Winter Sports Books

I was looking for a good ski guide and after much research I narrowed my choice down to two: this one and The Great Skiing & Snowboarding Guide 2007. After having purchased and used both guides I can recommend both. But if you are only buying one, then your choice should be around WHERE you are planning to ski.

This guide has no information on resorts outside North America (obviously), but it does provide richer information and insights than the Great guide. It provides better insights on food and accommodation as well as some views on the best runs - which I found to be very helpful and accurate. It doesn't have the glossy trail maps - although these days they can be found on-line for most resorts.

The Great guide has reviews of all the major resorts in North America and Europe (although it has very little on other countries such as NZ, Chile, Japan etc). A bonus is glossy colour trail maps of all the resorts they cover in detail. It also has lots of ad's and details for travel agents, hotels and the like if you are looking for that information.

In Summary: if you are "going global" or want the glossy trail maps - go with the Great guide. If you are sticking to North America then I found Leocha's to be more insightful. [Review repeated under Great Guide]

Mark Messier (Ice Hockey Legends) is a suprisingly informative book that takes an in-depth look at the career of one of sports must decorated champions. From his days in Edmonton, were Messier won 5 Stanley Cups, to his Stanley Cup season as a New York Ranger this book is a wonderful read!

One of the must exciting aspects of the book, are the actually quotes from Messier himself. It really adds to the diversity of the book and shows the type of character & leadership that Messier is so famous for. As for the pictures themselfs, I very impressed! They are black & white, but that does not diminish the book in anyway and there are some great shots of Messier from his earlier days as an Oiler.

Bottom line. Get the the book, it truely is a great read! Messier is without question one of the all time great leaders and champions of any sport!

I understood that this book is one of a series that can help teach children to read more effectively. However, my daughter and I both thought that is was simply fun to go through over and over, just on its own merits. The illustrations were great and can't help remind the adult reader of their own childhood as well. I am buying 10 more just for gifts for friends with toddlers who want to get a leg up in reading skills.

Skating champs come and go, but Michelle will be remembered long after she hangs up her skates. Dignified in victory and gracious in "defeat" (since when are Olympic silver and bronze medals a loss????), she exemplifies the word "Champion" both on and off the ice. A must-have for Michelle's fans and for fans of the sport.

This 2nd edition detailing the 1967 Winter expedition to scale Alaska's 20,320 foot Mount McKinley includes a new Introduction by David Roberts, a new Afterword by the author and an Appendix detailing 5 other winter McKinley attempts. With 16 pages of black and white photos.

We read this book in our third grade class and we really liked it because it was funny, happy & gross.This wonderful book shows not to be mad at your classmates.Lucy Tinker had five diffrent colors of finger nail polish on her nails. Marvin caused a lot of trouble just because he didn't trust his classmates. You should read this because it's cool and funny and you'll laugh.

Morgy Makes His Move is a really good book, so when Morgy Coast to Coast came out I was eager to read it. It lived up to and surpassed my expectations. Sequels have a way of dissapointing, but this one is actually better than the first one.

The thing I love about Morgy is the realness of him and his world. The author perfectly captures the talk of Moms and aunts and the everything-happening-at-once atmosphere of a family with three kids. The book is filled with perfect details about ordinary things like elementary school, babies, dogs and cats, New England, and being a kid. They're so accurate that they make me see those ordinary things fresh in my head, with a vividness that is rare and welcome in any novel. The clarity of her descriptions made me smile in recognition, and sometimes laugh out loud--parts of this book are really funny.

Another thing that I really like about this book is its realistic goodness and insight. Often, goodness in kid's books is made to look boring or preachy or weak. Those are problems that both Morgy books avoid beautifully. Morgy is fully human--there's no doubt about that--and part of being human is wanting to be good. In Morgy's world, as in the real world, good is normal and interesting.

This is a great book, and it's a shame it's out of print. It shows it's age a bit (1982), but Vic keeps it pretty timeless by focusing mainly on those concepts which are forever-relevant. The book covers Nordic skiing, and some Alpine touring, and also winter mountaineering. Really though, he's not writing about several distinct hobbies, but rather being very down-to-earth about how to get maximum enjoyment out of the mountains.

My favorite thing about this is the technique covered. Even though this is largely a book about nordic skiing in the mountains, he goes well beyond telemark turns. Also covered, are paralell, wedeln, reverse telemark, and a number of really silly looking ones as well. Practicing one type of turn will help with others, so this is a good way to strengthen overall technique. I think it's perfect for a book about the backcountry because conditions/terrain may be especially unpredictable and it's useful to have a variety of techniques handy. Some of the things this book suggests practicing essentially amount to being ready for some crazy positions you might find yourself in by accident.

Another good thing about this book is the technical discussion of gear. Vic advocates being fully prepared, but keeping gear to a minimum. He discusses technical attributes of skis, bindings, and boots concisely and on a practical level (e.g. how to decide whether your skis should be torsionally-stiff/long/shaped/etc.). What can be found in this part of the book is useful in giving the reader a more thorough understanding of how a ski works, so it's useful for any kind of skiier. Although I've been reading up on this kind of stuff for a while, there were several things that I didn't know or wasn't clear on--this book put them in refreshingly straightforward form.

The author is open-minded and thorough--a powerful combination. He's got a good view of what's important in skiing (enjoyment), and delivers his message clearly and simply. I think this book is a must for anyone heading to the backcountry, or hopping on telemark gear, and I would recommend it to anyone who has an interest in any kind of skiing/snowboarding/teleboarding/whatever.

Ages 4-8 will appreciate Jonah Winter & Francois Roca's story Muhammed Ali: Champion of the World, of boxer Muhammed Ali, who was more than a boxer, symbolizing Muslim rights and his people's efforts to succeed. This biography highlights his life using large-sized, vivid lettering to capture the drama of his life and boxing style.

First, let me state that I have not read this book yet. But, I have read positive reviews of it and thought one piece of information could be very helpful. This book is said to contain information on canicross, bikejoring, skijoring, pulking, backpacking and camping, in addition to sledding. Since there aren't many books out there yet which cover these topics, it's good to find one that does.