Marilyn Courtot (Children's Literature)
A year of drought looms ahead for the citizens of this ancient Mayan city. Pik, a ballplayer, rashly boasts that if he were the high priest, he would tell the rain god Chac to get to work. Chac overhears and a challenge is issued. If Pik wins the ball game then the rains will come, if he loses he'll become a frog. Aided by other animals, Pik wins and becomes a champion called the Rain Player. A well researched tale, set in a little known culture, and illustrated with intricate, layered cut paper images. The art fills every spread and has a three dimensional quality that encourages close examination. 1991, Clarion, $16.95 and $5.95. Ages 4 to 8.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, 1991)
A unique artist again creates a substantial original tale based on folkloric traditions, meticulously explained in an extensive note. This time the setting is Mayan; the protagonist is Pik, a boy who challenges his culture's fatalism in a ballplaying competition with Chac, the rain god, thus bringing relief to his drought-stricken village. Like the memorable contest in Wisniewski's The Warrior and the Wise Man (1989), Pik's is monumentally heroic and made even more dramatic in the artist's spectacular three-dimensional collages. A strong adventure that will appeal to a broad age range. 1991, Clarion/Houghton Mifflin, $15.95. © 1991 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, 1991)
An original tale combines research on Mayan history and legend with a suspenseful sports story. When the village priest predicts a year of terrible drought, a young man challenges the god of rain to a game of 'pok-a-tok', a fast-moving cross between soccer and basketball. Intricate, dramatic cut-paper illustrations powerfully re-create the Mayan classical period. Category: Fiction. 1991, Clarion, 32pp.. Ages 5 to 9. Rating: 2: Superior, well above average.