What do you think?
Rate this book
Straight Up and Personal: The World According to Grapes
There's no holding him back.
Known for his opinions--and unabashed expression of them--Don Cherry has been causing debate for decades. Topics on "Coach's Corner" sometimes veer away from sports and on to other matters that are near and dear to Cherry's the war in Afghanistan and politics, among many others.
In Straight Up and Personal , Cherry shares his thoughts on a broader range of issues than he ever has before. He shares some of his personal experiences on and off the ice, and offers the lessons he's learned along the way. This is Don straight up and personal.
Known for his opinions--and unabashed expression of them--Don Cherry has been causing debate for decades. Topics on "Coach's Corner" sometimes veer away from sports and on to other matters that are near and dear to Cherry's the war in Afghanistan and politics, among many others.
In Straight Up and Personal , Cherry shares his thoughts on a broader range of issues than he ever has before. He shares some of his personal experiences on and off the ice, and offers the lessons he's learned along the way. This is Don straight up and personal.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published November 4, 2014
9 people are currently reading
70 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
September 25, 2024
Don Cherry is practically illiterate and needed a ghost writer to complete this book.
May 17, 2020
I have to admit I somewhat agreed with Don about his comments and his firing. I don't agree with the way be said it.
Reading this book, you get the sense in the first 2 chapters that Don is anti-immigrant. It did make me want to stop reading but I respect Don so I continued.
The stories are not bad but some are a bit boring.
What really soured me is towards the end when he writes "I saw a guy who was a poster boy for terrorism pass by”. What is a poster boy for terrorism? I found that very racist as there is no one look for evil. The most innocent looking person can commit the worst atrocities.
I really wish Don the best but the world has changed and we all just be more sensitive to others.
Reading this book, you get the sense in the first 2 chapters that Don is anti-immigrant. It did make me want to stop reading but I respect Don so I continued.
The stories are not bad but some are a bit boring.
What really soured me is towards the end when he writes "I saw a guy who was a poster boy for terrorism pass by”. What is a poster boy for terrorism? I found that very racist as there is no one look for evil. The most innocent looking person can commit the worst atrocities.
I really wish Don the best but the world has changed and we all just be more sensitive to others.
January 16, 2020
The first half of the book about Sochi and visiting Afghanistan I actually didn't like at all. It was a poorly written diary with not a lot of interesting material. He even has a whole section written by a commedian he went to Afghanistan with that just sort of gives a 'how is the weather' type recount.
The second half is much more interesting, starts at 'musings', which is more thought out hockey stories. He repeats things here and there as you really get the feel that he just comes home on a given day and writes a little three page story for the book.
The second half is much more interesting, starts at 'musings', which is more thought out hockey stories. He repeats things here and there as you really get the feel that he just comes home on a given day and writes a little three page story for the book.
May 18, 2021
Some good stories in here, no surprise really. One thing that rubbed me the wrong way was at the 2nd last page of the book he says he saw a “poster boy for terrorism” pass through airport security without getting pulled aside. How does that get published?
December 27, 2023
Good book with some interesting hockey stories. However, I wasn’t a huge fan of the writing style and found some of the stories to be repetitive. Still a good read for any fan of Don Cherry!
March 28, 2015
Don Cherry is not a great writer nor even an average writer. Yet he is still an important writer because he possesses a wealth of stories that few others are capable of telling. And he possesses a wide reaching audience for these stories that those few others can match. That he is not known for his literary skills is a fact even he would side with. But he is undeterred which is a trait that the faithful follower already knows and the newly converted will eventually recognize.
It has been noted that he falls into the trap of hackneyed prose or of repeating himself too often. It has also been noted that the editor of his books, this one in particular, have failed to reign in his linguistic shortcomings. Both are true and untrue at the same time. To hear Mr. Cherry weave a story is to listen outside of the box. When he speaks of Eddie Shore or the Boston Bruins or of his days riding the bus with the Springfield Indians we now know what to expect but the words on the page revert back to the voice and the passion that he uses from his pulpit on Hockey Night In Canada that so many of us have tuned into at some point in our lives. You can hear his voice rising. You can hear his voice breaking. You can hear his voice hitch as he laughs either at himself or the absurity of a life in hockey.
