Henry Heckelbeck Never Cheats

Henry Heckelbeck #2

by Wanda Coven, Priscilla Burris (Illustrations)

Henry uses magic while playing soccer in this second Henry Heckelbeck adventure!

Henry Heckelbeck is just like any other normal kid. He plays soccer. He isn’t a huge fan of homework. He even has an older sister, Heidi.

What’s not so normal about Henry is his family. His sister and mom are magic.

Not Henry, though…he’s just a normal kid. Or is he?

Henry Heckelbeck is excited to start the soccer season. He really wants to be the teams’ goalie this year, but there’s a new star player on the team, Max Maplethorpe. Is magic the answer to being the MVP on the soccer field, or would using his Book of Spells be cheating? What’s a wizard to do?

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Henry Heckelbeck chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.

Genres: Childrens, Fantasy, Sports, 2nd Grade

128 pages, Hardcover

Published December 10, 2019

Reviews

[Kristina · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5. Pretty good until he sabotages things. What kind of message does that send?

[Charlotte L. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't really like this book.

[Katt Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Henry is used to being the best goalie in first grade. Except now that there's a new girl - Max - who seems to be a little bit better than him sometimes, makes things super complicated.

Henry wants to do well when his team is playing soccer but while he gets better through hard work and practice, he still doesn't feel very confident about things. Maybe a spell making sure Max loses her confidence would help? Except - that seems kind of mean...

Henry has a lesson here for all of us, about what happens when we tear other people down in order to build ourselves up. It might not look like bullying, but it is. In this book, I found myself not liking Henry at all - as this seemed a cruel spell to use. But I understand this struggle and think he might have taught readers of his antics a thing or two. Good book.

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Henry is feeling anxious about not getting to be the school team's goalie because the new girl Max is also a goalie, and she's pretty good. When Henry outshines her at practice one day, Max calls Henry a cheater. He gets upset and uses a magic potion that punishes poor sports. But has he crossed a magical line?

I like that Henry quickly realizes that he didn't respond the correct way, and he ends up praising Max and building her up in front of the rest of the team. Too bad he had to learn to do that the hard way. We definitely need all the sports stories we can get for lower grade, so I'm sure this will be very popular. It's a quick, easy chapter book with some solid soccer playing info included. Hand this to soccer lovers and magic fans.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Henry returns and shares his love of soccer with readers. When the school team forms, he faces competition from Max for the goalie position. When he does better than she does at a practice game, she accuse him of cheating because she is upset at how poorly she did. He reacts by casting a spell on her so she does poorly during their first game. When he sees how this affects her and the team, he realizes that being rude back doesn't feel good. Readers see him make a different choice and behave as a friend should. They will connect with the characters and scenes.

[KatieCatlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

SPOIL ALERT SPOIL ALERT DO NOT READ IF YOU DONT WANT SPOILERS.

this is a book about henry who is trying to get a position that max has.
henry is being accused of being a cheater and henry gets' mad. henry is not a cheater, he gets hurt and a team-mate gets the position,
he cheers her on anyways as a good sportsmanship.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Henry practices soccer with his team hoping to beat out Max for the position of goalie. He is very upset when she accuses him of being a cheater. He discovers that kindness turns away anger. A good book about sportsmanship and not having explosive emotional reactions.

[Loni · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good transitional series for boys that has a bit of a fantasy element to it. The books are relatable, and also subtly reinforce doing the right thing even when you don't want to.

[Eliot Fourquemin · Rating 5 out of 5]

GOOD

[Janssen · Rating 3 out of 5]

These are a good next step for kids moving into more independent reading.

[Naina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was funny. Coz he said I never cheat.
He does magic with football tricks and wins and becomes best. He gets the magic from his sister - Heidi. I know his sister.

[Jane · Rating 1 out of 5]

didnt like it because it was short and not that good

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son really likes this series, so I read these books as well. I thought that this was a really sweet story about friendship and kindness. I would recommend this book and series to young readers.

[PottWab Regional Library]

SM

[Cat Denmark · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kids rate it 5 stars. We enjoyed the soccer theme and the moral of the story. I could do without the magic/spell, although it was minor.

[Jack Kawata · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think 🤔 the 👻 👻 👻 book 📕 was a five 5️⃣ star 💫 book 📖 because it was so funny 🤣.

[Jen Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read out loud to my 7 year old daughter. She enjoyed it a lot and this is her favorite series!

[Dee King · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a great series for young boys. In this installment the lesson wasn’t to be the best at something, but rather the best yourself you can be. Even though this is grade school age characters, there is consistent personality traits and carry over from book to book. My son can’t wait to learn more about Henry, Dudley, and Max.

[Andréa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note: I received a paperback copy of this book at ALA Midwinter 2020.