THE GINGERBREAD MAN: DIFFERENT TWISTS TO A CLASSIC TALE
             According to Webster's Dictionary definition of a fairy tale is a "tale about fairies; an imaginative or legendary story; an incredible statement" (455). Fairy tales is a popular term for short fictional stories. A fairy tale is a kind of folklore or fable. The Volume Library states that folklore is a collection of myths and legends and a fable is told to illustrate a truth or moral (2:1321-1323). In these stories, we meet characters such as witches, princes, queens, talking animals and fairies. One such character is a cookie, which runs and taunts everyone. This character is featured in fairy tales that were told orally and set down on paper by one or more authors. The beauty of this story is the slight differences each time it is told. According to the online article by Reagan Walker, The Gingerbread Man has many versions and is all different from the first written in the 11th century. Of all these versions, The Gingerbread Boy by Richard Egielski, Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett, and The Runaway Tortilla by Eric A. Kimmel are similar in nature but differ in audience appeal, illustrative style and media, and literary elements.
             One of the many aspects that make a story enjoyable is the audience appeal that it is directed towards. The Gingerbread Man is considered a cumulative tale (Russell 153). A cumulative tale is a tale with successive additions and is made to a repetitive plot line (Russell 153). The repetitive plot line in The Gingerbread Boy is "Run run run as fast as you can. You can't catch me! I'm the Gingerbread Man" (Egielski 2). A cumulative tale is a tale that has a unique rhyme which appeals to younger children who love the repeated pattern (Russell 154). The repetitive line helps to the test the memory of younger children and allows them to join in the storytelling. The Gingerbread Boy is a story that appe...