American Tall Tales

Illus. in full color. Upstarts like Davy Crockett, giants like Paul Bunyan, and gentle souls like Johnny Appleseed are among the nine "tall" heroes featured in this exuberant collection of traditional American folk tales. "McCurdy's intricate wood engravings set these larger-than-life folk on majestic landscapes brimming with energy, rich with wildlife and local color. The author's thoughtful introduction and notes round out this superlative offering."--(starred) School Library Journal.

*  Mary Pope Osborne grew up in the military, and by the time she was fifteen had lived in Oklahoma, Austria, Florida and four different army posts in Virginia and North Carolina.

* After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the early 1970's, Mary traveled all over Europe, and spent the first six weeks of her trip living in a cave on the island of Crete.  She then joined up with a group of European young people and traveled in rickety vans through sixteen Asian countries, including Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Nepal.

* She was a bartender, an acting teacher, a waitress, a travel agent, a window dresser, and a medical assistant -- all before becoming an author!  Now she is the author of many highly acclaimed picture books, ea