P. K. Subban: Fighting Racism to Become a Hockey Superstar and Role Model for Athletes of Colour

P. K. Subban: Fighting Racism to Become a Hockey Superstar and Role Model for Athletes of Colour is part of the “RecordBooks” series of nonfiction books which, according to the publisher, “tell the story of how an athlete or a team worked to change attitudes around them.” The subtitle of P. K. Subban identifies the book’s two foci, with one being how P. K. has had to deal with the racism that began almost simultaneously with his entering organized hockey as a child and which continues to the present for the superstar NHL defenseman. Rondina also shows how P. K. has become a role model via his positive responses to the racism he encounters as well as his numerous acts of selfless charity in the larger community.

Though the cover illustration shows P. K. streaking down the ice, P. K. Subban is not the typical hockey biography in which the author tries to recreate the action of key games/series in a player’s life. Instead, Rondina has created a character study that actually begins prior to P. K.’s birth and which follows him through to his July, 2019, trade to the New Jersey Devils. Rondina acknowledges, “Unfortunately, I was unable to interview P. K. Subban for this book, but I had the great fortune of being able to research his life through the incredible media outlets that report on sports in North America.” Despite Rondina’s not having direct access to P. K., she brings him to life for readers by smoothly weaving together the direct quotes and other factual information that she gleaned from the numerous secondary sources she researched.

The book’s 16 chapters are organized largely chronologically, with the text frequently being interrupted by text boxes that contain details related to the main text. For example, the excerpt above addressed the day P. K. was selected in the NHL Entry Draft, and the text box reproduced below then spoke to the significance of P. K.’s being the 43rd selection made.

The Draft

In the NHL, the top 10 draft picks have an 85 per cent chance of having a successful pro career. Top 30 picks have a 65 per cent chance. Picks outside the top 90 have only a 15 per cent chance.

The book also contains numerous black and white photos, most of good quality and a few full-page. Significant end matter includes a one-page listing of “P. K. Subban Career Highlights”, a four-page “Glossary” of words that had been bolded in the text, and a three-page index.

Rondina has also authored another player biography in the “RecordBooks” series, Carey Price: How a First Nations Kid Became a Superstar Goaltender. Readers of P. K. Subban will definitely come away from their reading with a sense that they have met and know both P. K. the superstar hockey player and P. K. the man.