Anton Can Do Magic

by Ole Könnecke

Anton wants to do some magic. He wants to make something disappear... First Anton tries to make a tree vanish, but it s too big. He manages to make a bird disappear, and even his friend Luke. But where did Luke go? Anton Can Do Magic is a perfectly simple and hilarious picture book about believing in yourself.

Genres: Picture Books, Magic, Storytime, Childrens, Humor, Fiction, Birds

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this book for a few toddles. They really enjoyed the book and the magic Anton did!

[Kowsar Bagheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

خیلی بامزه بود. هم نقاشی‌هاش و هم داستانش.
کیفیت چاپ هم ۱۰/۱۰

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Little ones might enjoy this, having fun being “in the know” about Anton’s true powers. I was only mildly entertained and I felt kind of bad for the bird in the end, though I don’t think we are meant to.

[Ms. B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read-aloud to share with your child or young students, can Anton do magic or not? All will enjoy this import from Germany in which the pictures tell more of the story than the text.

[Sam Dawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anton can do magic was a very good book that would be easy to follow for a young child. The lettering is large and easy to follow along with. The pictures are full of color and follow the storyline perfectly. This book focuses on self confidence.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anton has a magical hat, and does tricks like "disappearing" birds and friends. Since he has to have his hat over his eyes while doing the trick, though, he doesn't realize his magic is of the more "coincidental" nature.

[Bianca Orellana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute story!

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anton has a 'magic' hat and believes he can do magic. The sequence of events is easy to follow, but very cute.

[Sourimak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alors, magie ou trucage ? En tout cas tel est pris qui croyait prendre !

[Arghavan · Rating 3 out of 5]

برای بچه‌‌های کوچیک‌تر شاید، ولی گمون نکنم برای پیش‌دبستانی‌ها اونقدر جذاب باشه. کمااین‌که من دوستش داشتم و کیوت بود خیلی.

[Middletown Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect for magic storytime.
Not a lot of text. Easy to see illustrations.
Anton really believes he can do magic, even when his friends don't. Cute ending!

[Caro Serneels]

3-jarigen

[Jvermeersch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ik vond dit een hele leuke. Het verhaal werkt goed in al zijn eenvoud, het is grappig, de tekeningen zijn tof, en onze baby vond het allemaal boeiend tot het einde (wat niet bij elk boek het geval is).

[Madison Walston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anton Can Do Magic is a book about a young, aspiring magician. It plays with a child's ability to use their imagination. It was well designed and made me laugh throughout. I would recommend this to early readers in grades K and 1

[babyhippoface · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need more Ole Konnecke books. I've read two, and I've loved two. The first was Anthony and the Girls, which was so funny, and so spot-on, and so good for talking about predicting with kids. Even 5-year-olds can predict what's going to happen at the end of that story.

Now I've finally had the chance to read this book, Anton Can Do Magic. And it's adorable. Anton has a magic hat. A real one. Honest. He tries to make a tree disappear: ~~~~~~~ (magic waves). No luck. Hmmm. That tree was too big.

Anton tries to make a bird disappear: ~~~~~~~. It's GONE! Anton can do magic!

What Anton doesn't realize is that every time he waves his hands (~~~~~~~) his magic hat slips over his eyes and he can't see what's happening for a moment. Of course the bird flew away. Anton doesn't know it, though.

Anton tells Luke (also from Anthony and the Girls) that he can do magic, but Luke is a non-believer. Figures.

Konnecke's simple books are delightful windows into the child's mind. His illustrations are as simple as his text in their color and form, but equally terrific. Just winners all the way around.

We need more Konnecke. He's written and illustrated more than a dozen books, including another Anton book, but we don't get 'em here very often because he lives in Germany. Please, somebody, translate more Konnecke!

[Joella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anton can do magic. He has a magic hat. It makes him magical. When he sees a bird he "does some magic" (aka wiggles his fingers while the hat falls over his eyes) and what do you know, the bird "disappears" (aka flies off). Then of course he works to make something else "disappear", this time his friend Luke. But his friends aren't really impressed until Anton can make something re-appear. So fun, I actually laughed out loud. I love the imagination that Anton has. I can just see kids going around wiggling their fingers to do "magic" after reading this book. But I also think they will laugh at the fact that they know just what happened and what the "magic" is. Did I mention that the book makes me want to get myself a magician's hat just so I could do magic as well? Well, it does. I could see me in a magic hat reading this during storytime...if only I could wiggle my fingers enough! But, seeing how I also loved Konnecke's book "Anthony and the Girls" I knew I would most likely like this one as well.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure how I would like this book after the first couple of pages, especially reading in preparation for a magic theme K-6 storytime. But this is great! It will require the kids to pay attention to grasp the humor, which is not hard as text and illustrations are simple for everyone to catch the fun and humor in. A definite choice. Would work in movement and preschool as well. Might have to point out the hat falling over the eyes at the beginning.

