Kate's Really Good at Hockey tackles the single-mindedness that we can all get when doing what we love. Through the vibrant illustrations and realistic dialogue, Kate's story is revealed to be much more than just about hockey. As a 13-year-old girl, Kate takes a big trip to a summer hockey camp in Colorado where she stays with a grandmother that she doesn't know very well. Through trials with girls and coaches at camp to not knowing quite what she wants to say to her mother over the phone, Kate learns that secrets can sometimes be too much. This is a wonderful story of the relationship between mothers and daughters and granddaughters, hockey, friendship, and what things are truly important in life. Knowledge of hockey is not necessary to enjoy this heartwarming tale.

I loved this book. It's a great story about not giving up in the face of adversity. Mixed in is a story of family love and how secrets can hurt. Sometimes you just have to reach a little further and push a little harder to achieve your goal and get closer to the ones you love.

This book certainly turned out to have a more complex story than I originally thought it would. Katie loves hockey and is accepted to a prestigious hockey camp. She is disappointed when her mother tells her she will be staying with her grandmother during camp, who she is not close with, instead of staying on the dorms. Katie goes through a lot of things at camp and ultimately learns that heroes come from the most unlikely places.

This graphic novel is short but manages to have some hard hitting emotions regardless. This is a story that could resonate with boys or girls, but will more likely lean towards girls. Katie ultimately finds out that not only i her grandmother a groundbreaking hockey legend, but also that she is currently dealing with breast cancer. While for older children struggling with the idea of death this book may not be helpful, it could be a good way to comfort a younger child when finding out that a loved one has cancer. The book even goes so far as to explain some changes like Grandma not having hair, and that she is going to move in with Katie and her family. Where this book truly shines is in showing the many ways one can overcome obstacles. Katie has to deal with bullies at camp, while her grandmother had to deal with gender discrimination, all told in the context of their respective hockey careers. The book does feature a diverse cast, including figures of authority, and also seems to focus on portraying people of all sizes.

The art in the book is really my only complaint and that is small. The grandmother character to me just comes off as intimidating and somewhat scary. Her lines are drawn rather harshly, and the closest thing I can think of is the evil stepmother from the Walt Disney animated Cinderella. I don;t know why, but something about that character in particular just seems off. Even in the end as her and Katie's relationship grows she still looks very intimidating. Part of that just seems to be the harshness of her features compared to all other characters in the book. It isn't enough to stop me from recommending the title, just something that kind of breaks up the artistic flow of the book.

Kate's Really Good at Hockey is a middle grade graphic novel about 12-year old Kate. She gets accepted to an elite ice hockey camp for girls. When her mother tells Kate that she'll be staying at her grandmother's house while she attends camp, Kate gets upset because she doesn't know her grandmother that well and feels like they have nothing in common. Kate runs into trouble at hockey camp when one of the other girls isn't nice to her and plays dirty, yet the coach won't find fault with the "mean girl". Kate gets frustrated...

This was a cute book perfect for middle grade kids who are interested in sports. It is definitely about much more than just hockey. It also has a good message about sticking with something you love and finding connections with friends and family. In the end it is a heartwarming story and I recommend it to young graphic novel fans.

This graphic novel blew me away. I loved that the main character in this book is a girl who plays a sport (hockey) that is typically for boys. Kate is really good at hockey, and she is invited to participate in a special hockey camp. While at camp, she stays with her grandma and discovers information about her family. She also faces some other challenges from the other coaches and players. In the end, Kate learns valuable life lessons both on and off the ice.

I loved this graphic novel!

Surprise! Kate is really good at hockey and when she is selected to go to girl's hockey camp in Denver all of her dreams come true but once she gets there she realizes her Grandma isn't interested in hockey and therefore isn't very supportive. Worse, she is bullied by other players and feels so discouraged she wants to run back to all that is safe and familiar.

Will she have the courage to stand her ground and face adversity? This book is about hockey on the surface but it's really about grit, determination, family, and perseverance.

Thank you to Christina M. Frey and Howard Shapiro, Animal Media Group LLC and NetGalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I allowed my daughter to read this to see if I could get her into something else. She said she enjoyed it. It was a fun read. Shes only 8.

This was a great end for the Hockey books by Howard Shapiro,.Been honest, the first one was is my fav, but this isn't a good one, is just that wasn't exactly my cup of tea.

