Module 12: Strong Man: The Story of Charles Atlas

Summary
This is, as the title says, the story of Charles Atlas, from his immigrant beginnings, to his career in a Coney Island sideshow, to the development of his fitness system and his being declared the world's most perfectly developed man. The book concludes with a few fitness activities.


Citation
McCarthy, M. (2007). Strong man: The story of Charles Atlas. New York, NY. Knopf Books for Young Readers.

Impression
This book was fun and informative, telling the story and emphasizing the importance of both physical fitness and overall health and responsibility. McCarthy does a good job of cutting through the mythology that surrounds Charles Atlas to give a very simplified account of his life. The illustrations are cartoony enough to be universal, and the colors are rich and interesting.

Reviews
"*Starred Review* In this winning picture-book biography, author and illustrator McCarthy (Aliens Are Coming, 2006) tells the story of Charles Atlas, the original 98-pound weakling who transformed himself into The World's Most Perfectly Developed Man and moved generations to embrace fitness. The smoothly paced, concise text follows Atlas from his boyhood arrival on Ellis Island to the abuse he suffered as a skinny kid in his Brooklyn neighborhood. After finding inspiration in classical statues of muscled gods and in the animal world (a lion's stretch is a eureka moment), Atlas developed his Dynamic Tension fitness program and became a world-famous strong man. The acrylic paintings nicely reinforce the meaning in the words on each page, and the artwork's cartoonish style bug-eyed, thickly outlined characters and rich, flat colors echoes Atlas' larger-than-life, superhero persona. Particularly touching are the re-creations, in words and pictures, of letters sent from young fans whose lives were changed by Atlas' program. Atlas' tall-tale biography is a difficult story to tell accurately, and McCarthy's lengthy author's note acknowledges the challenges she encountered as she separated fact from fiction. A bibliography and an illustrated spread featuring examples from Atlas' exercise regimen conclude this cheerful introduction to a cultural legend whose messages about self-respect and healthy choices are just as timely today as they were 50 years ago."

Engberg, G. (2007, June 1). [Review of the book Strong Man, by M. McCarthy]. Booklist. Retrieved from http://www.booklistonline.com/

"From the inspired take on the 1939 War of the Worlds broadcast (Aliens Are Coming!, 2006), McCarthy turns her attention to another icon of 20th-century pop culture, Charles Atlas. Bug-eyed cartoony acrylics depict the arrival on American shores of young Angelo Siciliano and the now-legendary sand-kicking episode on Coney Island's beach: "SPLAT!" Inspired by a statue of Hercules in a museum and a powerful lion at the zoo, he determined to remake himself. Of course, he did, becoming the inspiration for thousands of comics-reading 98-pound weaklings that followed. Such a story could easily be deadly in its virtue, but both the humor of the illustrations and the accretion of cool Atlas facts—he served as the model for over 75 statues around the country; he still reigns as "The World's Most Perfectly Developed Man"—keep things light without undercutting the author's genuine admiration for the man. Comic-strip panels appropriately share the space with traditional spreads and mock black-and-white photographs, delivering a sunny account of Atlas's life and career. An extensive author's note expands on both man and influence; four exercises are also provided."

(2007, May 15) [Review of the book Strong Man, by M. McCarthy]. Kirkus. Retrieved from http://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/meghan-mccarthy/strong-man/#review

Uses
This book would lend itself really well to a storytime with fitness activities--there are exercises included that would be really easy for kids to do to get some wiggles out!