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With large illustrations and about one paragraph per page, this is an imaginative tall tale story for children. Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind was the toughest living creature in all the old frontier. On the day she was born she could out-talk, out-grin, out-scream, out-swim, and out-run any baby in Kentucky, and soon she was more than a match for bears, rattlers, alligators -- even the mighty Mike Fink. But when Sally Ann rescued Davy Crockett, even her hornet's-nest bonnet and skunk perfume didn't stop him from proposing marriage.

Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind is amazing from the moment she is born. She can out do all her older brothers in talking, running, swimming, and screaming. She grew up showing off her skills at state fairs. When she turned eight, Sally Ann left home for the challenges of the frontier. One day she meets Davey Crockett and they fall in love and marry.

Steven Kellogg weaves this story together from earlier tall tales about Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind. While there are strong male characters in this book (Davey Crockett and Mike Fink), Sally Ann stands out the heroine. This book is an homage to all the strong women of the frontier who survived the hardships of their time. ( )

Based on a number of folktales about the wife of legendary politician and frontiersman Davy Crockett, this is a fun book of American tall tales with a tough female lead (oddly, though Davy Crockett was a real person, Sally Ann seems to be completely invented, but it's not like the Davy Crockett in the story had much to do with the historical one, either). The illustrations are wild and delightful, especially the whirlwind made of alligators towards the end, and fit the feel of the story perfectly. ( )

I wasn't familiar with the tall tales surrounding Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett, so I thought this story and the illustrations were charming! Among other things, I liked the parts where she won the Annual State Fair Marathon at the age of one, and later courted Davy Crockett. ( )