A Giant Man from a Tiny Town

by Tom Ryan, Christopher Hoyt (Illustrator)

When Angus MacAskill was still just a boy, he began to grow...and grow...and...grow! Known far and wide as the Cape Breton Giant, Angus was loved by his neighbours as much for his beautiful singing voice as for his renowned strength. But as much as Angus loved his little town of St. Ann's, Cape Breton, he decided to leave and seek fortune and adventure.

With heartfelt text from critically acclaimed author Tom Ryan and meticulously researched and joyful illustrations from Christopher Hoyt (A is for Adventure), A Giant Man from a Tiny Town tells the story of a remarkable man who travelled the world performing for crowds, but never stopped longing to return to the place he loved the best: his Cape Breton home.

Genres: Picture Books, Canada, Nonfiction

32 pages, Hardcover

Published October 30, 2018

About the author

Tom Ryan is an award winning author, screenwriter and producer. His YA mystery KEEP THIS TO YOURSELF was the winner of the 2020 ITW Thriller Award for Best YA Thriller, the 2020 Arthur Ellis Award for Best YA Crime Book, and the 2021 Ann Connor Brimer Award, and is currently being adapted for television. His followup YA mystery I HOPE YOU’RE LISTENING was the winner of the 2021 Lambda “Lammy” Award for Best LGBTQ Mystery. He was a 2017 Lambda Literary Fellow in Young Adult Fiction.

Tom, his husband and their dog live in Nova Scotia.

Reviews

[Natalie all_books_great_and_small · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This is a children's book about a remarkable young man who grew to be 7'9" tall. The book is a short but sweet biography told in story format about Angus MacAskill's life and how even though he became famous for being the tallest man in the world and seeing the world he felt small and alone and realised home was actually where his family and friends were who accepted and loved him for who he was rather than what he was.

This is a lovely story for children and the illustrations were befitting to the time period of the book too.

[Theediscerning · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pleasant and perfectly serviceable look at the Cape Breton Giant, a circus goliath who topped out at seven foot nine, got to meet Queen Victoria, but knew that ultimately the people in his home village looked up to him for what he did and how he helped them out, and not because of his freakish stature. The message, that the manner of man (or woman) one chooses to be is more important than looks, is always salient. I had thought we'd seen the last of twee farm animals looking over their fence to watch the main character leave home as if they know what's going on and have an opinion about it, but the old-fashioned style here isn't at odds with the nature of the story.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicely done picture book about a man who becomes a circus exhibition, then quits it all to return home again.

There have been several books about such people, oddities that were exhibited during the height of that sort of thing in Victorian times, and it is interesting to see how their life went before and after the circus.


Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

[Sue Slade · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Giant Man from a Tiny Town by Tom Ryan is a wonderful story covering the true life of Giant Angus MacAskill starting when Angus was a small boy living on the Scottish Hebrides. His family then emigrated to Cape Breton while he was still a young boy. He and his family lived in Englishtown, where Angus went to school. When Angus hit teens, he shot up like a weed, becoming very tall and strong. He then decided to join the circus and travel the world before returning home to Cape Breton.

Christopher Hoyt did a superb job of illustrating this book. I thought the way he illustrated how tall Angus grew was very creative and ingenious. How do you show someone growing to seven foot, nine inches? Christopher drew Angus standing in front of a fence with a horse on the other side. The first drawing had Angus standing on a box to see over the fence, the second had Angus without the box, and in the last one, Angus was taller than the horse.

A Giant Man from a Tiny Town would be a great addition to any preschool or home library, particularly for those who live in Atlantic Canada. The words and pictures invite discussion, especially the cover, which Giant MacAskill has almost outgrown because he is so big.

[Digitally Lit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alicia- I received this book from Digitally Lit and Nimbus Publishing to read to my brother and make a little review with him.

👇👇👇👇
((My Review)) Age (15)
This story is a sweet and wholesome children's story that tells a bit of Nova Scotia's history. It tells the true story of Angus MacAskill through easy to read paragraphs and wholesome illustrations. I enjoy the art style of the book and the perspective it gives you. We both recommend this book, for you or for a younger sibling or kid. I rate this book a
4/5 star ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Keep reading for my little brother's review!!!

