Eh, a little cheesy with the “you got beat by a girrrllll!” jokes (at the same time, I’m in no way expecting the average middle school boy to be above that lol) and outdated slang “that was tight”, BUT the emotional turmoil and helplessness Nick feels is excellent. The main character Nick feels like his whole life has been uprooted and left unbalanced when his parents lay a huge announcement on him. Soccer is one of the few things that centers him and provides joy to his now seemingly unstable life. 

The parental drama will be very relatable for kids because Nick’s father is overly strict and hard on him (as an adult, I know he just wants Nick to have an education, so he can open more opportunities, but he was too overbearing even for me), his mother’s increased absence affects him, and he can’t find his voice to stand up to bullies at school. When his parents make huge decisions that don’t include him, he’s forced to get over it. At one point, his emotions boil over at his father’s continual chastisement where Nick says…

he wants to die. While Nick affirms he wasn’t suicidal, it’s this moment where his father realizes he needs to dial it back and show more emotional care/be more comforting.

Again, I thought the awkward navigation of emotional distress as a young teen and even the inclusion of counseling were great. 

A small nitpick: with the way the font is written when Nick is having a conversation with someone, you can easily lose track of who is speaking. 

Lastly, word up! * in my Wordgirl voice* This book includes a lot of great, uncommon words to build your vocabulary. c: 

3.5