Not every hockey reader wants to hear yet again that Eddie Shore was the Darth Vader of hockey or that the Springfield Indians was the Siberia of the American Hockey League. Some, probably most, couldn't care less if they never heard another story about his lunch pail Boston Bruins of the mid-to-late seventies or of his too-many-men gaffe of the 1979 semi-finals against the suddenly down on their knees Montreal Canadians. What many might miss, and what this book serves to illustrate, is that these references are not mere andecdotes offered for the amusement of the easily amused hockey fan but rather lessons of humility and finding hope in the cold shadows of failure. Never one to hide his Christian beliefs, Mr. Cherry is counting his blessings one by one as he makes peace with his regrets.
As hockey moves further and further into a style that many older fans no longer care for (myself being one of them), who will keep the past alive as well as Don Cherry? As long as he is with us, the darkness of Eddie Shore is still with us, the flair of Guy Lafleur is still with us, the artistry of Bobby Orr is still with us. All are young again. All are visions of a caliber of hockey that does not live anymore yet remain vital to the existance of the game of hockey. Whose career in the game today spans so many years that he can name drop Toe Blake and wind up in Sochi Russia for the 2014 Winter Games?
Of all my favourite passages in the book, the best comes when he sat down with legendary goalie Ken Dryen recently and reminded him that without the too-many-men incident, the Boston Bruins would have knocked the Canadians out of the playoffs and then gone on to win the Stanley Cup. Dryden, who is a gifted writer and noted deep thinker, came back with “If you won, you would have been just another has-been coach with his name on the Cup. Instead, you're that famous guy on TV.” Winning in spite of himself? The Lord helping those who help themselves? Cherry never really wraps it up. So before there is another book, will someone please buy him an “I Survived Eddie Shore's Springfield Indians!” tshirt?
It has been noted that he falls into the trap of hackneyed prose or of repeating himself too often. It has also been noted that the editor of his books, this one in particular, have failed to reign in his linguistic shortcomings. Both are true and untrue at the same time. To hear Mr. Cherry weave a story is to listen outside of the box. When he speaks of Eddie Shore or the Boston Bruins or of his days riding the bus with the Springfield Indians we now know what to expect but the words on the page revert back to the voice and the passion that he uses from his pulpit on Hockey Night In Canada that so many of us have tuned into at some point in our lives. You can hear his voice rising. You can hear his voice breaking. You can hear his voice hitch as he laughs either at himself or the absurity of a life in hockey.
Not every hockey reader wants to hear yet again that Eddie Shore was the Darth Vader of hockey or that the Springfield Indians was the Siberia of the American Hockey League. Some, probably most, couldn't care less if they never heard another story about his lunch pail Boston Bruins of the mid-to-late seventies or of his too-many-men gaffe of the 1979 semi-finals against the suddenly down on their knees Montreal Canadians. What many might miss, and what this book serves to illustrate, is that these references are not mere andecdotes offered for the amusement of the easily amused hockey fan but rather lessons of humility and finding hope in the cold shadows of failure. Never one to hide his Christian beliefs, Mr. Cherry is counting his blessings one by one as he makes peace with his regrets.
As hockey moves further and further into a style that many older fans no longer care for (myself being one of them), who will keep the past alive as well as Don Cherry? As long as he is with us, the darkness of Eddie Shore is still with us, the flair of Guy Lafleur is still with us, the artistry of Bobby Orr is still with us. All are young again. All are visions of a caliber of hockey that does not live anymore yet remain vital to the existance of the game of hockey. Whose career in the game today spans so many years that he can name drop Toe Blake and wind up in Sochi Russia for the 2014 Winter Games?
Of all my favourite passages in the book, the best comes when he sat down with legendary goalie Ken Dryen recently and reminded him that without the too-many-men incident, the Boston Bruins would have knocked the Canadians out of the playoffs and then gone on to win the Stanley Cup. Dryden, who is a gifted writer and noted deep thinker, came back with “If you won, you would have been just another has-been coach with his name on the Cup. Instead, you're that famous guy on TV.” Winning in spite of himself? The Lord helping those who help themselves? Cherry never really wraps it up. So before there is another book, will someone please buy him an “I Survived Eddie Shore's Springfield Indians!” tshirt?
July 15, 2015
Don Cherry has become something of a one-man industry in Canada.
