess with reward attached," an always-surprising canine sidekick, a royal wedding, a lovelorn rooster-puppet, a conniving ship's captain, corpses, curses, kisses, a coat and a whole lot more!
Steeped in Newfoundland folk tradition, Jack, the King of Ashes shows Jones at the top of his form. His quirky and delightful humour is unstoppable.
