Ever hear of a feller named Davy Crockett?"" Folks say he fell from the sky with a coonskin on his head and a smile on his face. But did you know he saved steamers on the Mighty Mississippi from a giant gator? Yesiree, that Davy Crockett roughed up that ol gator real good! ""Kick off yer boots"" and listen to this ""fascinatin tale"" of Davy Crockett Gr 3-5-Sandwiched between historical notes that provide both general context and biographical details, these retold legends give four (male) folktale heroes a chance to strut their stuff. The tales, spun in mildly colloquial language ("Oh Lordy, was John Henry a mighty fine babe!") are illustrated with equally mild cartoon caricatures and feature Davy Crockett wrestling a giant 'gator, Pecos Bill carving out the Grand Canyon atop a tornado, John Henry doing several good deeds before taking on that steam drill, and Johnny Appleseed rescuing injured animals as he makes his seed sowing rounds. Each volume concludes with boilerplate notes on tropes common to American folktales, a pair of Common Core-specific study questions, and a brief bibliography. Though other versions of these stories aren't hard to find, the background material will give both general readers and folklore enthusiasts a broader perspective on the genre.α(c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. Sandwiched between historical notes that provide both general context and biographical details, these retold legends give...folktale heroes a chance to strut their stuff. . . .Each volume concludes with boilerplate notes on tropes common to American folktales, a pair of Common Core-specific study questions, and a brief bibliography. Though other versions of these stories aren't hard to find, the background material will give both general readers and folklore enthusiasts a broader perspective on the genre.-- "School Library Journal" Cari Meister has written more than 130 books for children, including the Tiny series (Penguin) and the Fast Forward Fairy Tales series (Scholastic).  Cari is a school librarian.  She loves to visit other schools and libraries and talk about the joy of reading and writing.  Cari lives in the mountains of Colorado, with her husband, four boys, one horse and one dog.  You can find out more about her at www.carimeister.com.