I loved that this focused a lot on self discipline and hard work. I also really enjoyed the family dynamic between her mother. I found it refreshing to see a mother be so invested in her daughters hobby and dreams. I really found Katie and her grandmas storyline the most important. I wish that dynamic was more focused on in other children's books. All around I would highly suggest this book for all children!

"Kate is really good at hockey" by Christina M. Frey and Howard Shapiro is a graphic novel/comic about a girl (Kate) who gets an opportunity to go to a summer hockey camp which is the first step on her to-do list to be a great hockey player. But nothing goes according to the plan. Her mother has forced her to live with her grandmother who she has nothing in common with and who doesn't care about her. Two girls at the camp don't like Kate and break every rule possible just so they can win. Both girls are couch's favorite, so they get away with everything. The problems increase when she finds out a family secret.
The book goes through Kate's life as she tries hard to get motivated when nothing is going as she wanted.
I loved the expressions on the characters. The artist drew them amazingly. The comic tell about how women sacrificed and fought for their rights in the past and are continuously doing so. This book is for middle grade children who like sports. Comic lovers should get it too.

I haven't read many graphic novels, but I have enjoyed the ones I've tried. #KatesReallyGoodAtHockey is no different. Kate is a relatable character that is trying to navigate family, friendships, and hockey. The story is told through flashbacks where Kate is explaining her summer at hockey camp to her friends at school in the fall. Along with difficult team members, Kate has to deal with family secrets. I think my students would enjoy this book. #NetGalley

All Kate really wanted was to spend her summer holidays in the super awesome elite hockey camp she got accepted, stay at the dorms, meet some more girls that are into hockey like her and make friends, and of course: Play hockey!

Part of that plan changed when her mom tell's her she's not staying at the dorms, but at her grandma's house, a grandmother who she really feels no connection as everytime she tries to start a conversation it falls short. Hockey is a no go, she never replies, school is also a no go she wants to focus on hockey this days! Also books? She's not into sci-fi like her grandma.

As the weeks pass along with the hockey camp, Kate works herself off on the ice while dealing with the bullies, the stoic couch who appears to like the bully way more, and secrets after secrets from her mother and grandmother. What's a girl to do?!

It was a really cute story, easy and fast to read, that was really heart-warming as Kate and her grandma slowly bond over the weeks! Very colorful with a nice art. And a nice message to the kids who pick up the novel!

Actual Rating: 3.5 stars!

This middle-reader graphic novel tells us the story of Kate, a thirteen-year-old hockey prodigy from Tennessee. She gets the opportunity of a lifetime when she’s accepted into an intensive girls’ hockey training camp— but it’s in Colorado, far from home, and she’ll have to stay with her grandmother, who she barely knows. When she gets to camp, it’s a nightmare! Some other girls are mean, the coach hates her, and she starts to think she won’t be able to keep up. But hockey is her dream, her whole life— so something has to give, right? She has to succeed; there’s no other option.

The novel is a story about the story— as in, it’s told in the format of Kate telling all her school friends about the exciting summer she had at camp. I actually really liked this, because it gave us the opportunity for narration and glimpses into Kate’s internal monologue without it seeming awkward or out-of-place. In a graphic novel, making us feel like we’re reading a first-person narration is really hard to do, because we’re looking at the characters and seeing their dialogue, not actually reading their thoughts. But because of the format of the story, this novel accomplishes that feat, and Kate’s narrative voice is distinctive and adorable.

I’ve read in the hockey graphic novel universe from Animal Media Group before, and this story has been my favorite so far. (There are actually a few cross-references to other stories in this same universe, including Kate’s immense admiration for a pro player who’s the main character of another graphic novel, Hockey Karma. Kate is determined and headstrong— sometimes to a fault, because she has her fair share of run-ins with other players at camp, coaches, and even her grandmother and mom. But she knows what she wants, and she’s really, really good at it.

There’s so much hockey in this book! I was so happy with the amount of on-ice action we see. We also see plenty of the locker room, coach’s office, and even just hockey talk. I really get the sense of how much she loves the sport because of how much on-page time we spend focusing on it. That’s exactly what the focus should have been, so I was super satisfied. The art style is also adorable. Kate has bright pink and red hair, and it’s the best.

Also, a shoutout to this novel for giving the hockey camp a diverse group of girls. There’s a hockey player from Ecuador, and she was my favorite character. It’s nice to see hockey represented without a completely white American or Canadian cast. Plus, just the fact that this was a story about girls’ hockey?? Practically unheard of. Major props. We need more girl power in sports fiction! (And in sports in real life, but that’s… another conversation for another day.)

