The Value of Tenacity: The Story of Maurice Richard

ValueTales Series

by Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi

A biography of Maurice Richard, whose tenacity in the face of many injuries helped him become one of Canada's finest hockey players.

Genres: Biography, Childrens, Nonfiction, Sports

63 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1983

Reviews

[Marco den Ouden · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Value of Tenacity is a children's book by Ann Donegan Johnson, part of the Value series of books written by either Dr. Spencer Johnson or Ann Donegan Johnson. It tells a fictionalized story of the life of hockey player Maurice "Rocket" Richard.

I came across this book by chance as I am tutoring a group of men who are recovering from alcohol and drug addiction. During our first class I asked them to tell me about themselves and also to tell me the last book they had read. One of them had just read this one and was very enthusiastic about it and lent me his copy.

The 43 value books include such titles as The Value of Courage, The Value of Trust. The Value of Humor, The Value of Honesty and so on. They are currently out of print though an anthology containing five of the books was published in 2010.

This book tells the remarkable story of Maurice Richard. The story follows his real life fairly closely, including his comeback from an injury in his first game of senior hockey and another injury partway into his second season. Encouraged by his girlfriend and future wife Lucille and his faithful companion Slapper (his hockey stick who talks to him in the book), Richard learns the value of tenacity - never giving up on your dreams.

It is a charming little book, written at a level for tweens and young teens. It is a shame the series is no longer in print. If the others in the series are as entertaining and inspiring as this one, they are well worth getting for your children.

I am not sure what relation the author is to the other author in the series, Dr. Spencer Johnson. He is more widely known as the author of Who Moved My CHeese and as co-author of the One Minute Manager series.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ann Donegan Johnson uses her children's book series to meet two goals – to use the biography of a famous person as a device to demonstrate the results of applying / adhering to a positive human value.

As an adult attempting to view this work from the perspective of the target audience, I found that “The Value of Tenacity – The Story of Maurice Richard” largely met its goals. The book gives the basic biography of the man known in Canda as “The Rocket”, and touches upon the highlights of his life – including (surprisingly to me) the “Richard Riots” which were triggered after the NHL suspended The Rocket.

I am torn over the use of a “talking” hockey stick to personify the man's – or at the start, the boy's – “tenacity”. The book makes it clear that the stick isn't really talking – it's Maurice's imagination, and the emotion is actually inside of him – but I'm not sure that kids need the device. Plus, calling it “Slapper” … as the slapshot hadn't been invented / named yet, the author made a historical faux pax.

Overall, a good story – both bio and moral lesson – for kids.

RATING: 3 1/2 stars, rounded up to 4 stars where 1/2 stars are not permitted.

[Tabitha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a later book in the Value Tales series. Each book takes a historical figure, fictionalizes their story to make it approachable and has a particular value it is promoting. I'm not an incredibly sport connected person. I was shocked to realize I liked this book even more than the one on Louis Pasteur (which I was gifted as a child).

This book is well worth the read. It is a little long but wouldn't take any longer to read than "Green Eggs and Ham."

[Suzanne Lorraine Kunz Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Great Series! Makes you wonder what you could do with hard work and sticking to it.