ALA Booklist (Sat Oct 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)

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.

School Library Journal (Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2017)

K-Gr 2 Antonio Barichievich (19252003) 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 busseswith 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

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

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.)