Big Anthony Fails These Magic Lessons
Strega Nona's Magic Lessons by Tomie De Paola
Poor Big Anthony. So much of what he wants out of life is beyond his grasp. He wants what he sees and hears without any thought to the labor needed to acquire it or the consequences of something done half-heartedly.
And in the days before Ritalin, only a compassionate Strega is able to protect Big Anthony from his inability to concentrate and his knack for getting himself into messes. Strega Nona's Magic Lessons is another Tomie dePaola picture book in the Strega Nona series. In this book, Strega Nona decides she needs to pass on her knowledge right about the time Bambalona, the baker's daughter, tires of being taken advantage of by her layabout father.
Strega Nona begins teaching Bambalona her secrets of magic and healing. When Big Anthony begs to be taught as well, she turns him away, saying a man can't be a strega. So Big Anthony disguises himself as Antonia and convinces Strega Nona to take "her" on as a pupil. Unfortunately for Anthony, the disguise didn't make him any more able to concentrate or understand the compassion behind the magic. After repeated failures, Strega Nona and Bambalona trick him into giving up the magic lessons.
While that sounds rather harsh, dePaola manages to put a sweet spin on it. Anthony is as bumbling as ever and Strega Nona seems determined to save him from himself-as well as any hapless victims that might cross his path. His inability to concentrate and his daydreaming make him unfit for the job of strega. His patients leave with their diseases worsened, his love potions sour, and he's unable to find ways to compensate.
While Strega Nona is able from the beginning to see through the disguise, she gives Anthony the opportunity to learn with Bambalona-and she does her best to teach him. It is only when he continually fails that she dissuades him by convincing him that he causes a tragedy, a tragedy that can be undone only by his forswearing magic forever.
In some ways, the book's message is tough. It tells us that there are some things we cannot do-even though our heart may desire them rather strongly. The heart's desire can be reaped only if we're willing to do the hard work to get to the harvest. We may not have to sow and plant exactly the way other people do, but we still must find a way to do the work. Anthony doesn't fail because of who he is, he fails because he isn't willing to get beyond what he is to become the person of his dreams.
As usual, de Paola's illustrations are excellent-the very kind that have made him one of the best beloved illustrators of children's novels. The drawings are clever and the expressions manage to endear us to the characters. The art adds to the humor and charm of the story, saving words by telegraphing the more amusing angles of the story.
With books like this, it is easy to see why the Strega Nona series has become the flagship of Tomie de Paola's fleet of books.
