THE GAME: A REFLECTIVE AND THOUGHT-PROVOKING LOOK AT A LIFE IN HOCKEY Ken Dryden. Toronto, MacMillan, c1983. 248pp, cloth, $19.95. ISBN 0-7715-9720-7. Grades 12 and up. Reviewed by Michael Freeman. Volume 12 Number 1 1984 January An intellectual look at a physical, instinctive sport. Dryden, more erudite than most writers, more skilled than most hockey players, combines his two talents to provide a powerful, incisive account of life in professional sport. He pulls no punches. Controversial hockey topics-violence, French-English relations, recent Soviet domination, and the inequities of officials—are approached from a frank, matter-of-fact viewpoint. The weaknesses, foibles, and idiosyncrasies of the men-children who play this game as their primary vocation are illuminated through the pen of a critical but never cruel participant-observer. The contrasts between the celebrity and high income on the one hand and the constant insecurity and lack of privacy on the other give the reader a wide-angle view of this glamorous but somewhat artificial lifestyle. Dryden portrays vividly the highs and lows of daily life in professional sport: the pre-game tensions, the post-game explosion of relief, the monotony of daily practices, the enervation of the never-ending travel, the intense camaraderie of the locker room, and the shock of immediate obscurity once the player's deteriorating skills lead to enforced retirement. The author provides as well a chronological analysis of the history of the sport and of its possible future directions. Although this book will appeal to every literate fan, the reader's realization that hockey, for Dryden, provided just one exhilarating interlude in his personal growth and development will broaden vastly the audience for this "sports" story. Recommended. Michael Freeman, Downsview S. S., Downsview, ON.