"Orville Hicks has enthralled audiences beyond the porches of Beech Mountain, North Carolina, for more than two decades. Jack Tales and Mountain Yarns captures the voice of the master storyteller in more than twenty transcribed stories, paired with lively pencil sketches. Having grown up in a hollow, he knows the mountain setting and his clever character Jack"--Provided by publisher.

ONCED UPON A TIME AGO, in the Smoky Mountains, there lived a feller named Jack. So begin twenty Jack Tales, based on traditional folk and fairy tales, plus an extra tale, The Legend of Stingy Jack. Nine seasonal stories are adventures with Giants, a Witch, Trolls, and Death. Bonus Tales feature a heifer hide, a bear, moonshine, golden eggs, a ball of butter, a Kings ring, and a lost ax. Smoky Mountain Jack Tales of Winter and Old Christmas These are fun performance tales for reading aloud at home or in public, for oral interpretation, or re-told in your own words. Primarily for older youth and grownups, these varied tales are for readers and storytellers who already know and love Jack and those about to make a new friend.

A good folktale triggers the imagination, connecting children to a wider world as well as increasing their vocabulary and comprehension skills. In this delightful and easy-to-use book, teacher and storyteller Del Negro gives librarians, teachers, and parents the keys to storytelling success. Including more than a dozen original adaptations of folktales from around the world, tailored specifically for library and classroom use, she Reviews storytelling basics such as selecting a tale and learning the story Offers tips for dealing with stage fright and reluctant listeners Presents a bibliography of recommended online and print resources, steering readers to more wonderful tales to tell For young listeners the folktale is a perfect gateway to the exciting worlds of culture and literature, and Del Negro’s book invites their engagement with proven techniques and original story scripts that can be used by experienced as well as beginning tellers.

“Jack and the Beanstalk,” “Little Jack Horner,” and “Jack the Giant Killer” are all famous tales and rhymes featuring the same hero, a character who often appears in legends, fairy tales, and nursery rhymes. Unlike moralizing fairy tale heroes, however, Jack is typically depicted as foolish or lazy, though he often emerges triumphant through cleverness and tricks. With their roots traced back to England, Jack tales are an important oral tradition in Appalachian folklore. It was in his Appalachian upbringing that Kevin D. Cordi was first introduced to Jack through oral storytelling traditions. Cordi’s love of storytelling eventually led him down a career path as a professional storyteller, touring the US for the past twenty-seven years. In addition to his work as a storyteller, Cordi worked a second job in an unrelated field—a high school teacher—and for many years, he kept his two lives separate. Everything changed when Cordi began telling stories in the classroom and realized he was connecting with his students in ways he had not previously. Cordi concluded that storytelling, storymaking, and drama can be used as systems of learning instead of as just entertainment. In You Don’t Know Jack: A Storyteller Goes to School, Cordi describes the process of integrating storytelling into his classroom. Using autoethnographic writing, he reflects upon the use of storytelling and storymaking in order to promote inquiry and learning. He argues that engaging with the stories of others, discovering that one voice or identity should not be valued over the other, and listening, especially listening to stories of difference, are of utmost importance to education and growth.

An Appalachian farm girl and her brother have their pictures made by a traveling photographer in the 1940s. Includes facts about "picture men," early photography, and instructions for making a shoebox camera.

Selection of tales, songs, riddles, proverbs and other items of folklore from seven regional cultures of the U.S.A.

An appreciation of the rich and distinctive folklife in one of the earliest settled regions in southern Appalachia