Twelve-year-old Valeria Salomón loves fútbol, aka soccer. Because of her talent, her teammates have nicknamed her Magic. The protagonist in The Beautiful Game by Yamile Saied Méndez, Magic plays for a boys’ team, the Overlords until her period arrives and she gets kicked off the team.
Dedicated to the sport she loves and not ready to give it up, Val approaches Coach Blume and asks for a place on her all-girls’ team, the Amazons. Although Val missed try-outs and the team roster is full, Coach Blume decides to “accommodate for exceptional circumstances” (144).
As Val tries to find a place in her new sisterhood, she initially struggles but remains steadfast. In the process, she learns to navigate other struggles: the loss of her aunt, the moving-in of her cousin from Argentina, and what she perceives as her crumbling world. Her family is already a patchwork affair. Being raised by her paternal grandparents and feeling like her family is “a puzzle with many missing pieces,” Val is confused by her absent birth parents and her grandfather’s difficulty to show affection.
Set in Utah, Mendez’s book for middle grade readers offers lessons on finding one’s place of belonging. Coach Blume shares insight about life’s unfairness and how “the best team doesn’t always win. The best players don’t always have the opportunities they deserve. But sometimes failure and rejection can push you to achieve your goals, even if it’s only to spite the haters” (140).
Val and her cousin Maxwell come to understand that despite terrible tragedies, life can be treasured by sharing a joke with just a look or by making core memories together. They conclude that the ghosts of lost people don’t have to feel like missing pieces because we carry a piece inside us of all those who have touched our lives. Despite absence, we can be together in this way.
At its core, this is a sports story that any soccer player will likely love. It is also about building self-confidence, learning the power of second chances, and playing like a girl.
- Donna