Novelist Colson Whitehead says he first heard the story of John Henry through a cartoon film shown in a grade school history class. The tale of the hammer-swinging steel-driving man who beat a steam engine appealed to him, but also left many questions, some of which he tries to answer in his new book "John Henry Days." The critically acclaimed book follows some of the people attending the celebration around the release of a John Henry stamp. It also traces the legend and its modern echoes in racial strife, labor conflict, and fear of new technology. Whitehead told Minnesota Public Radio's Euan Kerr part of his fascination with the John Henry legend is how Henry beats the steam drill, but then collapses and dies.