Hockey

Dave Jenkinson is a professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba and the author of the “Portraits” section of Emergency Librarian.

One of a series of three books about the “basics” of common North
American adult team sports that are also played by young children,
Hockey is directed at children aged 4 to 8. Because Hockey’s readers,
both child and adult, will have varying levels of knowledge about hockey
or differing expectations about what should constitute hockey’s
“basics,” this slim book’s contents will likely be considered by
many as verging on the superficial. The “what” of hockey, rather
than the “how-to,” constitutes the book’s focus. Consequently,
children are told, for example, that “skating, passing, receiving and
shooting the puck are important [basic] skills,” but the book does not
speak to the “basics” of how to perform these skills. And, while the
text explains that “hockey players need a lot of equipment,” it does
not delineate what that “basic” equipment should be.

Wark’s text and Ritchie’s full-color, cartoonlike illustrations
appropriately acknowledge that hockey is a sport that can be played by
girls, as well as boys. Within its limited scope, Wark’s content is
accurate, though the description of the impact of a minor penalty needs
to be modified to include the effect of a goal’s being scored on the
penalized team. A concluding “Notes to Parents” page includes brief
suggestions on how parents can select an appropriate league for their
children, plus ideas on what parents can do to make playing hockey a
positive growth experience for their offspring. Recommended with
reservations.