Ross Bernstein

The Code was a good, simple, book. If you are a baseball fan, it is a good book to read, in part because it is an easy read, with clearly defined chapters and the language it is written in is easily understandable (and no, im not talking about the book being in English, i mean the authors prose). The book also includes a lot of quotes directly from players, current majors leaguers, all the way to Hall of Famers. The only problem I had with the book is the way that some of the quotes are presented. While reading, you are suddenly confronted with a shaded in box containing a players quote on the topic of the chapter. That kind of stuff really throws me off. I am in a flow of reading the chapter, and then BAM, one of those shaded boxes. What do you do with them? Do you stop where you are and read the shaded box, or do you finish your paragraph and read the shaded box, or do you finish the chapter and then read all the shaded boxes that were in that chapter? I found it easier to finish a chapter and then read the shaded box, but I don't really like the "shaded box gimmick", either include the players quote in the flow of the chapter, which was also done during this book, or give me a collection of quotes at the end of the chapter. I don't know why this gimmick is becoming more and more prevalent, possibly because of the influx of ADD or whatever, people need a little break within their chapter, but I have to say I HATE it, it kills the flow of the book, and really throws me off. Oooootherwise..... nice little book, quick read, if it wasn't for the "shaded box gimmick" the book might have gotten another star.… (altro)

Fighting in hockey is one of those things for which there is no shortage of strongly held opinions. Bernstein, a Minnesotan, attempts to take the reader inside the unwritten rules that govern fisticuffs at the professional level. He deserves credit for a balanced approach to the subject that also explores the background of some of the more notorious incidents that have occurred over the past couple decades (Todd Bertuzzi is the most recent example) and putting them in greater perspective. Subtitled The Unwritten Rules of Fighting and Retaliation in the NHL, the book creates a greater understanding of "the code" for outsiders. However, it suffers somewhat from repetitiveness. After all, there really are only so many ways to tell the reader that the "enforcers" follow an unwritten code and why their roles are intended to protect skill players and to police play on the ice. Since Bernstein wrote the book following the recent rule changes that have reduced the number of fights in the NHL as well as caused many NHL teams to question the need for a pure enforcer on the roster, it is quite relevant to the continuing debate over fighting in the sport.

Originally posted with two other hockey book reviews at http://prairieprogressive.com/?p=971… (altro)