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Summary
Summary
The third installment in this adorable Level 2 Geisel Award-winning series from a classroom favorite!
Mo's latest obsession is basketball. He's determined to learn how to pass, but as the shortest member of the team, he can't seem to launch the ball high enough. Can Mo learn to pass in time to help his team win the big game? This Level 2 reader about a little African-American boy with a big passion for sports is a funny, motivational companion to the winner of the 2016 Theodor Seuss Geisel Award.
Praise for Pass the Ball, Mo!:
"...welcome addition to the easy reader shelves." --The Horn Book
Author Notes
David A. Adler was born in New York City. He attended Queen's College in New York City and later, earned an MBA in Marketing from New York University.
He writes both fiction and non-fiction. He is the author of Cam Jansen mysteries and the Andy Russell titles. His titles has earned him numerous awards including a Sydney Taylor Book Award for his title "The Number on My Grandfather's Arm," "A Picture Book of Jewish Holidays" was named a Notable Book of 1981 by the American Library Association and "Our Golda" was named a Carter G. Woodson Award Honor Book.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-The newest title about the protagonist of Don't Throw It to Mo! and Get a Hit, Mo! is all about basketball. Mo is the shortest player on the Bees basketball team, but he has big dreams. He practices passing all the time ("'throw it higher,' Coach Emma tells him")-at school, at home, even with blueberries into his cereal bowl. When the Bees play the Ducks, Mo is benched for most of the game but gets to come in at the end, when the score is tied. When Mo finally gets the ball, he passes it high-so high that he actually makes a basket and wins the game! The story ends with Coach Emma playfully telling him "it was a very bad pass. But your bad pass won the game." This charming story has many funny and relatable moments for sports lovers and underdogs, and shows the power of practicing and having the support of family, caring adults, teammates, and friends. There is a great deal of diversity featured in the illustrations-Mo and his family are African American, both basketball teams are coed, and the characters are majority people of color. The spot and full-page illustrations are simple, but with great character expression and movement. VERDICT Another enjoyable "Mo" sports story for beginning readers.-Jenny Berggren, Longfellow Middle School, Berkeley, CA © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
In his third easy reader (Don't Throw It to Mo!; Get a Hit, Mo!), Mo has a new sports obsession: basketball. Diminutive Mo struggles to connect (literally) with his teammates when passing the ball; with extra practice and encouragement, he shines when his team needs him the most. Intentionally repetitive sentences, engaging illustrations, and a large typeface make the humorous story comprehensible for new readers. (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
In this companion to Geisel Award-winning Don't Throw It to Mo! (2015), it's basketball season for small and mighty Mo Jackson, who must practice, practice, and practice before the big game. Everyone on the team is taller than the little black boy, and he's struggling to make sure his passes reach their hands. Coach Emma tries to help, but it's not coming easy. "I have to practice passing," Mo tells his dad on the walk home after practice. The big game is Saturday, and Mo's mom prepares him with a big breakfast. Mo and teammate Eve watch from the bench until Eve enters after halftime. The score remains close deep into the second half. Mo will finally have his chance, as his teammate Gail needs to get a rest. "Go in" Coach says, and everyone waits to see if Mo can do what he's been practicing all week. He's quickly backed into a crunch, with the overpowering adversary Big Max blocking his way. "Here goes," Max says as the book races to a surprising finish. The cartoon-styled, detailed illustrations allow emerging readers to follow the developing plot and make predictions using essential character context clues, while an ethnically diverse set of characters and equally diverse array of youth body types found within the story make for a well-rounded portrait of today's readers. Mo's mom and dad are both black, and Coach Emma is both brown-skinned and a woman. Executed well and fun to read, this is a great addition to an already acclaimed series. (Early reader. 4-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
As he did with a football in the Geisel Award-winning Don't Throw It to Mo! (2015) and its baseball-themed sequel, mighty mite Mo again delivers in the clutch this time on the boards. Being so short that when he first tries passing a basketball to his teammate Gail, he hits her in the knee, Mo knows that he has to practice throwing higher. His efforts at team practice, later with his dad, and finally on the morning of his first game, chucking blueberries into his breakfast cereal are rewarded when he comes off the bench, with the score tied, to deliver a pass that soars over everyone's heads and hits nothing but net! It was a very bad pass, Mo's (female) coach laughs. But your bad pass won the game. Like Chris Paul's Long Shot: Never Too Small to Dream Big (2009) and other similarly themed titles, this offers warm affirmation that size isn't everything even in basketball.--Peters, John Copyright 2018 Booklist
