Hockey Books

Saranis · Post by **Saranis** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 8:45 am

I know there is another thread for general books in another section but I thought it might be nice to have a thread dedicated to Books regarding the sport. Theres a number of great ones out there, some detailing stats, others a players career, and more the game itself as seen from fans, players, and owners prospectives. I thought it would be good to share some of the books we have found to be above the average cut in regards to hockey.

Kings of the Ice By: Ales Brezina, Denis Gibbons, Dmitri Ryzkov, Igor Rabiner, Jan Bengtsson, Jan Stark, Nikolai Vukolov, and Pavel Barta
This is a great book to have for Player history. Its very deep and goes back to before the formation of the NHL with its player biographies. It doesnt only cover the NHL either though that is where most of the players in it are from.

Blue Ice: The Story of Michigan Hockey By: John U. Bacon
This book is by far my favorite hockey book. Not only does it cover Michigan hockey (Go Blue!) but the evolution of hockey itself along with the culture of hockey in Michigan and around North America. It goes over how college hockey in the United States has been formed and reformed throughout the century and how some powerhouse teams of today actually had to fold durring the early years of the sport. Another thing I like is that the book itself is printed and published by the University of Michigan so proceeds go towards education (and not the athletic department for anyone who is against Michigan Athletics) and not into some big corporation.

The GameBy: Ken Dryden
Many people have called this 'THE hockey Book' and for good reason. Not only is it by one of the greatest goaltenders but its a fantastic read that will have you turning page after page as it goes over how some of greatest players of an era lived their life on and off the ice. For some of us who weren't around then, or didn't follow those players, this book can offer a humanitizing perspective to some of hockey's greatest legends.

Honorable Mentions:
Total Hockey, Second Edition This is a stat lovers dream come true. 1974 pages of Stats from 1917-2000.
The Code: The Unwritten Rules Of Fighting And Retaliation In The NHL Just as it sounds, goes over how NHL players feel about violence and fighting in the NHL.

laskey 16 · Post by **laskey 16** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 12:33 pm

I can't vouch for any of the others but The Game and The Code are good books. I also recommend Don Cherry's autobiography Grapes (I bet some of you don't like the man though, but it is a good read) and Slap Shots, which is a collection of witty quotes. Then there's Andrew Podniek's Gretzky book which is great. For UK fans I recommend Ken Priestlay's Lord Of The Rinks and I recommend you don't buy Tony Hand's autobiography. As great a hockey player as he is, the book is terrible.

Post by **getzlaf15** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 12:35 pm

Dont like the man??? I love him

back to topic, Anywhere i can find the books, maybe a website, being from England, i dont supose WHSmiths would sell it,

Saranis · Post by **Saranis** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 1:04 pm

getzlaf15 wrote:Dont like the man??? I love him

back to topic, Anywhere i can find the books, maybe a website, being from England, i dont supose WHSmiths would sell it,

If you mean the Don Cherry Book here You go. Don Cherry's Book on Amazon.co.uk
The gretzky Book

laskey 16 · Post by **laskey 16** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 2:12 pm

getzlaf15 wrote:Dont like the man??? I love him

back to topic, Anywhere i can find the books, maybe a website, being from England, i dont supose WHSmiths would sell it,

No, I love Tony Hand. Best British player ever. It's just a terrible, terrible book, with no real constructed timeline and hardly any revelations. With Ken Priestlay's and Don Cherry's books you learn about what some of the players got up to in great detail, in Tony Hand's you don't. Like it has been said, the easiest way to buy these books in the UK is on Amazon.

Post by **batdad** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 3:30 pm

The best hockey book ever is Bruce Hood's autobiography. I think it is called "calling the Shots" but cannot recall. The NHL from a referee's perspective. Showing how all the stuff he did as a REF was Sooooooo intentional to screw...all....the...teams...all...the...time.

Also, any book about Bobby Orr. Even Tiger Williams book is a good read.

The only one on the list so far I have not read at least once is The Michigan book. Cause...I am not a Michigan kid.

For 27 years now I have received at least one hockey book for my birthday or Xmas. Often two, and sometimes more. I have read soooo many of them, I cannot recall them all..

corinthian · Post by **corinthian** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 4:09 pm

I'd love to read such books but here in Brasil the taxes makes a importation prohibitive.

Joe · Post by **Joe** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 5:16 pm

I've also read 'The Code'. I thought it was a pretty interesting book and gave me an even greater view of fighting.

I read 'Between the Lines'. Its about Ray Scapinello's career as a linesman in the NHL. It's very interesting and has a lot of great stories in it.

laskey 16 · Post by **laskey 16** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 5:35 pm

Joe wrote:
I read 'Between the Lines'. Its about Ray Scapinello's career as a linesman in the NHL. It's very interesting and has a lot of great stories in it.

Yeah I'm half way throught that one, so far so good.

Post by **batdad** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 7:10 pm

BEtcha I get that one for my birthday. My dad knows.

white knight · Post by **white knight** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 10:41 pm

I really liked the Wayne Gretzky/Rick Reilly book, 'Gretzky'. Of course, as Batdad mentioned, Tiger's book is great but my all-time favourite hockey book is Borje Salming's 'Blood, Sweat and Tears'. A great book covering everything from Borje and his teammates doing coke at clubs in Toronto to his return to swedish hockey with AIK in the early 1990's.

flea · Post by **flea** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 7:34 pm

batdad wrote:BEtcha I get that one for my birthday. My dad knows.

Now Iam confused....is it batboy who's talking now with batdad's nick or are u really batdad???

Back on topic: would like to read one of those books but its very hard to get them here so I probably would have to watch on ebay...

...any recommendations for a B's fan??? Dont know, maybe a bio about Orr, Espo, Neely or Bourque??? Or one about the B's history???

Suggestions, please???!!!

Post by **batdad** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 8:42 pm

Now I am confused....is it batboy who's talking now with batdad's nick or are u really batdad???

Ha! And no it is not. And I did not get the book...I got an Al Gore book instead. Cool though, should be a good read.

Post by **B. Stinson** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 9:40 pm

They oughta start putting literature on the net...

...'Cause there's so may things I'd like to read, but I hate books.

As for hockey books, the only one I've even attempted is the "Philadelphia Flyers Encyclopedia." Very nice read about the Flyers history, especially from David Sherman who somehow - has memorized - the outcome of every Flyers game. I have yet to finish it, though, because again - I hate books.

bruins72 · Post by **bruins72** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 9:45 pm

Yeah... books are bad! There's just too many word and it's all on paper!

Sadly, my attention span doesn't allow for reading anymore. I'm limited to magazines and the internet. I get distracted too easily to really sink into a good book. It's a shame because I used to love reading (mostly fiction).

I did a quick search on Amazon to see what was out there for Bruins books. There was a book about Derek Sanderson's great fall from grace but it doesn't appear to be in print anymore. It was only available used. I also saw several books about the team history but they seemed to be more like "fact books", just stats and such. I also saw some Bobb y Orr books but didn't know which were good. There appears to have been one by Orr himself (but that easily could've been ghost written). I didn't go much further than that. I'm sure there are books out there on Espo, maybe Bourque and Neely too.

flea · Post by **flea** » Thu Aug 23, 2007 7:51 pm

batdad wrote:
Now I am confused....is it batboy who's talking now with batdad's nick or are u really batdad???

Ha! And no it is not. And I did not get the book...I got an Al Gore book instead. Cool though, should be a good read.

LOL, never mind then....its the book about pollution???....has to be interesting...and shocking, probably...

Bruins72: gonna make some searches, if I find something worthy I will talk back, thanks buddy!!