Tall Tale America: A Legendary History of our Humorous Heroes

Tall Tale America: A Legendary History of our Humorous Heroes
ISBN-10
022622791X
ISBN-13
9780226227917
Category
Literary Criticism
Pages
279
Language
English
Published
2018-12-01
Publisher
University of Chicago Press
Author
Walter Blair

Description

"Johnny Appleseed, Davy Crockett, Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyan and John Henry have all become heroes of American folklore. Some of them, like Crokett, were real, but all have become the subject of tall tales. This is a folksy history of the United States, told as if the characters were all real. This panoramic (if completely untrue) history begins with Columbus. . . . En route to its end in the 1940s (where traditional American heroes are enlisted to fight in World War II), it covers the great and small events of our national history, including the overlooked, but important ones, such as the invention of the prairie dog."—Washington Post Book World

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