Something to Prove: The Story of Hockey Rough Guy Bobby Clarke. (Recordbooks). Nicole Mortillaro. Toronto, ON: James Lorimer, 2010. 96 pp., pbk. & hc., $9.95 (pbk.), $16.95 (hc.). ISBN 978-1-55277-480-9 (pbk.), ISBN 978-1-55277-481-6 (hc.). Subject Headings: Clarke, Bobby, 1949–Juvenile literature. Hockey-Canada-Biography-Juvenile literature. Grades 3-6 / Ages 8-11. Review by Elizabeth Walker. *** /4

excerpt:

Bobby was a natural on the ice. Maybe no one was calling him a superstar, but he was good. He was a playmaker. He saw the puck, he saw the plays, and he made them. And he definitely made a name for himself when he played for the Flin Flon Bombers in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League. In his first season with the team, in 1966-67, Bobby scored 71 goals. He was the league leader in goals, points and assists. And his diabetes didn’t make him timid: he also had 123 penalty minutes.

Mortillaro’s breezy, fact-filled biography of hockey legend Bobby Clarke is just the thing for hockey-crazed reluctant readers. Beginning with Clarke’s early years in Flin Flon, MB, Mortillaro chronicles Clarke`s rise through local hockey leagues, his battle with diabetes, and ultimately his great success in the NHL, including his role in the iconic 1972 series against the Soviet Union.

     Kids who like “infotainment” will be drawn to this book as it reads like a novel but includes fact boxes, photographs and a glossary. The author keeps her chapters short, makes good use of cliff-hangers, and manages to keep her descriptions of hockey games and plays exciting and easy to picture. Even kids who are not that keen on hockey will find the figure of Clarke an interesting subject.

     Something to Prove is a good fit for collections of easy-to-read, but substantial biographies, and will be enjoyed by young hockey fans.

Recommended.

Elizabeth Walker, a teacher-librarian in Vancouver, BC, doesn’t really like hockey.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.

Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

Hosted by the University of Manitoba.

 

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