Review by Booklist Review
K-Gr. 2. What can you say about a hero who is named for a cheese and a quasi-mythical beast? Pecorino Sasquatch performs admirably in his first Little League game, though it is not without trauma. Coach Credenza hands him the last jersey, which bears the number 13 and is so huge that it appears to say Alone instead of Malone, the logo everyone else wears (the M is under Pecorino's arm). The opposing team is sponsored by W hite's Wo men's Wear) which is, alas, compressed to hit me on the jersey of one of the players, who is both Pecorino's rival and respected adversary. The illustrations are a manic blend of acrylic, pen, and collage: figures have huge noses and great googly eyes, pipe-stem legs and arms, and in the case of Mrs. Sasquatch, truly alarming hair. Silly, decidedly odd, and generally giggle inducing. --GraceAnne DeCandido Copyright 2006 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The fellow introduced in Pecorino's First Concert catches baseball fever in Pecorino Plays Ball by Alan Madison, illus. by AnnaLaura Cantone. The coach assigns Pecorino to right field. "There was one problem, thought Pecorino as he rambled to right-he had never actually caught a baseball." Hilarious teammates traverse the field and kooky parents stand at the sidelines to witness Pecorino's first catch. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Pecorino Sasquatch, who got stuck in a tuba in Pecorino's First Concert (S & S, 2005), is about to play his first baseball game. When his mother announces that it's his first day of Little League, he springs out of bed, but then remembers that he hasn't a clue what Little League is. No matter. Out to the field he goes where Coach Credenza issues the uniforms. With only an Xtra-Xtra-large shirt left, Pecorino finds that his chest reads, "Alone We Sell Oxes." The youngster lifts his arms out to his side and discovers that the sponsor is Malone's, a store that sells boxes. He is assigned to right field, and when the opposing team's right-fielder arrives, he is wearing a shirt that says "hit me ear." Upon raising his arms, the writing becomes clear: "White's Women's Wear." The innings progress, and Malone's is ahead by one run. Pecorino's back in right field and White's right-fielder is at bat. He manages to lob one right toward Pecorino, who has never actually caught a ball-until now. Cantone's acrylic, pen, and collage illustrations add to the general silliness of this book. The characters' features are exaggerated and humorous. Pecorino still has his trademark bug-eyes and oversized nose, and his mother is a chinless creature with a wild beehive hairdo, elongated neck, and the same eyes as Pecorino. Lighthearted nonsense, good for a laugh or two, this book would pair nicely with Willy Welch's Playing Right Field (Scholastic) or Robert Kraus's Mort The Sport (Orchard, both 2000).-Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Pecorino Sasquatch is playing his first Little League game, but he knows zilch about hitting or catching a baseball. Nevertheless, he makes friends with an equally inept player on the opposing team and helps win the game by (almost accidentally) catching a fly ball. Quirky collage illustrations complement the playful language in this zany tale, the second book about Pecorino. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Having attended his First Concert (2005), young Pecorino Sasquatch now moves on to Little League, where, drowning in an outsized jersey and with the threats of massive Coach Credenza ringing in his ears, he struggles to at least look like he has a clue about how to play. But not only has he never hit or caught a ball, he doesn't even have bubble gum to "burble," like everyone else on the field does. Happily, that last problem is solved by a gift left in distant right field by Pecorino's (almost) equally clueless opposite number--and thanks to that gooey glob, he's even able to make a spectacular, game-ending catch. Popeyed, wiener-nosed figures in Cantone's scribbly mixed-media pictures impart a properly goofy air, and also reflect Madison's delight in jokes and silly words, with which he's liberally salted his tale. Read this aloud, and set children, athletically gifted or otherwise, to laughing. (Picture book. 6-8) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
