Starred Review for Publishers Weekly (Thu Apr 28 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

A companion to Strega Nona: Her Story, dePaola's breezy bio of Strega Nona's bumbling sidekick, Big Anthony, can be thoroughly enjoyed by readers whether they are new to the series or longtime fans. The tale opens with the christening of the newborn Anthony, identifiable even in infancy by his wild shock of yellow hair. On this occasion he spills holy water all over himself and everyone else within splashing distance--an omen of many misadventures to come. With an Amelia Bedelia-like innocence and tendency to heed only parts of directions, the boy triggers comic confusion wherever he goes. The buoyant art shows what the text does not tell: Anthony slipping under the table at his first birthday to topple an elegant cake onto his head; Anthony stacking not only books (as his teacher has directed) but all the classroom furniture on a groaning shelf; Anthony letting all the sheep out of their pens after listening to only the two final words of his mother's request, """"don't leave any of the gates open."""" Readers will find even more to chuckle over after Big Anthony leaves home to earn his fortune (""""Before he ruins ours,"""" quips his grandmother). After several ill-fated job experiences in Italy's major cities, the well-intentioned fellow reads a want ad that leads him to Strega Nona's door and leaves readers at the same time and location as did the last page of Her Story. Though it's a delightful place to be, kids will likely flip back to the start, to relive bumbling Big Anthony's early life all over again. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)

ALA Booklist

In this companion to Strega Nona: Her Story (1996), dePaola turns the spotlight on the beloved witch's klutzy companion. From the day of his christening in the hills of northern Italy, it's clear that this larger-than-life lad is bound for a life of misadventure. From spilling holy water to losing workmen's lunches, Big Anthony can't seem to do anything right. It's not that he's mischievous; it's just that he doesn't pay attention. Finally Papa declares, It's time for Big Anthony to go out into the world and earn his fortune. Nonna Graziella quickly adds, Before he ruins ours. The big one is ready for the world, but the question remains, Is the big world ready for him? Fortunately his path of good (but bungled) intentions finally leads him to Strega Nona's door, and the rest is history. This good-natured but episodic book is essentially a loosely connected collection of visual one-liners. The text sets up a joke, and the punch line is delivered in a picture, rendered in dePaola's softly colored signature style. A sprinkling of Italian words lends spice to the text. (Reviewed November 15, 1998)

Horn Book

The story of Big Anthony begins with his birth and baptism, when he spills holy water on everyone, and ends when he knocks on Strega Nona's door looking for a job. Readers familiar with the Strega Nona books will enjoy this early look at Big Anthony's life, but others will find the story incomplete and unsatisfying. The art contains dePaola's characteristic deft, humorous line.

Kirkus Reviews

The followers of Strega Nona and her consistently befuddled sidekick Big Anthony now have his "biography" from birth to that fateful meeting on a hill in Calabria. Set in the sunlit, fresco-colored world of once-upon-a-time-in-Italy, readers see Anthony baptized (he got water on everyone), during his first birthday (he landed in the cake), and in school (he didn't pay attention). As he gets older, he's needed more on the farm, but he never quite gets the instructions right. In self-defense, his father sends him out into the world. Big Anthony wanders through Pisa, Roma, Firenze, and Napoli, creating havoc all the way to Calabria, where he meets Strega Nona. This cheerful addition to the dePaola canon has plenty of Italian words to roll off the tongue, and abundant, limpid colors to delight the eye. (Picture book. 4-8)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

<EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">PW's starred review of this companion volume to <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">Strega Nona: Her Story said, "Readers will find much to chuckle at, and kids will likely flip back to the start of the book, to relive bumbling Big Anthony's early life all over again." Ages 4-8. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(June)

School Library Journal

K-Gr 3-Big Anthony, hapless helper of the good Italian witch Strega Nona, didn't begin his bumbling ways when he caused pasta from a magic pot to engulf the medieval Italian city of Calabria. He has bumbled from birth, and those mishaps have been recorded in this latest installment in the saga. This second prequel to Strega Nona: An Old Tale (S & S, 1975) is less folkloric and more biographical than the original. As in Strega Nona: Her Life (Putnam, 1996), dePaola documents the path that brought the two together. A bit long and perhaps a wee bit obscure for the preschoolers who haven't met the characters before, the text is well balanced with trademark dePaola illustrations, which provide comic visual punch lines to each episode. If the familiar cartoons are a bit looser in execution, the palette, with rosy Italian skies and even a volcano eruption, is more vivid than ever. Big Anthony and Strega Nona certainly qualify as celebrities in the realm of picture books, and this latest installment will bring smiles to the faces of their young fans.-Sue Sherif, Fairbanks North Star Borough Public Library, AK