THE 400 POUND PUMPKIN

"Townsfolk flee for their lives as the orange monster rumbles down Main Street, crushing bicycles and overturning cars." If Patrick J. McManus's tall-tale description of his Grams's prize-winning pumpkins just drew a belly laugh, you'll enjoy this cassette featuring three of his yarns. These stories are a natural for the ear, and George S. Irving gives the author's exaggerated recollections the right blend of childlike wonder and adult wisdom. He also excels at giving distinct, if broadly characterized, voices to characters such as Grams, a former logging-camp cook, and her nemesis, the rarely bathed Rancid Crabtree. J.A.S. (c) AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC/ JAN 02]