Review of "Ice Gold"

When the Winter Olympics are held, one of my favorite sports to watch is curling.  Seeing the rocks slide down the ice to the house while the sweepers madly clear the ice in front grabs my attention and I don't stop until the gold medal matches.  When I saw that a book was available for review about the two Canadian gold medal teams from the 2014 Olympics, I jumped on the chance to read it.  Here is my review of "Ice Gold."

Title/Author:

“Ice Gold” by Ted Wyman

Tags:

Curling, Winter Olympics

Publish date:

October 1, 2014

Length:

240 pages

Rating: 

4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:

During the 2014 Winter Olympics, a rare accomplishment occurred when both the men’s and women’s curling teams from Canada won their respective gold medals. The stories of both teams and how they rose from curling club competition to Olympic champions are captured in this book by sportswriter Ted Wyman.

The two skips of each team, Jennifer Jones and Brad Jacobs, are the prominent characters in the tales of the two squads, as Wyman details their lives in and out of the rink and how they both achieved their goals through hard work and each overcoming obstacles. Whether these obstacles were their personal lives or on the ice, the way both Jones and Jacobs rose to the top of their games is an inspiring story.

The book alternates chapters between the men’s and women’s teams, which is a good format as it keeps the reader in the flow for both teams. The chapters were not too long, which helped keep me on track while I was reading it. The styles for the writing between the chapters on the men’s and women’s teams were different as well. Wyman tells of the relationships and inner conflicts for the women, such as when Jones had to let a long time teammate go in favor of a new player.  For the men’s team, Wyman writes a lot on their training and athleticism.  I chuckled when he would mention how good they looked in their t-shirts.  

The stories of both teams were inspiring and it is clear to the reader that these teams were revered by an entire nation when they achieved their dreams of winning the gold medal.  It was not the typical Olympic book with these stories and will be a good addition to the library of someone who is a curling aficionado or likes uplifting Olympic stories.

I wish to thank NetGalley for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Pace of the book: 

Having not followed the sport of curling for very long and am still only a casual fan at best, I had some difficulty with the more advanced terminology and descriptions of some of the matches.  These passages took me longer to read as I sometimes had to refer to looking up some of the terms.  But overall, the flow and pace of this book was very good.

Do I recommend? 

Serious curling fans or athletes will enjoy this book on two excellent teams that overcame long odds to win Olympic gold medals

Book Format Read:

E-book (Kindle)

Buying links:

http://www.amazon.com/Ice-Gold-Ted-Wyman-ebook/dp/B00K6MOKDK/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1422063035&sr=1-1&keywords=ice+gold&pebp=1422063040482&peasin=B00K6MOKDK

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ice-gold-ted-wyman/1119185110?ean=9781770412477

Review of a book on curling

Now that the Olympics are here, that means I will be watching a lot of curling.  I found this book on the game that is one of the best "how-to" books I have read on any topic.   Here is my review on the book:

Title/Author:

“How To Watch Olympic Curling on TV” by Jack Miller

Tags:

Curling, Winter Olympics

Published:

December 12, 2013

Length:

75 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

Every four years when the Winter Olympics are held, curling is one of the sports that gets a lot of attention and viewers, and then goes into hibernation until the next Olympics.   So, when I saw the cover of this book, I naturally was interested because I watch a lot of the curling matches.   This short book by Jack Miller packs a lot of information about the sport. 

This is not a typical “how-to” book because after the basic rules and terms are covered, the book goes into the strategy of the game by analyzing shot by shot one end of the championship match of the 2014 U.S. Women’s Olympic Trials. (Here is the first terminology definition for those who have never watched curling – an end is when each team throws each of its eight stones or rocks.) This method of explaining the game was excellent.  By using the terms learned in the previous chapters, the book helps reinforce those new words and also illustrates what they mean.

Diagrams to show the location of the stones after each shot during the analysis were used and were very helpful.  This analysis also showed the insight into the strategy of each shot and Miller explained what goes on during the huddles.   He also explains what is the meaning of the instructions shouted out by the skip (or captain) of the teams.  While they sound simple to the untrained, they actually are shorthand instructions for where each shot is to be placed.

This was a great book to read and learn so much more about a game that gets me hooked during each Winter Olympics.  It is a great reference book for those interested in the game, whether just during the Olympics or if the reader wants to try it out. 

Did I skim?

No. 

Pace of the book: 

Very good. It took me a little longer to read as I was going back to review terms while reading the shot-by-shot narrative of the match, but it was an easy read. 

Do I recommend? 

Yes.  This is an excellent way to learn the nuances and terminology of the sport.  It can be read or used as a reference book while watching the curling matches during the Olympics, which is what I intend to do.  If you are familiar with the sport, it is still a good read on the strategy that goes into each shot.

Book Format Read:

e-book (Kindle)

Buying Links:

http://www.amazon.com/How-Watch-Olympic-Curling-TV-ebook/dp/B00HDZPYCO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1391961651&sr=8-1&keywords=how+to+watch+olympic+curling