He is best known for his appearances on Hockey Night in Canada's "Coach's Corner." Those segments on television broadcasts have made him one of the most popular figures in Canadian history - a statement that must sound like an exaggeration to Americans, but it's true.
Cherry also has produced videos, written books, done a regular radio show, and made personal appearances. He's still going strong past the age of 80.
Book four has arrived at the stores this fall in the form of "Straight Up & Personal." It's a breezy volume of stories of his past and snapshots of his life.
Cherry always was a good story-teller. Back in his coaching days, the media used to line up to talk to him after games along the lines of children waiting in a department store to see Santa Claus. It was almost guaranteed to be the best 10 minutes of their journalistic year.
What's it like to be Don Cherry now? He takes the reader along a few times by keeping a diary of some of his activities, essentially. Cherry went over to Afghanistan to see Canadian troops. He came down with gout early in the trip, but he limped his way around a war zone to show that he cared.
Other segments aren't so life-and-death dramatic. Cherry went to Sochi for the Olympics in 2014, and watched Canada take gold medals in men's and women's ice hockey. The hours were long and difficult, partly because of the time zone change. Then there's the Stanley Cup playoffs, which kept Cherry on the move for the better part of two months. Ever try to carry five suits across the country a few times? The always dapper Cherry did, thanks to that New York-Los Angeles final.
Otherwise, though, Cherry writes about whatever comes to mind. There are stories about lessons he's learned in life, comments about hockey figures, thoughts on the state of the game today, etc. It was particularly interesting to hear Cherry's take on one of the most famous penalties in hockey history - Boston's "too many men on the ice" violation in Game Seven of the 1979 playoff series with Montreal, which probably cost his Bruins a Stanley Cup. Yes, he's still angry at himself about it.
If you wondering about the lack of an assisting writer for the book, it's interesting to look at the inside covers of the book. There are photographs of some of the pages of material written out in long hand. While Cherry certainly had some help putting the book together, it looks like he did a lot of the work involved in the old-fashioned way.
Admittedly, it's difficult to come up with A-level material when you are on your fourth book. You'd have to think that the best stories already have been published. The less-than-200 pages go by pretty quickly for the price tag, even if the material isn't overly memorable. Still, it's always interesting to read Cherry's views in this format, just as he remains popular after 30-plus years on the air in Canada.
In other words, "Straight Up & Personal" is like spending a couple of hours talking with Cherry. What hockey fan wouldn't want to do that?
He is best known for his appearances on Hockey Night in Canada's "Coach's Corner." Those segments on television broadcasts have made him one of the most popular figures in Canadian history - a statement that must sound like an exaggeration to Americans, but it's true.
Cherry also has produced videos, written books, done a regular radio show, and made personal appearances. He's still going strong past the age of 80.
Book four has arrived at the stores this fall in the form of "Straight Up & Personal." It's a breezy volume of stories of his past and snapshots of his life.
Cherry always was a good story-teller. Back in his coaching days, the media used to line up to talk to him after games along the lines of children waiting in a department store to see Santa Claus. It was almost guaranteed to be the best 10 minutes of their journalistic year.
What's it like to be Don Cherry now? He takes the reader along a few times by keeping a diary of some of his activities, essentially. Cherry went over to Afghanistan to see Canadian troops. He came down with gout early in the trip, but he limped his way around a war zone to show that he cared.
Other segments aren't so life-and-death dramatic. Cherry went to Sochi for the Olympics in 2014, and watched Canada take gold medals in men's and women's ice hockey. The hours were long and difficult, partly because of the time zone change. Then there's the Stanley Cup playoffs, which kept Cherry on the move for the better part of two months. Ever try to carry five suits across the country a few times? The always dapper Cherry did, thanks to that New York-Los Angeles final.
Otherwise, though, Cherry writes about whatever comes to mind. There are stories about lessons he's learned in life, comments about hockey figures, thoughts on the state of the game today, etc. It was particularly interesting to hear Cherry's take on one of the most famous penalties in hockey history - Boston's "too many men on the ice" violation in Game Seven of the 1979 playoff series with Montreal, which probably cost his Bruins a Stanley Cup. Yes, he's still angry at himself about it.
