It's Only a Game

Dave Jenkinson is Associate Dean of the Faculty of Education at the
University of Manitoba.

In the main, O’Keeffe successfully combines hockey, romance, and a
strong anti-violence theme in this young-adult novel featuring Grade 12
student Tony Dennison. An obvious shoo-in as the local A hockey team’s
backup goalie, Tony experiences the effects of “small town hockey
politics” when he is relegated to the B team to make room for Paul
Roper, son of the president of the local minor hockey league. When an
angry Tony fights with Paul at school, the fisticuffs occur in front of
Danica McCann, Tony’s new romantic interest and someone strongly
opposed to violence. After reconsidering his decision to quit hockey,
Tony plays goal for the Warriors, but the team’s “rugged” style
leads to a bench-clearing brawl. This incident confirms Danica’s
assessment that hockey is “too violent,” and almost leads to the
Warriors’ expulsion from the league. Only when Tony’s single-parent
mother, Ruth, volunteers to be general manager and assistant coach are
the now-on-probation Warriors allowed to continue their season.

The book’s off-ice activities principally revolve around a
high-school drama class, where Tony and Danica both perform in and help
stage The Diary of Anne Frank. Danica, deeply moved by the play’s
theme, associates the drama’s historical violence with the
contemporary behaviors she observes among hockey players and fans.
Although Tony initially responds, “It’s only a game,” by the
book’s conclusion he recognizes the veracity of Danica’s
observation.

The combination of good hockey action plus a gentle romance should
attract a junior-high audience of both genders. A recommended purchase.