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Summary
Summary
"Fee-fi-fo-fummy, I'm always counting money!"
Jack and his mom run a little café, but business has dried up and they're nearly broke. So when Jack comes home with only an old can of baked beans in return for their last few pennies, his mother throws it out the window. Overnight it grows into a gigantic baked beanstalk, which takes Jack to the castle of a giant who spends all his time counting his huge fortune. Jack helps the giant to find something more fun to do, and saves the café in the process!
Author Notes
Colin Stimpson studied illustration at Kingston School of Art. He has worked for many years as an Art Director and Production Designer for Walt Disney Feature Animation and Steven Spielberg, among others. He also illustrated The Poison Diaries by the Duchess of Northumberland. This is his debut as both author and illustrator. Colin Stimpson lives in Surrey, England.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 4-In this recasting of the traditional tale set during the Depression era, Jack and his mother live and work in a broken-down burger truck parked at the edge of town. When a new overpass diverts traffic away from their location, business dries up. Jack is sent to the store with their last pennies for milk and coffee beans, but instead buys a can of magic baked beans from a mysterious stranger and is tossed out by his angry mother. After the purchase grows into a vine sprouting shiny cans of this delicious staple, the boy climbs up and meets a fearsome-looking giant, but soon discovers that this lonely individual would rather cook for him than eat him. In fact, the giant, bored with counting gold, would take Jack up on his invitation to return home with him, but for his fear of heights. However, events conspire to land the big guy at Jack's doorstep and bring about a happy-ever-after ending for all. Alternating between single- and double-page images and album-style snapshots, the digitally created artwork presents sepia-toned city scenes and gold-tinged vine-top panoramas with cinematic flair. Shifts in light and perspective underscore the magic and convey the mood. Amusing touches abound, and the cleverly envisioned characters include a charismatic Jack and a giant outfitted as an oversize banker in a pinstriped suit, round spectacles, and red carnation. A satisfying retelling, flavored with jaunty humor and the message that money can't buy happiness.-Joy Fleishhacker, School Library Journal (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Illustrator Stimpson's (How to Cook Children) authorial debut gives Jack and the Beanstalk a needed overhaul, infusing the story with humor, warmth, and an evocative Depression-era setting. Jack's mother runs a down-on-its-luck food truck turned diner, and the giant becomes a chatty, suspenders-wearing miser with a secret yen to be a chef. Moments when the story is gentled are the most rewarding. "Are you sure you won't come with us?" Jack asks the giant as he's leaving for home, joined by a chicken and a talking radio that resembles the Chrysler Building. "You could chase us!" Stimpson's digital artwork looks like a series of movie stills, exploiting edgy, provocative angles. A towering, spiraling beanstalk shoots into the sky; the giant's banklike brick home looms large; Jack and his dog perch on piles of gold coins, watching the giant wield his knife and fork. Stimpson's happy ending features a splendid spread of the shiny diner, its gargantuan new chef, and even two steam shovels that look a lot like Mike Mulligan's. A lovely if ambitious bedtime readaloud whose cinematic artwork enthralls. Ages 3-6. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Stimpson's authorial debut is a remaking of the timeless fairy tale that includes both a wonderfully fleshed-out city circa the 1930s and an ending that is happy for everyone. Jack's Fast Food is a hopping caf run by Jack and his mother out of an old, broken-down burger truck. But when the new overpass closes the street out front, Jack and his mom fall on hard times. Per tradition, Jack spends their last coins on a can of magic baked beans, which his furious mother hurls outside. In the morning, Jack climbs the cans-of-beansfestooned beanstalk to find a friendly but lonely giant busily counting his money, "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fummy, / I'm always counting money. / Be it silver or be it gold, / It'll make me happy-- / Or so I'm told." Jack, the giant, the magic radio and the giant chicken all bond over lunch, but a beanstalk mishap extends their visit indefinitely while opening a whole new chapter for the Baked Beanstalk Caf. As in The Polar Express, Stimpson's artwork masterfully evokes both the mood and setting of the story. Retro styling, colors and type all work together to convey an old-time, urban feel to the digital illustrations, which portray a world where suits and dresses are the dress code (both incomplete without a hat), and the streets are filled with classic cars. Stimpson's money-can't-buy-happiness moral goes down easily with the help of his wonderfully atmospheric artwork. (Picture book. 3-9)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Jack and his mom run a food truck in a Depression-era metropolis, and they are happy doing so until progress arrives in the form of an overpass; suddenly, all of their former customers zip past them on their way to and from the suburbs. Now destitute, Jack takes their last few pennies to the store to buy coffee beans but returns instead with some allegedly magic baked beans procured from a mysterious stranger. As the familiar story line progresses, Jack meets a banking giant in the sky who grumpily chants Fee-fi-fo-fummy, / I'm always counting money. The giant is a good host, however, and makes his young, unexpected guest lunch. It becomes clear that the giant's passion is more culinary than capitalist, and he eventually joins everybody back on the ground in the happy role of cook at the revitalized diner. Although the book is textually unremarkable, the digital illustrations strongly reinforce the historical period and reference both the style of Virginia Lee Burton and Disney productions, making the overall concoction a fun one.--Medlar, Andrew Copyright 2010 Booklist
