Soccer Dad
A Father, a Son, and a Magic Season
-
- $11.99
Publisher Description
A father's true story of his high-school-age son's winning soccer season. Soccer Dad is simultaneously the candid reflections of a devoted father and the enthusiastic observations of a diehard soccer fan. When Matt enters his senior year of high school, it is not without myriad parenting concerns on the part of his father, author W. D. Wetherell. What is his role in shaping his son's future? What will life be like when Matt is away at college? And what of Matt's soccer season?—Is Matt's success in soccer just setting him up for disappointment later in life? With the pensive eye of an artist, Wetherell follows his son's team from field to field and win to win and ruminates on topics ranging from soccer's esoteric appeal in America to the conflicting emotions of a parent sending his youngest child out into the world. Reflecting on his own experiences both as a participant and a spectator, Wetherell offers a paean to the sport of soccer and the joys of parenthood. Updated and revised with a new chapter that brings Soccer Dad fully up to date, this is an exciting new edition that readers will enjoy for years to come.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Wetherell's son Matt is a starter for a Hanover, N.H., high school soccer team, which is seeking its third straight state championship, and he details the season's ups and downs, while describing the culture surrounding competitive youth soccer and saying good-bye to his son's childhood. Wetherell (Chekov's Sister; Morning) writes with energy and light humor, but he tries to cover so much territory that the narrative lapses into disorganization and unanswered questions. The account feels like a collection of short essays linked tangentially by Matt, whose challenging senior year isn't well integrated into Wetherell's musings on soccer parents or the grueling life of a teenage soccer star. Wetherell also indulges in sweeping, hero-making prose regarding soccer and Matt's team, which has the opposite effect of its intent ("cleats on the bass line that supplies the game's rhythm always there, hardly noticed, absolutely core"). Still, Wetherell's astute observations on soccer and the accompanying lifestyle plus his passion as a parent contribute to an often informative read.
