Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from October, 2017

Hockey Then To Wow

Sports Illustrated intended this book to be for kids, but I have to tell you this is a fantastic hockey history book that any hockey fan can enjoy. In fact, my recurring thought upon the inaugural flip-through was this is the book the Canadian Museum of History or the Hockey Hall of Fame should have put out to promote their exhibits. Aside from the choice of font and a few of the cartoony graphics, you quickly forget this was supposed to be a kids book. I would say it is an excellent introductory hockey history book for anyone, any age. The book looks at the greatest players over the years, compares the evolution of the equipment and coaching strategies, and celebrates the records and great moments in hockey history. The women's game, some of the crazy characters over the years, and even the fans get their due, too. While it is a great introductory hockey history book, even the most seasoned hockey fan will enjoy looking through this wonderfully presented title. Sports Il

Fast Ice Superstars of the New NHL by Andrew Podnieks

Andrew Podnieks is back, with an impressive lineup of research and writing help, to give us Fast Ice Superstars of the New NHL . At first glance I was really excited about this title. Wonderfully presented throughout it's glossy and colourful pages, this book profiles more than 60 of the top young players in the National Hockey League today. Since I'm known much more for hockey history, I have to admit to not knowing as much about the up and coming stars as I would like. Cam Atkinson was an All Star last season, and I knew nothing of him. Vincent Trochek isn't from Eastern Europe?! Sam Reinhart - now which of Paul Reinhart's kids is this? And with Lucas Aykroyd, Rob Del Mundo and Carol Schram helping to put these biographies together, I was certain this was my chance to learn some fascinating things about today's young stars just as the 2017-18 season gets underway. Unfortunately I found the brief biographies to be very pedestrian. Given the talent crew work

A Century Of NHL Memories

As the NHL's centennial year is coming to a close, yet another celebratory book is hitting the stores shelves. This may be the best one yet. 100: A Century of NHL Memories  is a beautiful coffee table book full of some of the greatest photographs in the history of hockey. There are over 150 pages of spectacular photos, both in black and white and in colour, covering the NHL's entire 100 year from 1917 to 2017. The photos all come from the Hockey Hall of Fame collection, and are simply to be marvelled at. Accompanying the still images are the words of Phil Pritchard and Jim Hynes as they explain the importance of each captured moment. Hockey Hall of Famer Lanny McDonald provides the foreword. Combined though the lenses of photographers and the words of our authors, the story of the NHL's 100 years is told. Sometimes coffee table books can be flipped through in no time at all, but I was enthralled by this book. It took me days to write this review because every

S is for the Stanley Cup

Sleeping Bear Press is back with another strong addition to their collection of children's hockey books Noted hockey author Mike Ulmer has teamed up with the talented illustrator Chris Lyons to give us S is for the Stanley Cup . Not surprisingly, the book teaches kids the alphabet, with a hockey reference given for each letter. It's a tried and true formula. Sleeping Bear Press has done it before with Z is for Zamboni  and H is for Hockey . This book will keep mom and dad entertained as much as the kids. While the kids are studying the wonderful artwork with dreams of hockey greatness developing somewhere in their heads, mom or dad can read out loud about some of the fascinating stories in the Stanley Cup's 125 year history. I guarantee parents will learn something about the Stanley Cup and hockey history while passing on the love of the game to their children. There are two things I encourage parents to do it is to instill the love of hockey and the love of read

Hockey Daze by Rolf Remlinger

You may know of Rolf Remlinger and his hockey comics called Hockey Daze. Remlinger has been capturing all of hockey's silliness, as he uniquely sees it, with his cartoons for over 25 years now. He has taken some of his favorites and compiled them in his very own book. The book is well done. It's the kind of book you can read from cover to cover, or just leave on the coffee table and read the odd page from time to time for a good laugh. The cartoons have a certain "Far Side" feel to them. The key to a collection of hockey comics like this is the cartoons have to a certain timelessness to it. It doesn't matter if it the actual event was from a different generation. Each selected cartoon can resonate with even the most casual of fans. Because the collection covers so many unique situations over such a long time, it is an interesting form of a hockey history book in itself.  What makes this more of a book than just a collection of cartoons is tha