Putting A Roof On Winter: Hockey's Rise from Sport to Spectacle

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Read!
Review: I have read many books that detail the history of the great game of Hockey, but none was better written than this book. Mr. McKinley tells the history in a way that is easy to follow and entertaining to read. Where many of the hockey history books are confusing to follow, this one is a joy to read. I have read through the book twice already and will surely revisit the book many times in the future. Highly recommend!

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous Book
Review: Quite simply the best book ever written on the history of the sport

Rating:
Summary: NHL players and owners, please read this book
Review: This book is fascinating on a number of levels. It gives a great account of the beginnings of hockey, including the tensions between anglo and francophone players in Montreal in the early days.

It's also a great trip down memory lane for any fan who remembers a few decades back to players like the Rocket, and has even further, but fuzzy, memories of guys like Turk Broda or Howie Morenz. McKinley covers all the major players and moments of hockey past.

But the book is more than that. It's at many levels an argument about the game, and the recurring message is that, from the very start, there's been tension between owners who have tried to outspend each other in order to win.

Reading about this element puts the currently approaching labor crisis in a historical perspective in a way that no other hockey book I'm familiar with does. For that reason alone, it's worth the read.

It makes me wish that Gary Bettman, every NHL owner, and every player would pick up a copy. It might enlighten them to know that the money and contract issues currently plaguing the game are not new. Fans can only hope that it would have the further effect of waking them up to the effects of excess before they give the game a black eye through another work stoppage.

A fantastic book. McKinley is to be congratulated.

Rating:
Summary: OH LORD
Review: when i opened up this book it was like the heavens opened up and angels smiled upon me.