Tricky Vic: The Impossibly True Story of the Man Who Sold the Eiffel Tower

Product Description A New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Children's Book of 2015 In the early 1900s, Robert Miller, a.k.a. “Count Victor Lustig,” moved to Paris hoping to be an artist. A con artist, that is. He used his ingenious scams on unsuspecting marks all over the world, from the Czech Republic, to Atlantic ocean liners, and across America. Tricky Vic pulled off his most daring con in 1925, when he managed to "sell" the Eiffel Tower to one of the city’s most successful scrap metal dealers! Six weeks later, he tried to sell the Eiffel Tower all over again. Vic was never caught. For that particular scam, anyway. . . . Kids will love to read about Vic's thrilling life, and teachers will love the informational sidebars and back matter. Award-winner Greg Pizzoli’s humorous and vibrant graphic style of illustration mark a bold approach to picture book biography. From School Library Journal Gr 3–6—This picture book takes a look at Robert Miller, a successful con man who managed to dupe many and by posing as a government official was even able to "sell" the Eiffel Tower to scrap metal dealers, before being caught and imprisoned. Miller used more than 45 aliases during his life but was known to many as Tricky Vic. This is a fascinating story, with quirky, retro-style, mixed-media art that will appeal to readers. Beyond a line or two at the beginning about Vic turning to a life of crime, Pizzoli doesn't moralize about his subject's actions. Tricky Vic is a little-known subject, and some may wonder if there's an audience for this title. However, this is an intriguing account, and through sidebars, the book offers some effective avenues for discussing related historical events, people, and places, such as Al Capone, Prohibition, counterfeiting, and Alcatraz. An attractive, though esoteric, offering.—Dorcas Hand, Annunciation Orthodox School, Houston, TX Review Selected for The New York Times ten Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2015 Selected for Amazon's Best Books of the Year list Selected for the American Library Association's Notable Children's Books List Nominated for the Children's Choice Book Awards Best Illustrator "Splendid. . . . Loaded with facts but with good storytelling and high-level illustration. . . . I’m thrilled that Pizzoli has chosen to present [Tricky Vic's] story so compellingly to our nation’s children."—The New York Times "Intriguing."—The Wall Street Journal "What a con job! I mean that in the best possible way. Vic was tricky but so is Greg Pizzoli. His storytelling and mixed-media artwork is rendered with expert sleight of hand."—Lane Smith, author/illustrator of It's a Book and the Caldecott Honor book Grandpa Green "It's hard enough to make a well-told story out of real-life things—it’s almost unfair that he could also make it this pretty."—Jon Klassen, author and illustrator of the Caldecott Medal winner This Is Not My Hat * "An appealingly colorful, deadpan account of a remarkably audacious and creative criminal."—Kirkus Reviews, starred review * "What a fabulous story."—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review "Elementary-school kids impressed by brazen acts of skulduggery will be snowed by this well-told true story."—Booklist "Greg Pizzoli gets high marks for derring-do. . . . The bold, graphic mixed-media art—made with photographs, rubber stamps, pencil, ink, and digital tools—steals the show."—The Boston Globe "A fascinating story, with quirky, retro-style, mixed-media art that will appeal to readers."—School Library Journal “Stylish illustrations. . . Pizzoli’s recounting entertains.”—Publishers Weekly “With a sophisticated, genially sinister design incorporating cartoons and photographs into a low-toned red and mustard palette, the book signals the right kind of reader: one for whom venality is no obstacle to a good time.”—The Horn Book "The clever illustrations add to the enjoyment; this is an entertaining biography and an interesting glim