List Price: CDN$ 10.99 (CAD)
- Lowest Used Price: CDN$ 1.06
- Total New: 0
- Total Used: 11
- Total Collectible: 0
- Total Refurbished: 0
- Author : Jeff Z. Klein
- Binding : Mass Market Paperback
- EAN : 9780770429089
- ISBN : 0770429084
- Label : Seal Books
- Languages : Original Language: English, Published: English
- Manufacturer : Seal Books
- Number Of Pages : 480
- Package Dimensions : 1.20 inches (Height) x 6.80 inches (Length) x 0.55 pounds (Weight) x 4.20 inches (Width)
- Product Group : Book
- Publication Date : 2004-10-26
- Publisher : Seal Books
- Release Date : 2004-10-26
- SKU : 1006-WS1601-A02010-0770429084
- Studio : Seal Books
In Jeff Z. Klein's biography of Mark Messier, certain terms come up when people--even opponents on the ice--describe the hockey great. Former Calgary Flames defenceman Ric Nattress offered a summation that included: "Big. Strong. Fast. Great shot. Physical. Mean. Durable. Great leader." Added Nattress, "What else could you possibly ask for in any individual?" Not much, apparently. While Klein stops short of hagiography--Messier has delivered way too many concussions to qualify as a saint-- Messier is still a highly favourable and very readable portrait of the player who first gained fame alongside best friend Wayne Gretzky with the Oilers and then, after joining the New York Rangers in 1991, became the only player to captain two different teams to Stanley Cup wins. As Klein's book demonstrates, Messier's burly yet speedy style of play was matched by his ability to inspire and encourage his team mates. He has also enjoyed one of the longest careers of any NHL player. Klein suggests that Messier's keen leadership acumen was just one of the values instilled in him by his close-knit, hockey-mad Alberta family. Unfortunately, neither Messier nor anyone in his family agreed to be interviewed for Klein's book, so fans will have to wait to find out if Messier agrees. Yet Klein, a writer for the New York Times Magazine, still brings plenty of colour and a knack for telling details, especially in regards to Messier's career in New York, subsequent rise in celebrity, and troubled stint with the Vancouver Canucks. (Messier's fabled Oilers era is better covered in several other books, most of them cited by Klein.) Moreover, the author succeeds in presenting the lighter side of his charismatic subject. Messier liked to party as hard as he played, and the book recounts anecdotes about the hockey hero romancing lingerie models, taking the Stanley Cup to strip bars, getting trashed with his brother in an Edmonton drag-queen hangout, and--to the shock of Rangers fans--admitting to occasionally indulging in a bit of cross-dressing himself. Maybe Nattress's list of attributes could use a few more entries, such as "Looks foxy in a pair of fishnet stockings." --Jason Anderson
- Amazon.ca
Other Versions:
Look for Similar Items in these Categories:
- Books > Subjects > Biographies & Memoirs > Sports & Outdoors
- Books > Subjects > Sports > Biographies > Hockey
Leave a Comment: