Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. ( )

The Day My Dad Joined My Soccer Team by Maureen Fergus and Mike Lowry is a super cute story about what it means to be a good sport. We have all seen the child who perhaps doesn’t want to play his or her assigned position, would rather play with the grass than kick the ball, or gets really intensely angry when his or her team is losing. Told in the voice of a young boy giving pointers and instruction to his Dad in a kind and nurturing way. What a great book to help your little All Star remember how to be a great player. Also not a bad reminder to all those parents out there who may get a little too involved in their child’s sports. Although it’s a soccer story, the lessons really translate to any sport. Maureen Fergus is so fantastic at taking an everyday life lesson and putting a clever spin on it, in this case making the child the teacher and the parent the person who needs to adjust their behaviour. With a comic feel, Mike Lowry’s art in this story is bright, colourful, and has some fun little details to add to the humour of the story. ( )

In this book, dad shows readers how not to act during a soccer game and in the end he shows readers how they should act during a game. I think the story would have been better told with a child misbehaving and then learning how to act. A grown up should already know the basic rules for acting during sports and if they don't, it's too late to change them. I have coached rec soccer and can say there are worse dads than this standing on the sidelines. I can't imagine what would have happened had they jumped on the field and joined in. ( )