Madani is the neighborhood soccer star, who plays on his bare feet. Everyone watches when he plays and wonders what he could do if he only had a proper pair of cleats. Madani is saving money, but not for soccer shoes. Instead, he buys a new sewing machine for his mother. The story is narrated by one of Madani’s teammates. The author explains that the story was inspired by his work with immigrant families. The beautiful, smudgy illustrations, created with pencil, gouache, and colored pencil, capture the city neighborhood and the movement of the soccer games. mjw