((Little Brother's Review)) Age (7.5)
"I like how he tries to fit in the cover, and I really like the art style. It was a really nice book."

Q: (How would you feel being that large?)
"If I was that large I'd feel scared because I might knock somebody over."

Q: (If you were in his shoes would you join the circus?)
"If I was that tall I'd join the circus. I think it would be kind of an exciting lifestyle"

Q: (What do you rate this book?)
"I rate it 5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐"

Swipe to see the real photo of Angus MacAskill.
Have you ever heard of the Cape Breton Giant?

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Giant Man from a Tiny Town: A Story of Angus Macaskill by Tom Ryan, illustrated by Christopher Hoyt. PICTURE BOOK. Nimbus Publishing, 2018. $23. 9781771086547

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Angus Macaskill was an average height child until his teenage years when he grew to seven feet and nine inches. At that point, Angus worked the fields in his small town for a few years until he decided to see the world by joining the circus. After traveling for a time, he returned home.

This is a quick and easy informational text about a true figure from history. The story is fairly bare bones and the illustrations are muted and traditional, but it works in this case. Hopefully this will interest readers in learning more about this and other historical figures.

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher
https://kissthebookjr.blogspot.com/20...

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Angus McGill was average height until he was a teenager, when he really started outgrowing his peers. He was well over 7 feet tall by the time he was an adult. His town loved him, he was big and strong, but he felt like the world had more to offer, so he traveled to the big city, eventually joining the circus. But no one loves you like your friends and family.

I love these quick informational texts! It's the perfect spring board to get a child's mind ready to research or to look up more information. Christopher Hoyt's cover picture is one of my favorite parts of the book. Angus barely fits - he is so tall! Includes an authors note at the end with more biographical information and a photograph of Angus and General Tom Thumb.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

A picture book biography of Angus MacAskill, who grew to 7'9" and eventually left his Cape Breton home to enter show business. But then decided eventually to retire and return to his home.

I like the way this book quietly reminds readers that everyone wants to be loved for who they are as a person, not necessarily what makes them most noticeable. This is a quick read with just a few lines per page, but it succinctly tells the story of a man with extraordinary height who had an urge to see the world. The illustrations fit the time period very well. A cozy picture book biography of a very normal man who happened to be abnormally tall.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a non-fiction picture book, the story of a young boy who emigrated from the Scottish Hebrides with his family to a small town in Cape Breton (now part of Nova Scotia), Canada. Angus was of normal size until he hit adolescence when he grew, and grew, and grew - to over 7 feet tall as an adult. He was perfectly proportioned, very strong, and of a gentle nature. Angus travelled with P.T. Barnum circus for awhile, and moved back home to build successful businesses.
This is a well told story beautifully illustrated.

[Seema Rao · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, and competently illustrated. I wouldn’t say it’s worth buying but it would definitely be worth checking out of the library.

If you get away from the fact you can’t go anywhere, this is a nice book for families. The book has nice exercises and so much information. The illustrations were so so,

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting true story about a "giant" man, 7 feet tall, who worked in PT Barnum's circus.

Cute, but a similar book that I liked more is The True Tale of a Giantess: The Story of Anna Swan.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a book about Angus. He is known for his height and for being a great neighbor. I enjoyed the book. After realizing it was a true story, I was intrigued enough find & read a few articles about him online.

[Engel Dreizehn · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's pleasant parable about both the history of the strong giant man that toured with the circus but also the giant heart has for his tiny town he calls home.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of the man known as the Cape Breton Giant who traveled the world with the P.T. Barnum circus.

[Tony Primeau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Obviously I liked it. My grandma’s Annie MacAskill-Primeau. This giant’s my ancestor 😉👍

[Sydney Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well-written short biography with lovely artwork.

[Jbondandrews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as good a book as the one about Anna Swan, I would have liked to have seen a picture or two more of Angus lifting heavy objects.

[Amie's Book Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Terrific story with wonderful accompanying illustrations.

Definitely recommended by me

4 out of 5 Stars