7/13/17 Used at an Outreach storytime (American Diabetes Association Utah Day Camp with a Magic theme). They were K-3rd age. They loved it! Laughed because of his hat falling and seeing how the story all unfolded. Yay!

11/15/17 Used in random theme. Tiny crowd, but regulars. Still felt like I should point out his hat and see if they caught on. They did. Really cute. Parents enjoyed too.

Success at home.

[Amy Seto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anton has a magic hat that can make things disappear! Anton can’t wait to show his friend Luke. But what will Anton do when he makes Luke disappear? Originally published in Germany, this story uses third person narration to let readers in on the joke about Anton’s hat and it’s magical abilities. The cartoonish illustrations use a limited palette to create simple, but hilariously effective scenes and character interactions. This is a wonderful book to share one-on-one or with a group of preschool or lower elementary school kids.

Full review at http://picturebookaday.blogspot.com/2...

[Kandice Buck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anton can do magic with his magic hat. He is very proud of his magic so he shows his doubtful friend Luke. Anton then tells Luke that he will make him disapear. When Anton puts his hat on Luke walks away, leaving Anton into believing that he had made Luke disappear. Later in the book, Luke is helping his friend find her missing bird. Anton uses his magic hat again and makes the bird appear! Luke was surprised by Anton's magic working. Children will love this book because they will know the truth about Anton's magic and will find it funny.This is a very entertaining book!

[Maureen Milton · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Anton has a magic hat. A real one."

With clear colors and spare drawings, Konnecke artfully captures a child's belief in and desire to make magic happen for himself and his friends.

A great choice for an imaginative 3- to 7-year-old like my nephew, who last week, after we debarked from a ferry, pulled his mother close & whispered in her ear, "I am the captain of that boat."

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it. Only one sentence per page with great simple yet very expressive drawings. My kids loved the magic tricks anton could 'do' especially the last page. I think I looked this more than the kids! The simplicity but beauty of it is great and I love the hidden message about believing in your own abilities no matter what others think.

[Hannah Holt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore this book (and this series). The author/illustrator leaves just the right amount of space between the words and the pictures, each tell part of the story. I love the slightly retro feel and the straight forward yet subtly layered text. There is plenty to discover for the kids as well as a few winks at the adults. This book has something for everyone. It's delightful!

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really cute story of completely magical events, if you see things as Anton does, and why not? Whose version of reality should we accept? A fun early critical literacy book with plenty of discrepancy between image and text to provoke discussion, as well as an engaging book for emergent readers. There really is something magical about this story. . .

[Victoria Simmons · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book would be good for the early years. Many children would most likely enjoy knowing the 'truth'. This book could also be a good book for children who struggle​ with comprehension and retelling. The book may be below level in many cases but it would provide the child the ability to retell based on pictures as well as the story itself.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love these boldly outlined illustrations, with only a few essential background elements and limited color range so the focus stays on Anton. Completely charming.

Used in Stories & Signs on Play, Nov. 2012 & preschool visits.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anton is the proud owner of a magic hat and wand. He uses his tools to make a bird disappear and reappear. Anton is convinced he is using magic, but the cartoon style illustrations tell a different story. This is a great book depicting the imaginary lives of children.

[Emerson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A simple book - but fun! The illustrations are clean and sparse, but make their points really well. I like that the story is a little bit tricky and I think it will be fun to read again later, when I'm older and get the joke a little better.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anton put a spell on me with his particularly lucky sort of magic. The Peanuts-esque illustrations work hand-in-hand with deliciously concise text to tell a funny story about a boy who has to prove to his friends that his magic hat enables him to do magic.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a little like being told a joke-- once you've heard it once you don't need to hear it again and again. At least, I think that is what my kids would say. They giggled the first time we read it but haven't asked to read it again.

[Alina Bender · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wonder how many young readers will believe that Anton can do magic. And that would be one of my first questions for my class: can any of you do magic? Can Anton do magic? I predict an interesting talk will follow.