Jack and the Green Man
written and read by Andy Jones
- Included in the Canadian Children's Book Centre's Best Books for Kids & Teens (Autumn 2021)
Jack o' Hearts is the top card player in the parish, and is feeling pretty sure of himself. When a mysterious green stranger challenges him to a card game with higher than high stakes - well, Jack can't resist. Sure, he's never lost a tournament yet, has he?
Jack is as saucy as saucy can be, and he's twice as lucky as that - but the game is trickier than it looks. Luckily, Jack finds he's got an ace up his sleeve: the menacing green man's beautiful daughter Ann. She's got as much magic as her father (or so that enchantment crowd says), and she likes the look of Jack. This hilarious re-imagining of a traditional Newfoundland folktale is jam-packed with magic, romance, transformations, impossible tasks, unforgettable characters, a country song or two, and the ever-present threat of Jack's head ending up on a spear.
A brilliant blending of folklore, high literature, and pop culture, Jack and the Green Man is Andy Jones and Darka Erdelji's most ambitious and most riotous Jack tale yet. Divided into 12 short chapters, this long-form, gorgeously illustrated storybook will delight readers and listeners of all ages.
Previous books in this Jack tale series have won the BMO Winterset Award and the Bruneau Family Award for Children's/Young Adult Writing, and have been shortlisted for the Governor General's Literary Award for Illustrated Children's Book, the Silver Birch Express Award, the Ann Connor Brimer Award, and the Newfoundland and Labrador History and Heritage Award.
(Ordering the audio book? Please make sure that the email with your download link hasn't landed in your junk mail.)
Also available in print.
The print edition of this book was
- Nominated for the 2017/18 Hackmatack Children's Choice Book Award
- Included in the Canadian Children's Book Centre's Best Books for Kids & Teens (Spring 2018)
- Long-listed, TD Summer Reading Club 2017
Praise for the print version of Jack and the Green Man
"A well-stirred, high-spirited medley of traditional elements."
– Kirkus Reviews
"A magical, funny tale that will be read again and again and again and again."
– Rick Mercer
"Jones and Erdelji have crafted another classic in the best fairytale tradition, mixing old and new with a gleeful dose of Newfoundland charm. Highly recommended."
– Atlantic Books Today
"The last time I heard him tell a story it came to me that the best thing I ever did in my life was to introduce Andy Jones to Pius Power and the world of Newfoundland folktales. He’s been enchanting us all ever since."
– Anita Best, singer, storyteller, folklorist, tradition bearer
"Exuberantly funny, born of old magic fed by strong living, Jack and the Green Man leaps forth in a wondrous torrent of language guaranteed to thrill readers young and old. Andy Jones’s tale-telling speaks from heart and bone. Illustrations by Darka Erdelji are a perfect match in quirkiness and conviction. A grand adventure with just the right amount of darkness. Newfoundland oral traditions vibrantly ringing for our time."
– Jan Andrews, author of When Apples Grew Noses and White Horses Flew. Tales of Ti-Jean; holder of Storytellers of Canada-Conteurs du Canada’s Story Keeper Award.
