I was reading out sports books online a few months ago, and came across a passionate fan of Ken Dryden's seminal The Game. I found it for sale online for very cheap, so cheap that the shipping cost more, something I've been finding lately with some of my purchases.
This copy was one of the Canadian paperbacks, which I thought was pretty cool, since this is one of the best selling books in Canada's history.
Ken Dryden played goalie for the Montreal Canadiens hockey team during one of their dynastic runs. The Canadiens are the NHL's version of the Yankees, having separate dynasties and winning the most championships in the league's history. Dryden went on to become a lawyer and lawmaker, and served in an elected position in their parliament.
The book was described by various sources as the best book about hockey by far, and possibly the best sports book ever. Well, I like reading, and I like sports, so there was the natural-ness of the whole shebang.
Reading in the introduction about how Dryden would scratch out notes on pads at his locker after periods, or on receipts or on random hotel stationary, but then he had a sickening realization that those thoughts and feelings he'd written wouldn't comprise a book in the sense he'd originally thought when he started the project. That topic is in the first few sentences in the introduction, letting readers know what they're getting into.
Touching on philosophy, memories, teamwork, leadership, and the drive for excellence, The Game is a classic in any discipline.
The last three books have been examples from my sports-book pocketbooks collections, and each covers a different iconic player from their sport: Hank, Pele and Dryden. This book is best of the three in terms of the writing.
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