Kate’s story is also punctuated with a few important lessons about mothers and daughters, honesty within families, and learning about the tough stuff of life. I won’t spoil anything, but I appreciate that we were able to see more broad and important aspects of Kate’s life that didn’t directly have to do with hockey. The story also deals with these things in a way that makes them accessible to a middle grade reader without making it so heavy that it drags the whole story down. Overall, this story is inspiring and cute— it provides a message of hope, and leaves you rooting for Kate and her future hockey adventures, with her family by her side.

Kate’s Really Good At Hockey is inspiring, chock-full of girl power, and heartwarming. Please buy this for the girl athlete or hockey-loving kid in your life!

I'm a big fan of Shapiro's, and this book is no exception to his good, fun stories. I love that this one had a female lead in a sport that is still lacking in female representation. The artwork was fun and bright.

This was a really cute middle grade graphic novel about a girl who loves ice hockey. I'm not into any sports at all but I like stories about girls/women with interests that are typically thought of as male interests, and this looked really cute.

I liked the relationship between the 3 generations of women, and I love the grandma (she likes sci-fi novels?! Yes please!) but I wish there had been more about the friendships, I always love reading about female friendships.

The art was super cute (I love Kate's hair) but some of the scenes of the hockey matches were a little hard to follow, probably because I have no real life knowledge of anything that was happening. Overall the story was good, but it wasn't anything incredible unfortunately. However, if you like middle grade, hockey, and stories with young female protagonists then this is the book for you!

"Kate is really good at hockey" by Christina M. Frey and Howard Shapiro is a graphic novel/comic about a girl (Kate) who gets an opportunity to go to a summer hockey camp which is the first step on her to-do list to be a great hockey player. But nothing goes according to the plan. Her mother has forced her to live with her grandmother who she has nothing in common with and who doesn't care about her. Two girls at the camp don't like Kate and break every rule possible just so they can win. Both girls are couch's favorite, so they get away with everything. The problems increase when she finds out a family secret.
The book goes through Kate's life as she tries hard to get motivated when nothing is going as she wanted.
I loved the expressions on the characters. The artist drew them amazingly. The comic tell about how women sacrificed and fought for their rights in the past and are continuously doing so. This book is for middle grade children who like sports. Comic lovers should get it too.
I received an ARC from netgalley in exchange of a review.

I read this graphic novel on my Kindle in black and white. The illustrations by Jade Gonzalez were well done and carried the story forward. The title by Christina M. Frey and Howard Shapiro says it all. Kate is so good at hockey that her mother sends her to stay with her grandmother in Denver to attend a high level hockey camp with other young female hockey players from all over the world. Unfortunately, Kate does not know her moms mother that well and grandma doesn't seem all that interested in hockey.

Kate works through a variety of situations and relationships both good and bad at camp. During this time she also learns some surprises about her grandma.

The book was an easy middle grade read. I assume that in any upcoming sequels we will learn more about Kate's father and brother who get a slight mention this time around.

Kate’s whole life is hockey, and she learns a lot about hockey, life, family, and friendship during hockey camp over the summer. I love that this story is about FEMALE hockey players and even touches on the discrimination in the sport. This is a great graphic novel for middle school age readers because of all the life lessons it has to offer, and the art is really great also.

Thank you NetGalley and Animal Media Group LLC for providing me with a copy of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review.

I was expecting just a cute story about a girl that plays hockey, and I was pleasantly surprised to have the story develop into so much more. Kate IS really good at hockey, but in the beginning there is a lot about the game and her family that she doesn’t know yet.
Kate spends time with her grandmother while at a hockey camp away from home and learns some family secrets that change her way of thinking and helps her grow. The relationship between the three generations of women and how it changes throughout the story was the real story for me in this graphic novel. I would highly recommend it!❤️
Thank you to Animal Media Group and NetGalley for the chance to review this story in exchange for my honest review. My opinions are my own.

I loved this book!

This story doesn’t shy away from the hard parts about sports. Kate has a difficult coach at camp who criticizes her game. Sometimes tough coaches and teachers are great because they push you to be your best, but other times it can be frustrating and make you want to quit. However, not every teacher is like that.

Kate has to go outside of her comfort zone when she stays with her grandmother instead of in the dorms with the other girls. Her mom insisted she stay with her grandmother, and it turned out to be a great situation.

This is a great book for young athletes.