The Hockey Scribbler

By (author): George Bowering

Canada’s former poet laureate looks back at a life lived in literature and hockey fandom

Hockey forms the backdrop of our lives. For many Canadians, the big moments — births, deaths, marriages, moves — are all mixed up with the wins and losses of our teams. The voices of Hockey Night in Canada sportscasters are our soundtrack, and visions of skates scraping across the ice lull us to sleep.

George Bowering, Canada’s former poet laureate, is no different. Growing up in Oliver, B.C., Bowering was entranced by the kids from Saskatchewan who skated and handled pucks as easily as breathing. His fascination with hockey followed him into adult life, from B.C. to Quebec and back again. Bowering followed his teams with a critical eye and a fan’s passion, and his stories bring us on a cross-country hockey-themed road trip, with occasional forays into boxing, poetry, and sports fashion.

Bowering has an encyclopedic knowledge of his subject. He has been an avid and attentive hockey fan since boyhood, and has an extensive catalogue of thoughts and opinions on the personalities and events that populate Canadian hockey history. In The Hockey Scribbler, Bowering brings us along on his richly detailed look back at hockey in Canada since the 1950s.

AUTHOR

George Bowering

George Bowering was born and brought up in the Okanagan Valley of Pinboy. He published his first book of poems when he was 28. Since then, he has published 100 or so books and chapbooks, won Governor General’s Awards for his poetry and fiction, was the first Parliamentary Poet Laureate of Canada, and has received both the Order of British Columbia and the Order of Canada. He now lives a few steps from where he lived as an undergraduate in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Reviews

“Its structure is dictated by [Bowering’s] episodic yet abiding fascination with displays of puck skills. So it’s not an all-encompassing account of Bowering’s life; rather, it’s a nicely crafted rummage sale of select hockey memories . . . The Hockey Scribbler is a literate yet plain-spoken homage to the game Bowering has loved and followed since childhood.” — Winnipeg Free Press


The Hockey Scribbler is a must read for every Canadian who grew up loving the game.” — Owen Sound Sun Times


“It is a pleasure to experience such a gifted author sharing his thoughts on hockey as only he can. I couldn’t put the book down, which is a rare thing to say for most hockey books.” — GreatestHockeyLegends.com


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Excerpts & Samples ×

Canada’s former poet laureate looks back at a life lived in literature and hockey fandom

Hockey forms the backdrop of our lives. For many Canadians, the big moments — births, deaths, marriages, moves — are all mixed up with the wins and losses of our teams. The voices of Hockey Night in Canada sportscasters are our soundtrack, and visions of skates scraping across the ice lull us to sleep.

George Bowering, Canada’s former poet laureate, is no different. Growing up in Oliver, B.C., Bowering was entranced by the kids from Saskatchewan who skated and handled pucks as easily as breathing. His fascination with hockey followed him into adult life, from B.C. to Quebec and back again. Bowering followed his teams with a critical eye and a fan’s passion, and his stories bring us on a cross-country hockey-themed road trip, with occasional forays into boxing, poetry, and sports fashion.

Bowering has an encyclopedic knowledge of his subject. He has been an avid and attentive hockey fan since boyhood, and has an extensive catalogue of thoughts and opinions on the personalities and events that populate Canadian hockey history. In The Hockey Scribbler, Bowering brings us along on his richly detailed look back at hockey in Canada since the 1950s.

Reader Reviews

Details

Dimensions:

256 Pages
8in * 5in *
1.467lb

Published:

May 01, 2016

City of Publication:

Toronto

Country of Publication:

CA

Publisher:

ECW Press

ISBN:

9781770412897

9781770908550 – EPUB

Book Subjects:

SPORTS & RECREATION / Winter Sports / Hockey

Featured In:

All Books

Language:

eng

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