“What is it?” asked the giant’s wife.
“I can’t describe it,” Molly said.
“It’s sooo beautiful!”
“Please let me look,”
the wife begged.
She let Molly out of the bag
and climbed inside herself.
At once, Molly grabbed the sword
and ran back to the palace.
When the giant returned,
his wife told him Molly escaped.
He flew into a rage.
“I’ll catch that girl!” he screamed.
The giant ran after Molly
through the woods.
He was catching up
when they reached the canyon
with the magic strand of hair.
Molly skipped along over it,
but the giant would not dare.
Molly arrived at the castle
and gave the sword to the king.
The king kept his promise.
He had a big house built for Molly
and her sisters and made sure
they never went hungry again.
IN THE YARD
PART 2
“I’m going to climb the tree now,”
Jake told Lily and Ben.
He jumped up, grabbing the rope.
THUMP!
Jake fell as the rope slipped off.
Jake’s mom came outside.
“What happened?” she asked.
“I just forgot to tie the rope!”
“Mom,” Jake asked,
“are there bean trees?”
“Yes, there are,” she replied.
“I know there are
chocolate bean trees.”
“Wow! Can we plant one
in our yard?” asked Jake.
“We could grow chocolate bars.”
“Those trees need a different
climate,” said Jake’s mom.
“And you don’t eat those beans.
Chocolate is made from their seeds.”
“Mom,” said Jake,
“do you have any chocolate?”
“I’ll take a look,” she laughed.
In a minute, she came back.
“All I could find are
these jelly beans,” she said.
“Thanks, Mom!” Jake said,
holding them in his hand.
“Aren’t you sharing?” asked Ben.
“Sure,” said Jake.
“But what if we plant these beans
and see what happens …”
ABOUT THE STORIES
Jack and the Beanstalk is a popular English fairy tale that was made into many film and TV adaptations. Similar tales about a boy who defeats a giant and acquires his wealth can be found in other parts of the world.
The Bean Tree contains elements from Jack and the Bean Trees, a tale from Appalachia in the eastern United States. I have combined these elements with the storyline from the earliest recorded version of Jack and the Beanstalk, published in 1807 by Benjamin Tabart as History of Jack and the Bean-Stalk. Here, Jack recovers what rightly belongs to him, rather than being a clever thief.
Olaf and the Troll is a based on a fairy tale called Boots and the Troll from Norway.
Molly and the Giant is a story that comes from Scotland, where it is known as Molly Whuppie. In contrast to the other stories, the main character is a girl.