Summer Books #2
August 10, 2008
The second book that I read this summer was “Tiger - A Hockey Story” written in 1984 while Tiger was still in the league. I bought the book for the steep price of $2.00 in the most amazing used bookstore in Penticton - simply entitled The Bookshop. For two bucks how could I go wrong? Well let’s just say that two bucks was about all I would pay to hear any of Tiger’s two cents.
A book written by one of the most prolific enforcers in the NHL past or present while he was still in the league should have been far more entertaining that it was. The book has its moments and a few good anecdotes but they are all told from the standpoint of “Look how great and moral I am and how pathetic and immoral everyone else is.” All I can say is Tiger, at the time of writing the book, has an overdeveloped sense of confidence and braggadocio.
The only real highlight of the book for me was when he referred to an NHL’er from Quesnel by saying “Without a doubt Bob Gassoff was the toughest hockey player I have ever known.” Being from the Q-Town I felt a little pride.
Shots of Bob Gassoff - a post on him later.
Getting back to “Tiger - A Hockey Story”. To me the acid test of a book is how long I would wait to read it again. In this case …. I won’t.
