"As he rode down the winding road, it gave way to a meadow. All around, daisies were a-dancing and clovers were a-swaying. Along came...an old woman, leading a old hound dog."
Perhaps the peddlar will finally be able to make the trade he needs to get a silver dollar so his daughter can buy a wedding dress. But the old woman doesn't have the dollar and can only trade for her hound dog. Better than a cow? The peddlar will take a chance and hope so.
This retelling is in keeping with many other folktales of its type...try trading one thing for another until you get what you need. It seems that the trades go from bad to worse, but persistence always pays off.
The author uses well chosen conversational speech for her telling. She takes us back to a time when trading/bartering was the way things were done. It makes a perfect story for reading aloud, while listening for the laughter from the silliness of it all. As the peddlar makes his way along, meeting one character after another, he passes through ever-changing scenes, all described to make us feel we are right there with him.
Will Hillenbrand's friendly, loose artwork matches the tone of the telling. The charaters seamlessly play their part in the story. There are a number, and they do their best to help the peddlar get his task accomplished. The notice hung on the store mirrow is our clue to the solution for the next part of the search...a veil. A chicken for a nanny goat which was just what the doctor ordered. 'Quick as bees buzz" Dadaw brought his daughter a shiny dime to buy that veil. Ah, life is good and Georgy Piney Woods has proved his mettle as a fine peddlar once more!
I would pair this with some of my 'old' favorite folktales...Airmail to the Moon , Soap, Soap, Don't Forget the Soap! and Look Out, Jack! The Giant is Back!
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