River of Champions

by Mary Halverson Schofield

Book by Schofield, Mary Halverson

Paperback

First published June 1, 1995

Reviews

[Paul Pessolano · Rating 5 out of 5]

“River of Champions” by Mary Halverson Schofield, published by Snowshoe Press.

Category – Sports/Hockey Publication Date – January, 1995

A must read for Hockey fans and any young man or women playing sports, especially those at the High School level.

Thief River Falls is a small town in upper Minnesota that thrives on cold weather and hockey. In 1955 the High School Hockey team was favored to win the State Championship. The school had never put together a more formidable team and this was to be their year. Their first opponent was Minneapolis South and they almost forfeited that game due to not having white jerseys, Thief River Falls could not afford both white and dark jerseys. The game went into eleven, yes eleven overtimes, and the winning goal was scored just after 12:30 a.m., by Minneapolis. This is only the beginning of the story.

Devastated by the loss and the loss of most of their front line players, the 1956 squad was determined to go to State again. The outlook was bleak, not only had they lost their best players but they hardly had enough players to field a team. Not to be deterred, the players rallied around themselves. They scheduled early morning practices, on their own, before school, had their regular practice, and then practiced, again on their own after school. They banded together as a tight group, determined with one goal in mind. Needless to say they make it to the State Championship and again have to overcome unbelievable obstacles in their fight to win State. This includes a depleted roster and numerous serious injuries.

This story should be an inspiration to any young or old athlete that achievement can by yours by setting a goal and overcoming all obstacles to obtain that goal. An outstanding read. This book may be hard to find but I know that good used copies are on Amazon at a good price.

[Joey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book. My high school cross-country team was required to read it. It was very inspiring at the time.

I am a life-long hockey fan, so it is still a fun read, even though I'm past my days of high school athletics. It is a great story of determination, commitment, and teamwork.

I highly recommend this book. Everybody should read it but it will be particularly impactful for a high school athlete, as it was for me.

[George Nuutinen · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is one of the best hockey books i have ever read. The hockey team Theif river falls and how they go to state. this book shows people that they dont have to have money and a big town to win a state tourny! best book of the year for me 10/10

[Bob Swanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book about the game of hockey

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like high school hockey or if you ever played hockey this book is a MUST read!!

[Rick S · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very fun read for a Minnesota kid, who grew up playing puck!

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This book is about the 1955-56 Thief River Falls boys high school hockey team and their quest for the MN State title. I read this book because my friend's dad was the hockey coach of the team and I grew up in a small town in northern Minnesota, probably similar to Thief River Falls. I liked a lot about the book, mainly getting to relive the season and get to know the boys on the team. Also, I can't believe how banged up they were by the final game and the pain that they played through! I was not such a fan of was the writing, however. It came off as a little amateur - lots of similes and descriptors that just seemed to be pulled from a thesaurus. Overall though, it was a quick, fun read.

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story, unfortunately the writing is sometimes frusturating.

[Holly Ristau · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm entering the books I read in 1996 and the comments I made in a book diary at that time: A fictional account of the 1955 & 1956 state high school hockey tournaments. Very good!