Georges Laraque: The Story of the NHL's Unlikeliest Tough Guy

by Georges Laraque

 

Think you know NHL tough guy Georges Laraque? Think again. Sure, Laraque knows all about the rough side of the game of hockey. Ottawa Senators pugilist Chris Neil called him “probably the toughest in the league.” Phoenix Coyotes brawler Paul Bisonette said “I’m not really afraid of anyone, but if I were to fight him, I’d probably be shaking going in.” Ask Laraque, though, and he’d say that’s not who he is. Known as a player who was unfailingly respectful and gentlemanly even when he was going toe-to-toe with the toughest guys in the toughest league in the world, today Laraque takes that courageous sense of what is fair into fights that are much more important than the outcome of a hockey game. The son of Haitian immigrants, Laraque campaigns for World Vision to help with Haitian relief. A committed believer in animal rights (and probably the toughest vegan in the world), Laraque is a spokesperson for PETA. A conscientious environmentalist, Laraque stepped up to be the deputy leader of the Green Party. In this intimate, often surprising, biography, Laraque tells the story of a hockey player’s life that is unlike any other, from a childhood facing racism in Quebec’s minor hockey system, to the thrill of the Stanley Cup Finals as an Edmonton Oiler, and sharing a dressing room with Sidney Crosby—and from dropping the gloves on the ice to refusing to back back down from much more serious fights off the ice. Honest, startling, and brave, this is a portrait of a hockey player unlike any you’ve seen before.

Genres: Hockey, Biography, Sports

352 pages, Hardcover

First published November 8, 2011

Reviews

[Matt Fernando · Rating 2 out of 5]

What I learned from this is that Laraque is an egotistical jackass. He thinks he's superior because he doesn't like to say that he beat a fighter, but says things like "that went well for me" or "that didn't end well for him." He must think that we're morons, as if we don't get the difference, and it makes him seem extremely smug. He gets a little preachy about his Green Party views later in the book, and you just get this feeling that he thinks he's smarter than everyone else. I've read a lot of books about tough guys in the NHL, and this was one of the worst.

[Landon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Outside of the wacked-out chapter about him being a Vegan, this book was really good.

[Howie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Georges has written an excellent book. well done.

[Teebz Hbic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of Georges Laraque: The Story of the NHL's Unlikeliest Tough Guy can be found on Hockey Blog In Canada.

[Captain Blegh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great read!

[Sebastien · Rating 3 out of 5]

un livre intéressant et distrayant.