Bubba and the Cowboy Prince: A Fractured Texas Tale

Bibliography

Ketteman, Helen. 1997. Bubba and the Cowboy Prince: A Fractured Texas Tale. Ill. by James Warhola. Scholastic Press, New York. ISBN 0590255061

Plot Summary

This is a Cinderella story set in Texas. A rancher named Bubba has to do all the chores for his wicked step daddy and stepbrothers. They get invited to a ball where Miss Lurleen, the prettiest and richest lady, is looking for a companion. Bubba gets to go with the help of his fairy godcow. The story ends with Miss Lurleen and Bubba getting married, and the step dad and brothers throwing chicken fits.

Critical Analysis

Throughout the book, details along with the illustrations represent the characters to be good or bad. For example, it states, "…Bubba worked from sunup to sundown doing the chores of three ranch hands. Bubba never complained though," this shows his character is hardworking and kind. Ketteman describes the step daddy as wicked and the stepbrothers as hateful, lazy, and bossy.
The plot is based on a Cinderella story with a lot of Texas symbols. The theme is the same as any Cinderella story, where the good overcomes the bad.
The style is repeated throughout with old Texas twang that really comes to life when read aloud. Some examples are: bonked the bejeebers out of his bean; downright purty; and gitting them doggies along.
The illustrations went along great with the text. It showed many details that represented Texas, like cacti and armadillos to name a few. It says that the step daddy and stepbrothers threw chicken fits and my first graders got a good idea after looking at the illustration as to what that meant.

Review Excerpt(s)

Children's Literature
"The paintings are brightly colored and fanciful, with wonderful perplexed expressions on the rest of the cattle when the fairy godcow shows up. Great fun and a wonderful twist on the Cinderella story."

School Library Journal Review
" This is a fun-filled story with more hyperbole than a Christmas turkey has stuffing."

Connections

*Read this book and other versions of Cinderella, such as Rufferella or Dinorella and compare and contrast the characters and settings.
*Have students do the readers theater script by Dr. Vardell, to improve reading fluency. The students would absolutely love it!