The Great Antonio: TOON Level 2

by Elise Gravel

Overview

The Great Antonio weighed as much as a horse, wrestled a bear, fought two trucks at once—AND HE WAS REAL!

"A tribute as heartfelt as it is joyous." —Kirkus Reviews STARRED REVIEW

What made the Great Antonio so great? He weighed as much as a horse! He once wrestled a bear. He could devour twenty-five roasted chickens at one sitting. In this whimsical graphic novel, beloved author and illustrator Elise Gravel tells the true story of Antonio Barichievich, the larger-than-life Montreal strongman who had muscles as big as his heart. Now available in an affordable paperback ediition!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781662665554
Publisher:	Astra Publishing House
Publication date:	01/21/2025
Pages:	64
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.22(d)
Lexile:	580L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

In kindergarten Elise was popular because she could draw princesses with long, spiral curls. Then in high school, girls asked her to draw their dream guys, and she became very talented at drawing muscles and chest hair, which came in handy for this book.

One of Elise's favorite authors is Roald Dahl. He got her interested in unusual people and animals—anyone who is strange, different, or funny.

In her hometown of Montreal, everyone knew and loved the great Antonio, the gentle giant who lived outside the donut shop. He claimed to have been one of the strongest men in the world and to be able to talk to aliens with his braids. After his death, it was revealed that many of Antonio's wild stories were true: he had a letter from President Bill Clinton and photos of himself with celebrities like Liza Minnelli, Sophia Loren, and Johnny Carson.

Editorial Reviews

08/15/2016
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.)

Publishers Weekly

Elizabeth Bird's A Fuse #8 Production 2016 Fictionalized Non-Fiction for Kids
TD Summer Reading Club's Top Recommend Reads for 2017
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

* "A tribute as heartfelt as it is joyous” — Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

"Gravel gives us a funny, very kid-friendly story about a gentle giant, someone who twirled children around on his braids, turning himself into a human merry-go-round for their amusement." — School Library Journal Good Comics for Kids

"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." — Publishers Weekly

"Kids will be taken by this larger-than-life figure, who is still beloved in Montreal, the city the Great Antonio called home."— Booklist

"Gravel’s cartoonish art is graphically sophisticated." — Montreal Gazette

"In this innovative portrait―not quite a biography yet not quite a legend―Gravel affectionately places Antonio in the Paul Bunyan tradition of mighty men." — Horn Book Magazine

"A modern tale for a new audience." - Mom Read It

From the Publisher

01/01/2017
K-Gr 2—Antonio Barichievich (1925–2003) was a Croatian-born strongman who lived a fascinating life. Antonio weighed 460 pounds, could eat 25 chickens and a dozen doughnuts in a sitting, and pulled trains and busses—with his hair! He wrestled bears, sang opera, and, in the end, lived at a doughnut shop. Author and illustrator Gravel highlights this little-known, real-life person in an imaginative and engaging way. The comic book-style format provides emerging readers with many opportunities to explore the relationship between text and image. As with all Toon Books, this title offers educators and caregivers concise tips on how to read and use comics with kids. VERDICT A fine addition for chapter book and early graphic novel collections.—Lindsay Persohn, University of South Florida, Tampa

School Library Journal

★ 2016-07-20
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 be—born to a family of giant lumberjacks, raised by bears on another planet—the 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 intentional—endnotes reveal that after Barichievich’s death, many of his crazy stories were discovered to be true. The real-life tall-tale effect, as readers move through the series of Antonio’s 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 glory—throughout, 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)

Kirkus Reviews