It's a shame, but there aren't too many books that have what this one has. A female athlete (a hockey player!) who freaks out because she can't be number 22 anymore. The number trauma ends up bringing her closer to her grandma. Great storytelling and illustrations. I have to say, when I played softball and volleyball my jersey number was important to me, so I sympathized with Gabe and was happy for her when she came around to number 9. ( )

In America, I don't see many kids books about hockey -- soccer, yes, hockey, not so much -- so reading this one was a refreshing change of pace. Roy MacGregor and Geneviève Després did a great job at making the book appealing for both girls and boys. Sure, the main character, Gabe, is a girl, but the colors in the artwork and the sport of hockey are anything but girly!

There are some good lessons in here, too, including overcoming disappointment and the better opportunities girls have for playing sports today compared to when their grandmas were girls.

(I have to admit I don't know much about hockey or hockey players, but I know more now after reading The Highest Number in the World! )

Note: I received a digital galley of this book through NetGalley. ( )

This is a very inspirational story of a young girl who wants to feel successful, and who is measuring her success based on her Hockey jersey number. With her grandmother's help, she learns that she is worth more than the number on her back.
This is a great book for the 6-8 year old range, especially for those girls who are interested in sports and competition.
*I received this book for free, however, all opinions are my own

I had mixed feelings about this book after reading it because I felt like It really had no educational basis to it. After reading many of my other books, this book had no connection to the classroom. This book told the story of a young girl who loved to play hockey and loved everything relating to hockey. She had recently made the best hockey team in town. However, Gabe loved the number 22 and insisted on wearing that jersey to play. However, it wasn't until she was given the number 9, that everything changed in the matter of minutes. She claimed that this was the worst number in the world and she would not settle for it. But it wasn't until her grandma saved the day and told her the story of when she once played. She instilled in her that a number is just a number and doesn't effect how you play. And when she realized her jersey wasn't so bad after all, she got on the ice and showed it off. The language in this book is very descriptive and fits the mood of the characters very well. The text is easy to read and large enough. It also flows into the next page and event. The characters are believable because they use to be actual hockey players at one point in time. The plot is clear to understand and the story follows any typical series of events with a climax, beginning and end. The illustrations are vivid and colorful and truly correspond to the events leading up to the pictures. This book pushes readers to be grateful for what they are given and to never put up a fuss. ( )

Summary: Gabe, or Gabriella, just tried out for the best hockey team in her area and made the team! She was so excited to make the team because her role model is a women's hockey player. Gabe became obsessive over getting her role model's jersey number, which was number 22. The first day of practice Gabe was so nervous to get her favorite number until her name was called and she was given number 9. Gabe was furious and decided that she was not going to play hockey ever again. While she was pouting in her room her grandmother Gabriella came in to talk to her. Her grandmother told Gabe about her time as a hockey player and how number 9 was super special. Gabe found out that her grandmother's hockey number was number 9 and this made all of her worries and frustrations go away.

Review: This is such a great book for older elementary aged children! MacGregor's central message of his book is that children need to have confidence in themselves! Gabe was a girl in a male dominant sport, which made her uneasy. The one thing that Gabe felt like she had going for her is that her role model hockey player was also a girl and that is why she wanted to be just like her. Throughout the story it is eluded to that Gabe wants to make sure that she is just as tough as the boys, which leads me to believe that the number 22 is more of a "comfort" number than a lucky number. After Gabe talks with her grandmother about her issue, Gabe decides that she will get back on the ice and she will be the best hockey player out there! This helps teach children that they can do anything that they put their minds to. Just because you may be of a different gender does not mean that you are any less weak or small. What a strong book! ( )