Happy Like Soccer

This is a beautiful story about a little girl who loves soccer but wishes her Aunt could get a day off to come watch one of her games. It's poignant, vivid, and entertaining, with a couple twists and turns in the plot. Boelts reveals a deep understanding and empathy in her first-person narrative, and Castillo's illustrations are simultaneously gritty and comforting, lonesome and hopeful, much like this little girl's situation.

I cried when I read it to the kiddo. Just a beautiful story with good art.

I'm always looking for diversity in characters. Plus a female athlete? Perfect! Every elementary classroom library needs this book!

Used for reader's workshop.

I like the premise of the book and how she wanted to have someone recognize her as a person instead of a number. She was able to come up with a way to make that possible.

My child received this as a gift, and we read it for the first time tonight. I couldn't make it through half the book without starting to sob. A Latina girl from the inner city, Sierra, plays on a suburban soccer team. Her aunt is her guardian, a single woman who works every Saturday and cannot come to her soccer games. It's a good introduction to the lopsided opportunities afforded to suburban families and not city children. This story teaches empathy, but it is NOT a woe-is-me tale. Sierra empowers herself to speak up, offer a solution, and have the community come together. My 5 and 3 year olds understood the challenge, and cheered Sierra on, and took away the lesson to speak up for what you need, be thankful for what and who you have, and always be cognizant of the needs of your friends. I cried like a baby. I'm a solid Democrat, and proud of it.

I love this book as well as the author's book Those Shoes . It shows a working class side of childhood not often seen in children's books but doesn't overdramatize it. As others have described, it is about a girl who plays soccer but never has anyone on the sidelines cheering her on because her aunt only has Mondays off from working. When she can finally come one week, the game is rained out. I love the description of Sierra's brave request to her coach to change their final game to Monday at the lot near where she lives. A great edition to your library.

Sierra is sad that her aunt (who is her sole guardian) can't make it to her Saturday soccer games. It's apparent that they live in a bad neighborhood and scrape to get by. After some finagling, her aunt arranges to switch her workday and makes it to the game. After some more finagling, Sierra manages to get another game switched to a Monday in a lot closer to her house. The book features attractive ink and watercolor illustrations. A good choice for diverse communities, who may relate to the story, especially in these tight times. Pair this with A Chair For My Mother by Vera B. Williams to spark some interesting conversations.