The Giant Slayers
Book One of The Village of Crossroads Series
by
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As the third inning came to a close, Peter began to complain, “Our team has more girls and it isn’t fair.”
“Girls can’t play,” agreed James.
Looking frustrated, Bill explained, “Guys, this is a practice-not a real game. We all need to work on our skills: boys and girls.”
Susan had overheard Peter and James complaining and thought she was not wanted and began to cry.
Tonya went over to console her friend. After hearing about what Peter and James had said, she decided to share the information with Mrs. Grant.
Mrs. Grant called the two teams together and had them sit down. She asked each individual to list the positions they played and circle the one they felt they did the best. She also explained to them that being a team means helping each other work on improving their skills. While she had their attention, she shared a story with them.
“This is a story about a shepherd boy and a giant,” she began. “The shepherd boy was the youngest son of a large family and his job was to tend a herd of sheep. He was expected to take them to pasture and protect them from large animals that could harm them. His only weapon was a slingshot and rocks. He would practice hitting things and he developed a skill for speed and accuracy.
Now, there was a war in the country where the young shepherd lived and his older brothers were fighting on the side of the king. One day his father sent the young shepherd to the battlefield with food for his older brothers. While he was there, a large giant came out of the enemy’s camp and challenged the king and his army to choose a man to fight him. The giant confidently said that the one who prevailed would win the war for his country. The one who lost and his country would become the servants of the country whose champion prevailed.
The shepherd boy was concerned that no one would take the challenge and said so. His brothers were upset with the shepherd boy and suggested he should go back to tending the sheep as this was no place for him. After hearing of the young shepherd’s outburst, the king sent for him.
The shepherd told the king that he would fight the giant. He had killed a lion and a bear while he was protecting his flock of sheep, and he believed he could defeat the giant with God’s help.
At first the king protested, realizing that the shepherd boy was young and inexperienced in manners of war. The shepherd boy explained, ‘The Lord delivered me out of the paws of the lion and out of the paws of the bear and he will deliver me out of the hands of this giant.’
Finally persuaded, the king said to the shepherd, ‘Go, and the Lord be with you.’
As the shepherd approached the giant, he picked up some stones to use with his slingshot. When the giant saw the boy, he was angered and insulted that they would send such a small boy to fight him. Therefore, he began taunting the shepherd.
The shepherd responded that he did not need a sword or spear because he came in the name of the Lord of Host, and that the Lord would give him the victory. He then quickly put a stone into the slingshot and propelled it toward the giant, hitting him in the forehead. The giant fell dead and the shepherd prevailed, becoming a hero to his people.”
“That was a good story, Mrs. Grant!” said Tony. “It made me feel like our team could win the league if we practiced hard and believed we could.”
Bill smiled, “It sounds like the story of David and Goliath to me, Mrs. Grant. But I hadn’t realized that his older brothers were displeased with David and wanted him to go home.”
“People sometimes take their frustrations out on someone else when things are not happening the way they would like for them to,” explained Mrs. Grant. “I believe the shepherd’s brothers were frustrated with the situation and embarrassed that the shepherd did not understand.”
Peter looked at James and both boys realized they had taken their frustration out on the girls because their team was behind.
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About the Book
ABOUT BOOK ONE AND THE BOOK SERIES
The Giant Slayers is a story about a little league baseball team from a small community. The story addresses the challenges that face these young people as they become a team made up of both boys and girls from different cultural backgrounds.
The Giant Slayers is the first book in the series The
About the Author
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Anna Kaserman Harrold, the author of The Giant Slayers, taught elementary and middle school grades for over 30 years in Indiana and Virginia. Her undergraduate and graduate degrees from
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
R. Carol Skinner has worked as a freelance artist and illustrator from her
ABOUT THE SERIES CONSULTANT
John Andrew Harrold is President, 21st Century Learning Communities, LLC, and Senior Scholar, Vision-Based Community Development, Institute for 21st Century Learning. He is a past president of the Cumberland Town Council, Indiana, and currently serves as Commissioner, Cumberland Redevelopment Commission. John has had an extensive public education background, including 12 years as Director of Curriculum, Indiana Department of Education. As Director, his accomplishments included designing