Jack and the Beanstalk - Happily Ever After Fairy Tales for Every Child (1995)

Jack and his mother live on a farm where they are struggling to make ends meet. The mother decides that selling their beloved cow Bessie is the only way to earn enough money to sustain them. On the way to town, Jack happens upon a man who trades him five magic beans for the cow. Needless to say Jack's mother is less than pleased with Jack's trade and throws the beans outside. We all know what happens next. This lively retelling of the classic fairy tale is courtesy of the "Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child" series from HBO. The vocal talent of Robert Guillaume, Harry Belafonte, Jackee Harry and Tone-Loc gives the European fairy tale an African American slant (the giant's bellow is "fee-fie-fo-fum, I smell the blood of an African"), but the moral never changes: need is one thing, greed is another. Ages 4-9, but adults will be entertained as well. --Peggy Maltby-Etra Amazon.com