Leigh's father agrees to coach but only in exchange for Leigh's allowing the son of a co-worker to join her otherwise all girl team. Alec has missed the deadline to register to play on any of the boys teams in the area. Although arrogant, he turns out to be a good player and not especially happy to be playing as the only boy on a team named the Chinooks whose uniform is a glistening baby blue fabric with pink lettering!

      The story follows the progress of the Chinooks through their first season. Their games are action-packed and suspenseful. The play-by-play accounts and game strategies are easy to follow even for the non-hockey enthusiasts. Some girls on the team are stronger figure skaters than they are hockey players. The scenes describing the unusual aspect their skills bring to the game are very amusing! Although the primary action of the book depends on the hockey, the plot also turns on the friction between Leigh and Alec and between Leigh and her father.

      Characterizations of the main characters are strong and real. Leigh moves easily between her life with her father in town and her weekends with her mother who lives and teaches on a nearby First Nations reserve. Readers watch Leigh's understanding and acceptance grow of her divorced parents' right to live new lives. Alec and Tina also resolve issues and come to terms with what is important to them.

      Rookie Season will appeal to readers interested in the action of a hockey story or in the depth of a story about the search for identity.

Recommended.