Although young Joe loves fishing, his father is not enthusiastic about it, forcing the boy to seek companionship elsewhere, through his town's fishing club. When the club plans an ice-fishing trip, and each attendee must have a parent with him, Joe's father grudgingly agrees to go along. Much to everyone's surprise, the good companionship of the experience, the ways in which Joe and his father bond while fishing together, changes the father's mind. Soon he is accompanying Joe on all of his fishing trips, having become well and truly hooked...

Although I see that some online reviewers were disturbed by the fact that Joe's father wasn't willing to go fishing at first, no doubt interpreting that as some sort of rejection, or dereliction of fatherly duty, I actually appreciated that aspect of the story. Sometimes parents aren't that enthusiastic about their children's interests, and I thought it was an interesting storytelling choice, to focus on the way the father changed his mind. Usually in children's stories it's the other way around, with a narrative that encourages young people to try new things. Tommy Greenwald's story in Hooked however, encourages children to examine such things from an adult's perspective, highlighting the ideas that it isn't just children who resist new things, and that parents sometimes have different tastes and inclination from their children. This makes the conclusion, in which Joe's dad changes his mind, all the sweeter. Recommended to anyone looking for engaging, ultimately heartwarming father-son picture-books. ( )

Great story that will be fun to read aloud. ( )