Review by Booklist Review
If Hagrid ever walked the muggle world, it probably would have been as Antonio Barichievich, a real-life gentle giant and strongman. Gravel's playful biography reads like a tall tale, as Antonio often gave varying answers about his childhood, and his astounding feats of strength sound superhuman. By 20, he weighed as much as a horse (queue the affronted horse standing on a bathroom scale), he could eat 25 chickens at one go, and his shirts could double as parachutes. Not impressed? How about the paneled spread showing him wrestling a bear and another page showing him trotting with a 443-ton train in tow, setting a world record? Intermixed with these astonishing facts are Gravel's silly suggestions about Antonio's childhood and source of strength (aliens!), though this muddles the nonfiction waters a bit. Her digital illustrations make use of a retro palette, artistic font choices (great for emergent readers), and a generous helping of fun. Kids will be taken by this larger-than-life figure, who is still beloved in Montreal, the city the Great Antonio called home.--Smith, Julia Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
When wrestler Antonio Barichievich (1925-2002) emigrated from Croatia to Montreal as a young adult, his huge, Paul Bunyan-like physique drew attention. He weighed 460 pounds-"which is as heavy as a horse!" Gravel (I Want a Monster!) points out-and she draws him picking up a telephone pole with a dozen men hanging off it ("This is easy!" he says). Like Sampson, Antonio didn't cut his hair, and he used to let children hang on to his braids and whirl them around, "a gigantic human merry-go-round!" Though successful for a time as a wrestler, he "mostly lived on the street" after a mysterious heartbreak, spending his days at a Montreal doughnut shop; when he died, neighbors left flowers there. Gravel draws Antonio's story with an easy, loopy line, including both playful and haunting moments. Early on, he sits down to a dinner of 25 roast chickens; later, a cat follows him, playing with his dragging braids as he walks the streets alone. What's to be made of lives that don't go the way they were supposed to? Gravel shows that they're worth paying attention to. Ages 4-8. Agent: Lori Nowicki, Painted Words. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Horn Book Review
TOON Books continues to reinvent the easy reader with this biography of eccentric strongman Antonio Barichievich, a Croatian-born showman who became a Montreal legend. Fact, speculation, and tall tale mingle in a simple text. Antonios clothes. 1. His shirt. You could cut a parachute out of it. 2. His shoes. A large cat could sleep in one of them. Guinness World Record fans will appreciate the specific detail. Here, hes pulling a four-hundred-and-forty-three-ton train over a distance of sixty-five feet! Energetic illustrations in muted colors feature a large, pink, hairy, joyful Antonio. Wild typefaces seem to want to burst the bounds of the page. In his heyday Antonio sang opera, wrestled bears, pulled buses with his braids, and ate twenty-five chickens at one go, but there is a hint of melancholy in the final chapter of his life, when he was essentially homeless. Gravel includes the sadness but then fantasizes an appropriate afterlife for him: among body-building extraterrestrials on another planet. Back matter includes a few more details about Antonio. In this innovative portraitnot quite a biography yet not quite a legendGravel affectionately places Antonio in the Paul Bunyan tradition of mighty men. sarah ellis(c) Copyright 2016. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
An illustrated biography of a legendary strongman from Montreal.This is a love letter of a biography about a colorful character who was an eccentric fixture in Montreal for many years: record-holding strongman Antonio Barichievich. After comical speculations about how he came to beborn to a family of giant lumberjacks, raised by bears on another planetthe cheery illustrations detail the amazing feats performed by the large, hairy, white Croatian immigrant. The blend of fanciful speculation with stories that seem improbable is clearly intentionalendnotes reveal that after Barichievichs death, many of his crazy stories were discovered to be true. The real-life tall-tale effect, as readers move through the series of Antonios accomplishments (pulling trains and buses, wrestling a bear, swinging children on his braids, etc.), will surely inspire child readers imaginations (and will have great classroom applications). The comedic treatment never mocks Antonio but celebrates him in all his weird glorythroughout, he is depicted as having fun just by being his extraordinary self. After his death, his impact is shown by the flowers and memorials left on his favorite bench as well as by a cat (that appears throughout the book) crying for him. The text is spare and engaging, and the type is set to integrate neatly with the playful art. A tribute as heartfelt as it is joyous and a fitting way to remember this larger-than-life performer. (comics guide for parents and teachers) (Graphic biography. 5-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
