The Giant and How He Humbugged America by Jim Murphy Book Review

Bibliography
Murphy, Jim. The Giant and How He Humbugged America. Scholastic Inc., 2013.
ISBN: 978-0439691840

Plot
Jim Murphy tells the intriguing tale of a stone giant, dug up in Upstate New York in the year 1869. Once the giant is discovered (or uncovered), word gets around quickly and people start flocking to see. Questions arise as the giant is viewed as either a petrified man or an ancient statue … or a hoax, designed to gain profits. Murphy leads the reader through the increasingly complex story with interesting pieces of primary source dialogue and photographs. The book tells the tale not only of the giant and the people invested in the giant, but of America, especially Upstate New York, at the time of the 1860-70’s. Readers themselves will get caught up in making the decision about the giant’s origins, until the mysterious beginnings are sorted out and the truth comes clear.

Critical Analysis
The account of the Cardiff Giant is shrouded in both mystery and factual evidence. While Murphy takes his time through the story to show the facts of the circumstance, he does so through accurate sources. Dialogue in the book is sourced at the end, with a bibliography and index to accompany the notes. Murphy uses a narrator voice throughout the book, and keeps the style upbeat and focused. Detailed facts, such as the time of events and currency equivalents to today’s amounts, keep the reader informed and draw a picture of the entire hoax and what exactly happened. A period-looking font reminiscent of old circus typesets headlines each chapter, with an off-black color that matches the historical pictures included. The historical pictures are large, often taking up an entire page, which not only serve to break up the text, but give additional understanding at necessary moments. Murphy presents here a story about a hoax which is riveting, complicated, and amazingly true, with accurate research and pictures to document.

Personal Response
Having grown up in Upstate New York, 30 minutes from the Farmers Museum near Cooperstown, NY, I have seen the Cardiff Giant himself. When we viewed the statue, we were a group of children, and the museum staff made a presentation similar to Billy Houghton’s before sharing the historical aspects of the Giant’s story. This led to an interest in the book when I saw it on the list for this class. Reading the book gave me a sense of the complicated scheme of the giant’s origin, as well as a feeling of deep loss when I learned of the people who invested their lives into the falsehood. Murphy also increased my awareness of the particular details surrounding how the giant was made and how it ended up at the Farmer’s Museum.

Excerpts of Reviews
“Murphy effectively recreates the place and times that made the Cardiff Giant famous, building on solid and well-documented research. A generous mix of newspaper illustrations, carnival posters and photographs lend a period feeling to the thoroughly engaging volume.”
Kirkus Reviews

“Although a significant number of players are involved, the narrative’s 12 chapters move swiftly, with period photos helping to break up the text-heavy pages (printed in brown ink). Contextualizing this scam against the wider backdrop of the Gilded Age, Murphy adeptly explains how hoaxes like the Cardiff Giant helped accelerate reforms, such as the establishment of professional scientific organizations and journals.”
Publishers Weekly

“Presenting evidence that almost from the outset both educated and popular opinion was divided over whether the figure was a fossilized human or a carving, an ancient relic or a modern “humbug,” Murphy shows how the controversy itself fueled the giant’s notoriety—to the extent that the figure’s “authenticity” became such a non-issue that P.T. Barnum made a bundle displaying an openly made duplicate and to this day the original and several surviving copies remain local museum attractions.”
Booklist

Connections
1. Research the additional famous hoaxes discussed by Jim Murphy at the conclusion of the book. Compare and contrast them to the Cardiff Giant Hoax, and find common themes throughout each (such as greed, respect, archaeology, etc.).

2. Study the practice of archaeology and go outside to see if children can find anything as an archaeologist would. Choose one of the ArchaeologyLand! activities to do with children to learn about archaeology: http://www.saa.org/publicftp/public/resources/PubSessionsarchaeologyland.html.

Reference: SAA. "SAA Archaeology for the Public." ArchaeologyLand! http://www.saa.org/publicftp/public/resources/PubSessionsarchaeologyland.html (accessed October 28, 2014).

3. Read more about the time in which the Cardiff Giant was found through these books:
The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P. T. Barnum by Candace Fleming, The Era of Reconstruction and Expansion (1865-1900) by George Edward Stanley, or The Gilded Age by Diane Telgen.

4. Read other literature by Jim Murphy, such as Baffling and Bizarre Inventions, The Great Fire, or Boys' War Confederate and Union Soldiers Talk about the Civil War.