Ain't Nothing but a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry
by Scott Reynolds Nelson, Marc Aronson
List Price:
Our Price: $11.30
You Save: $7.65 (40%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $11.21 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Marc Aronson, Scott Reynolds NelsonEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-12-26
ISBN: 142630000X
Number of pages: 64
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Publisher: National Geographic Children's Books
Book Reviews of Ain't Nothing but a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry
Book Review: Real history for smart kids (grownups, too)
Summary: 5 Stars
We've all heard songs and stories of John Henry, the "steel-driving man". But is there a real man behind them? And what is his story?
Scott Nelson has written a fascinating book which not only digs deep into the John Henry story, but also shows how historians approach the past through a variety of sources, including dusty archives, obscure books, and even buried skeletons. With a light hand, he sketches the industrial, economic, and political landscape of the 19th century South and brings it to life for the reader through John Henry.
Based on his adult book "Steel Drivin' Man: John Henry: the Untold Story of an American Legend", this short book is a great way to transition middle schoolers from the idea that history is official and dry to the realization that history is active detective work, and that the life of the past is very relevant to the present.
I bought this book for my 6th-grader, who enjoys it, but read it myself, and found myself drawn into Nelson's approach and wanting to learn more -- so I'll be reading Steel Drivin' Man soon....
Summary of Ain't Nothing but a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry
Who was the real John Henry? The story of this legendary African-American figure has come down to us in so many songs, stories, and plays, that the facts are often lost. Historian Scott Nelson brings John Henry alive for young readers in his personal quest for the true story of the man behind the myth. Nelson presents the famous folk song as a mystery to be unraveled, identifying the embedded clues within the lyrics, which he examines to uncover many surprising truths. He investigates the legend and reveals the real John Henry in this beautifully illustrated book.Nelson's narrative is multilayered, interweaving the story of the building of the railroads, the period of Reconstruction, folk tales, American mythology, and an exploration of the tradition of work songs and their evolution into blues and rock and roll. This is also the story of the author's search for the flesh-and-blood man who became an American folk hero; Nelson gives a first-person account of how the historian works, showing history as a process of discovery. Readers rediscover an African-American folk hero. We meet John Henry, the man who worked for the railroad, driving steel spikes. When the railroad threatens to replace workers with a steam-powered hammer, John Henry bets that he can drive the beams into the ground faster than the machine. He wins the contest, but dies in the effort.
Nelson's vibrant text, combined with archival images, brings a new perspective and focus to the life and times of this American legend.
People of Color Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Of Interest
Barack Obama: The Politics of Hope (Shapers of America) (Shapers of America)by William Michael Davis
OTTN Publishing; Published: 2007-10-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.50
Price in other shops:
Ain't Nothing but a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henryby Scott Reynolds Nelson, Marc Aronson
National Geographic Children's Books; Published: 2007-12-26; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $11.30
Price in other shops:
Women Daredevilsby Julia Cummins
Dutton Juvenile; Published: 2008-01-24; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.82
Price in other shops:
Muhammad Ali: Champion of the Worldby Jonah Winter
Schwartz & Wade; Published: 2008-01-08; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $9.47
Price in other shops:
George Washington Carverby Tonya Bolden, In Association with The Field Museum
Abrams Books for Young Readers; Published: 2008-01-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.58
Price in other shops:
Hope's Boy: A Memoirby Andrew Bridge
Hyperion; Published: 2008-02-05; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $9.50
Price in other shops:
ADHD & Me: What I Learned from Lighting Fires at the Dinner Tableby Blake E. S. Taylor
New Harbinger Publications; Published: 2008-02-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.65
Price in other shops:
The Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic-Book Scare and How It Changed Americaby David Hajdu
Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Published: 2008-03-18; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.23
Price in other shops:
Top Tips for Girls: Real advice from real women for real lifeby Kate Reardon
Three Rivers Press; Published: 2008-06-24; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.63
Price in other shops:
Fat Envelope Frenzyby Joie Jager-Hyman
HarperCollins e-books; HarperCollins e-books; Release date: 2008-03-11; Published: 2008-03-11; Kindle Edition; eBooks
Best price: $9.56
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 4)by Rick Riordan
Hyperion Book CH; Published: 2008-05-06; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.00
Price in other shops:
Baseball Saved Usby Ken Mochizuki
Lee & Low Books; Published: 1995-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.92
Price in other shops:
Fever 1793by Laurie Halse Anderson
Aladdin; Published: 2002-03-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.27
Price in other shops:
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain (Caldecott Honor Book)by Peter Sis
Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); Published: 2007-08-21; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.05
Price in other shops:
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Villageby Laura Amy Schlitz
Candlewick Press; Published: 2007-07-24; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $12.36
Price in other shops:
Beatrice's Goatby Page McBrier
Aladdin; Published: 2004-06-22; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.12
Price in other shops:
Adventures In Graphica: Using Comics and Graphic Novels to Teach Comprehension, 2-6by Terry Thompson
Stenhouse Publishers; Published: 2008-05-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $16.65
Price in other shops:
Living Literature: Using Children's Literature to Support Reading and Language Artsby Wendy C. Kasten, Janice V. Kristo, Amy A. McClure, Abigail Garthwait
Prentice Hall; Published: 2004-11-14; Paperback; Book
Best price: $63.18
Price in other shops:
Steel Drivin' Man: John Henry, the Untold Story of an American Legendby Scott Reynolds Nelson
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 2008-08-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.98
Price in other shops:
A Caldecott Celebration: Seven Artists and their Paths to the Caldecott Medalby Leonard S. Marcus
Walker Books for Young Readers; Published: 2008-02-05; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.96
Price in other shops: