Review of "A Guy Like Me"

As part of a reading challenge, I had to find a hockey memoir.  Not wanting to purchase a new book when I was convinced I could find one on Kindle Unlimited or in a library, I found this one.  Having remembered John Scott from the fan vote to make him an All-Star, I decided on this for that story and wasn't disappointed.  Here is my review of "A Guy Like Me."

 

Title/Author:

“A Guy Like Me: Fighting to Make the Cut” by John Scott with Brian Cazenevue

Rating: 

4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review: John Scott’s story of his rise to become an enforcer in the NHL is not unlike those of others who have followed similar paths in order to become players in the highest professional league in North America with less than outstanding skills.  While they are similar, every story has its unique turns and Scott’s is no different.  He tells his tale in this fun and easy-to-read memoir he wrote with Brian Cazenevue.

Start with the most obvious reason that Scott’s story is different.  He went from being a relatively obscure player who bounced around for several teams to becoming not only an All-Star that was voted into the game by fans, but he also won the All-Star game MVP award in 2016.  What makes that even more remarkable was that the fan voting took place while Scott was a member of the Arizona Coyotes, but before the All-Star game, he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens, who sent him down to their minor league team in the American Hockey League.  So, you had a player going to the All-Star game who was currently playing in the minor leagues.  Which does sound like it qualifies as something different than stories of other hockey tough men.

Scott’s stories about this chapter of his career is certainly the best part of the book, both in the information he shares and the entertainment value of the book.  However, that doesn’t discount the fact that the rest of the book is a solid effort in which Scott never takes himself too seriously, shares the self-doubt that plagued him at each level of hockey and each off-season as he would usually sign one year contracts with each team that paid for his services.  He played for a total of seven NHL teams.  In addition to the Coyotes and Canadiens (he did get called back to the NHL by Montreal), he played for the Minnesota Wild, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, Buffalo Sabres and San Jose Sharks.

The sections about Scott’s personal life, how he met and fell in love with his wife Danielle when both were students as Michigan Tech, and also his college hockey career at Tech when they were one of the struggling teams in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association also make great reading.  Hockey fans will be the ones who will want to pick up this book if they have not already done so, as it’s one that has a lot of hockey talk inside and will make a reader a fan of John Scott if they are not already one.      

Link: https://www.amazon.com/Guy-Like-Me-Fighting-Make/dp/1501159658/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

 

Review of "Tales from the Minnesota Sports Beat"

While I may not be living in Minnesota any longer, I still read the Star Tribune sports page daily online and was thrilled to learn one of the long-time writers there, Patrick Reusse has written a memoir.  Of course I had to get a copy and it was as good as I had hoped.  Here is my review of his memoir. 

Title/Author: “Tales from the Minnesota Sports Beat: A Lifetime on Deadline” by Patrick Reusse with Chip Scroggins

Rating: 5 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review:  Many cities have a sports broadcaster or sportswriter who over the years become very familiar to the fans of that city.  Often they are recognized when one states just either their first or last name.  In the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Patrick Reusse is one of those sports writers as one just needs to say “Reusse!” and fans will know not only who that is but will have both an opinion and a memory or two about him.  Reusse, who has been a sportswriter in Minnesota since 1965, teams up with Chip Scroggins to produce this excellent memoir.

No matter which sport or team is the favorite of a Minnesota sports fan (including this reviewer), Reusse will have seen them, written about them and includes them in this book.  He does share his preferences on which sports he prefers to write about (baseball and golf are his favorites), which sports he admits to covering but not knowing much about it (hockey and figure skating) and a sport that he initially knew nothing about but became a big fan (volleyball).  He writes about these in the same style in which he has written his column for many years – some are flattering, some are biting and some are humorous but all are clearly written from the heart.

As one would expect, he has plenty of stories with his interactions with not only some of the best athletes around but also with other sportswriters and other notable personalities.  Because some of the stories come from a different time, he does note that when some of them took place, certain comments and actions would not be likely to be taken well today.  While the stories with athletes are great and some brought back some nice memories of sports events, the best ones were about other journalists.  His tales of pranks played on another long time Minnesota sports writer, Sid Hartman, left me in stitches.

Reusse not only worked for the newspapers in both cities, but he was also a radio personality for many years.  He teamed up with another sportswriter, Joe Soucheray, for a Monday night sports talk show (originally on Sunday night) that took on a personality of its own, attracted many regular callers and was a can’t miss event that had the ears of many Twin Cities residents.  In this chapter, Reusse is at his most humble self, giving all the credit to Soucheray for the success of the show.  As one who was a regular listener before leaving the area, I can state that it took both to make that show as good as it was.  Something in the book that Reusse states that seems amazing is that neither of them came in with a specific topic in mind to discuss – they simply let the callers drive the program.  Whatever they did, it certainly worked.

Of course, there are sports stories in the book.  Whether it was the good times, such as the two World Series titles for the Twins in 1987 and 1991, the bad times such as the Vikings’ loss to the Atlanta Falcons in the 1999 NFC Championship (he came up with the name of the famous “Weeping Blondes” photo from that game) or the background stories of various teams, such as the football team for the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the 1960’s, Reusse covers it all.  If there is something the reader remembers about Minnesota sports in the last 55 or so years, chances are Reusse has written about it or was there in some manner.  Minnesota sports fans, whether they are fans of Reusse or or think he’s just a curmudgeon, should pick up this book as it is sure to be one that will contain at least some material that will be pleasing to them.

I wish to thank Minnesota Historical Society Press for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Links:   Tales from the Minnesota Sports Beat: A Lifetime on Deadline: Reusse, Patrick, Scoggins, Chip, Barreiro, Dan: 9781681342306: Amazon.com: Books

Review of "Boy On Ice"

As a fan of the Minnesota Wild, I was familiar with Derek Boogaard and the popularity he achieved in Minnesota while serving as the team's enforcer for a number of seasons.  When he left to sign with the New York Rangers, I also thought I would get to see more of him as I live in the Rangers' market.  But sadly, that never happened with his untimely death in 2011.  So naturally I was interested in reading this book and I am certainly glad that I did.  Here is my review of "Boy On Ice."

Title/Author:

“Boy On Ice: The Life and Death of Derek Boogaard” by John Branch

Tags:

Ice hockey, biography, professional, Wild, Rangers, death

Publish date:

September 29, 2014

Length:

385 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

When Derek Boogaard was found dead in his apartment in May 2011, I was shocked.  He was a player that I followed as a fan of the Minnesota Wild, his first team, and then as a member of the New York Rangers, since I live in Rangers territory.  My first thought was he was another athlete who succumbed to the good life and lived it too well.  But then when the true cause of his death was disclosed, it was an even bigger shock.

Given that premise, I was very interested to read this book by John Branch to see what really happened to Boogaard and what type of life he led. This was not the typical biography of an athlete, something that Branch states in the book. While it does cover the entire spectrum of Boogaard’s life, it reads much like a novel in which you root for the main character but you just have this sinking feeling that in the end, something bad is going to happen.

Two topics that are hot items in sports and the news today, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and addiction to pain killers, are discussed at length in the book, as it was shown that Boogaard was suffering from both. Branch did extensive research to illustrate how much Boogaard was willing to spend and to travel in order to obtain prescriptions for pain killers and sleeping pills. It made for fascinating reading and makes the reader both feel sorry for Boogaard and also angry in why he was not following his rehabilitation treatment and listening to those close to him about this problem.

The book also explores the life of a hockey enforcer and what these players go through in order to catch on with professional teams. Branch portrays not only Boogaard, but all players who are this type of specialist, as insecure and always wondering if that next fight that is lost or that next shift that is missed will cost the player his job. There are many facets to this type of player such as the constant hand injuries and the secret codes they speak to one another about when to fight. I also enjoyed reading about life in the Canadian junior leagues, a path many young Canadian players take to achieve their dream of playing in the NHL. If the reader is unfamiliar with these leagues and the lifestyle of these players, the book does a wonderful job of portraying this life.

Hockey fans should read this book for not only a description of the ups and downs of Derek’s life but also for the insight into the life of the enforcer. There will be many surprises to be found if one believes that person is merely the tough guy for his team.  An excellent book that I enjoyed very much.

Pace of the book:

It was a fast paced book that will grab the reader’s attention right away and will not let go. Each segment of Boogaard’s life was covered by excellent writing.

Do I recommend? 

Not only will hockey fans enjoy this book, but anyone who is interested in the effects of CTE or the addiction to pain killers will want to read this book as well.

Book Format Read:

Hardcover

Buying links:

http://www.amazon.com/Boy-Ice-Death-Derek-Boogaard-ebook/dp/B00J8R3NNM/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1439633876&sr=1-1&keywords=boy+on+ice

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/boy-on-ice-john-branch/1118484490?ean=9780393239393