Dads Fight With Fire is the first volume in The Amazing Adventures of My Dad series. Written in rhyme by Graham Burket and illustrated by Zach Stoppel, this unique series introduces a man with two jobs – father and firefighter – as seen through the eyes of his child. Not only does Firefighting Dad play games at home and tell jokes, making his children laugh, but he also has a serious job which gives him superpowers. When the bell at the Fire Station rings, Firefighting Dad quickly suits up and flies off to the rescue. Whether a car drives off a cliff, a wild animal is trapped in a tree, or somebody is stuck on a swing while playing at the park, Firefighting Dad always saves the day. The biggest part of Firefighting Dad’s job is to put out fires, whether big or small. No matter how tall the building, Firefighting Dad always finds a way to get to the blaze and defeat it, while forcing the people who’d started the fires to face justice. At the end of each day, no matter how tired Firefighting Dad is, he always comes home and makes time for his children, which is why he is their hero.
I have never seen a book quite like this. Graham Burket and Zach Stoppel have produced an absolutely delightful book series for children, with each book introducing a new occupation of the hero dads of the world who are happy to spend quality time with their children, even at the end of a day filled with danger. The illustrations are split into two styles, showing gentle drawings with happy faces when showing Family Dad, but then drawn in superhero comic book style when showing the imagination of the child as he discusses Firefighting Dad. The fact that the child sees his father as a real life superhero shows how much the child adores and idolizes his father. I very much enjoyed this tale and recommend Dads Fight With Fire to all children, especially those whose parent or parents work in emergency services, and believe that this book would do well in early-learning centers, school libraries and, of course, on a child’s book shelf at home for bedtime reading.
