Product: Jamie O'Rourke and the Big Potato
Category: Irish Book Reviews - St. Patrick's Day Books for Kids
ISBN: 039922257X
Age: toddler, preschool, kindergarten, grade 1, grade 2, grade 3
Jamie O'Rourke and the Big Potato by Tomie dePaola
This popular folklore book tells the tale of Jamie O'Rourke, the laziest man in all of Ireland. When his overworked wife throws out her back, lazy Jamie O'Rourke is faced with starvation. Jamie goes to church to pray for help. As Irish luck would have it, his prayers are answered and he captures a leprechaun. Instead of receiving a pot of gold for his efforts, the leprechaun tricks him into wishing for all the potatoes he can eat and gives him magic potato seeds for his release. The seeds grow a giant potato big enough to feed the entire village. Of course this causes other problems, but in the end, the industrious wife comes through to solve the problem. Jamie never fixes his laziness, however, children will enjoy the comical story.
Realistic landscapes illustrated from the Emerald Isle work well in the story showing thatched roofs, stone hedges and grazing sheep.
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