Pecos Bill

Must have to read to young sons and/or grandsons. Great adventure with wonderful illustrations and easy read - a six-year old can help you!

I use this book in Middle School Classes to supplement reading for Texas History. Yes, I know the book is below reading level of 7th Graders. However the skill for identifying "bias" is th ultimate goal. Pecos Bill and other writings by Kellogg help the students acquire the identified skill.

Pecos Bill is a good witten fantasy childrens book. Pecos and his family are moving and Pecos falls out of the wagon and raised by a pack of coyotes when he was young. Later he finds he is great at wrestling animals. Pecos finds a white stallion that is the fastest ever and helps heard the cattle so the town can do things without them in the way. Pecos Bill takes place in Texas after he falls off the wagon. One thing I liked that the author did was make it a fast pace book and not run on. The problem was mainly that the texans were looking to get the cattle out of the way of their town. The best audience for this book are yong kids mostly boys. The author leaves the reading level basic and doesnt usse and confusing words. Steven Kellogg did a great job writing Pecos Bill

From wrestling giant bulls to the catching of a demon horse in a green forest, Pecos Bill can do it all. He's the perfect boy for the western way of life. Pecos starts off as a little baby in a wagon, when he casts out his fishing line and a huge fish grabs the line and rips him off the boat. He gets into deep trouble with devilish snakes and some Don't-mess-with-me bulls. Also, they explain why cows have shorter hooves, but you'll have to read the book to find out more. The variety of characters gives this book a real western kick. Chuck, a westerner, helps Pecos to act more like a human being. Pecos used to live with the coyotes and he acted just like one. After that weirdly creative event, he wrestles a giant gorilla-tarantula right to the ground. He did the same with the green rattle snake. Next comes the Hell's Gulch Gang, the baddest and brutest gang in the west. But, they are afraid of a white horse, with the worst temper. That is why they call her Lightning. Pecos easily catches the horse with his rattle snake rope. Finally comes Sue, the girl of his dreams. Pecos asks her to marry him and she says yes. They then get booted into the air and they eventually land on Pecos' family's wagon and live happily. Now hop on the saddle, and start trotting your way into a wonderland with Pecos Bill.

This mild, but event-filled re-telling of the Pecos Bill story lacks the incorrigible air of tongue-in-cheek humour and bold-faced lies of the typical tall tale. However, and especially if your young`uns never heard a tall tale, the wonderful illustrations will partially make up for this. When we started to read this book, we thought those sweet-faced, round-eyed, snub-nosed cowboys looked a little familiar: this guy is the same feller who illustrated HOW MUCH IS A MILLION? which we like alot. My boys love the snake lasso, and we return many times to the fantastic "critter" that Bill wrassles into submission. But breaking-in "Widder-maker" is an let-down after that adventure, I am afraid. I recommend Adrien Stoutenburg`s AMERICAN TALL TALES for older children (9-12yrs) which has few illustrations but whose style is far better suited to the dramatic and poetic nature of the tall tale genre. My seven-year old loves to hear me read those aloud.