Cody And The Heart Of A Champion

CodyAnd The Heart Of A Champion by Tricia Springstubb, 151 pages

Cody is back again with her friends, Spencer and Pearl.  Cody is impatient for spring to start.  Spencer is being mysterious.  Pearl has become friends with Madison and is now interested in soccer.  Cody’s brother, Wyatt, is in love with Payton.  Cody is worried about spring, Spencer’s behavior, playing soccer, her friendship with Pearl, and her brother.  Luckily, her family and friends are helpful and she will probably be able to navigate all of the bumps in the road.  These books are saccharine sweet but sometimes a kid wants a taste of things easily falling into place.  I like the books and they are easy chapter books for early elementary kids.

Sean Tackles London

Sean Tackles London by Tanya Preminger; illustrated by Elettra Cudignotto     64 pages

In this third book of A Children’s Book About Soccer and Teamwork, Sean is now nine years old. He is no longer the whiny, pouty little jerk we saw in Book 2, “Sean Goes to Barcelona.”

Sean is still mad over Lionel Messi and wants to be like him more than anything in the world. The family is taking their summer vacation London for one main reason: for Sean to attend the FC Barcelona soccer camp. At stake is an invitation to play in the Barca youth world tournament.

Sean is positive that he will make the team. The only problem is, there are equally as talented kids vying for the same position on the team. Although he gets a little jealous, Mommy and Daddy help him see that teamwork is the only answer. He may not get picked, but at least he knows that he did his best and hopefully makes an impression on the soccer coaches.

I am a little surprised that teamwork would be the topic on such a high-profile stage. I believe that Sean would have/should have learned that lesson on his soccer team back home. And it was  a little weird that the book's title in hardcover is different than the picture. Therefore, “Sean Tackles London” receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Sean Goes to Barcelona

Sean Goes to Barcelona by Tanya Preminger; illustrated by Elettra Cudignotto     74 pages

Eight-year-old Sean and his mom are on a trip of a lifetime. They are in Barcelona, Spain, so that Sean may attend a FC Barcelona soccer game, see Sean’s idol, Lionel Messi, and hopefully get an autograph.

In this second book about soccer and goals, Sean turns into a whiny kid, begging his mother to buy him practically everything he sees and pout when she says no. Mommy states several times that the trip is expensive; I’m not sure why she has gifted him this adventure.

As the duo takes in the city, Sean is obsessed with Messi, to the point of grating on my nerves, and if he will be able to obtain an autograph. Basically, Sean makes the trip terrible for Mommy. 

Mommy does her best to help Sean figure out how he will stand out on a crowd of tens of thousands. However, nothing can compensate for Sean’s complaints and tantrums.  Therefore,

“Sean Goes to Barcelona” receives 2 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Sean Wants to be Messi

Sean Wants to be Messi by Tanya Preminger; illustrations by Elettra Cudignotto   36 pages

I have to admit, that when I first saw this title, I had no idea what “Messi” was supposed to be. Turns out that Messi is a start soccer player (think Beckam), and eight-year-old Sean is obsessed with becoming like him.

The book opens with what could be a scene from my childhood, math issues. Adter second grade, I just didn’t get it. I can remember the frustrations my parents and I felt as I tried and tried to understand word problems (Let’s face it, nobody really cares when the two trains pass each other!).

This is a great little story on how one set of parents use soccer to help their child excel. One thing did bother me, though, was that Sean called his parents “Mommy” and “Daddy.” Without any younger sibling that the readers could see, this seemed to make Sean too childish. Therefore,  “Sean Want to be Messi,” which receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Booked

Booked by Kwame Alexander, 314 pages

Nick is crazy about soccer.  He’s not so crazy about words, especially reading his father’s dictionary every day to learn new ones.  His father is a word nerd and he wants Nick to increase his vocabulary.  Nick secretly kind of likes knowing so many odd and interesting words, but he doesn’t like being forced to learn them.  When Nick’s parents start having marital problems and it looks like some things may get in the way of Nick playing soccer, Nick feels like his whole life is falling apart.  This book told in verse was excellent.  Great for reluctant readers because of the amount of white space, it’s realistic story will appeal to a wide variety of kids.  

Arcady’s Goal

Arcady’s Goal by Eugene Yelchin, 234 pages

Arcady’s parents were enemies of the people so they were taken away when Arcady was a baby.  He has grown up in children’s homes in the Soviet Union, always knowing that he was considered an enemy of the people also.  One day, an inspector sees Arcady playing soccer.  Arcady is a soccer champion.  He is an incredible scorer and always beats whoever he plays.  The inspector decides to adopt him.  Arcady thinks that it’s because of his great soccer skills and he’s afraid that if he doesn’t play well for this man that he will be sent back to the children’s home.  It’s just possible, though that Arcady may be wrong and that the man adopted him for an entirely different reason.  This is a good historical fiction for kids.