Red-Line Blues

Ian A. Andrews is a high-school social sciences teacher and editor of the New Brunswick Teachers’ Association’s Focus.

Eleven-year-old Lee, inspired by his three uncles, who played hockey at
the professional and Olympic levels, decides to try out the game. Lee
joins a local team of beginners, quickly makes friend, and learns how to
play. But the team has a weak young coach who allows a pushy parent to
dictate how the team is to be run. This results in many of the players
losing the enjoyment they’d been experiencing at the rink.

The novel raises questions about the purpose of minor hockey and how
involved parents should be in the operation of their child’s team.
Should the emphasis be on winning or on the teaching of skills? Is a
balance possible? How much does fair play enter into the game?

Using both real and fictitious newspaper accounts of the uncles’
hockey games in the 1920s and 1930s as a backdrop, Rivers looks at, in
microcosm, the difficulties facing minor-hockey organizations across the
country. Although the problems raised are not resolved, plausible
alternatives are offered.

Red-Line Blues will interest elementary students, particularly those
who become involved in team sports. Recommended.