If you wondering about the lack of an assisting writer for the book, it's interesting to look at the inside covers of the book. There are photographs of some of the pages of material written out in long hand. While Cherry certainly had some help putting the book together, it looks like he did a lot of the work involved in the old-fashioned way.
Admittedly, it's difficult to come up with A-level material when you are on your fourth book. You'd have to think that the best stories already have been published. The less-than-200 pages go by pretty quickly for the price tag, even if the material isn't overly memorable. Still, it's always interesting to read Cherry's views in this format, just as he remains popular after 30-plus years on the air in Canada.
In other words, "Straight Up & Personal" is like spending a couple of hours talking with Cherry. What hockey fan wouldn't want to do that?
November 10, 2016
The book starts starts out with Don cherry from hockey night in Canada, talking about lessons he has learned over his eighty two years of life like his opinion on hazing in sports. (which is like initiation, but harsher.) After that he talks about when he went to Afghanistan with French singer Jimmy Mac to see all the Canadian troops in the war they signed there guns took pictures and told them jokes like. "The Habs will win the cup if the PRICE is right." then he talks about the Sochi 2014 winter Olympics. He said how sad it is that there are tons of dogs running the streets without homes in Sochi. Then he said how the men's games went, with Canada winning gold in men's and women's hockey The last bit of the book is about people that lost their whole career due to drugs or alcohol. Finally talks about when the Boston Bruins lost the cup by one save by Ken Dryden and he coached them.
overall I really liked this book because it isn't really set to a certain age group, you could read at it age ten, or at age one hundred and ten. He also talks about though he likes to have a few drinks he doesn't recommend it because people have them to often and lose millions of dollars. You often get lost in the text meaning you either read one page and have to reread or you read thirty and it only feels like one or two. He tells very interesting story's about his times as a player, a coach and on coach's corner. This was an incredible book at I loved it if your in to hockey you will to.
overall I really liked this book because it isn't really set to a certain age group, you could read at it age ten, or at age one hundred and ten. He also talks about though he likes to have a few drinks he doesn't recommend it because people have them to often and lose millions of dollars. You often get lost in the text meaning you either read one page and have to reread or you read thirty and it only feels like one or two. He tells very interesting story's about his times as a player, a coach and on coach's corner. This was an incredible book at I loved it if your in to hockey you will to.
March 22, 2015
I like reading hockey biographies and hearing about players being brought up through the leagues and Don Cherry gave that plus some further insight into life on camera and NHL politics. The drawback to this book is unfortunately his writing style. I wish I kept a running count of "i must admits"s and his use of "-says I" because it was a bit too much. It just seemed like he tried too hard to have a particular grammar when I wish he just sounded like himself so I could have imagined him telling the stories. Still love Don Cherry.
December 31, 2015
For the true hockey fan who wants to hear what Don Cherry has to say. "Grapes" has been a Canadian icon for decades and continues to be so. This book should be read by anyone who really considers themselves hockey fans willing to hear it from all sides. I couldn't put this book down and it was very easy to read.
January 25, 2015
Not great! Don might be running out of stories. The journal-style bits were okay. Weirdly, there was lots of repetition for a 200-page book. Also not sure if this was edited. It's basically a Don Cherry stream-of-consciousness.
December 2, 2014
As Don Cherry is coming in Friday for a signing, I thought I would read through this one. His latest book reads just like an episode of Coaches Corner, with stories from his minor league days to today.
January 4, 2015
Although this is by no means a literary gem that flows smoothly from one story to the next, the book has some great hockey stories that read as if you were sitting there talking to Cherry. He says it like it is and he lets you in to the more personal side of Grapes.
August 13, 2015
No doubt about it, I'm a Don Cherry fan, so I like anything he writes. His personality, his history, his viewpoints are unique gems. One sees all of this in this book. I'm also a hockey fan (OHL, ECHL, AHL & NHL), so anytime I can enjoy a book about hockey is time well spent. I recommend it!
December 7, 2014
I enjoyed this book. I learned a lot about Grapes! He tells it like it is, whether people like it or not!
November 13, 2015
Was OK. He's an interesting guy, with lots of stories to tell. This gives some insight on what he's really like. And also how hard he works.
Newmarket library.
Newmarket library.
December 3, 2014
Don is always great read and lots of fun
December 21, 2014
As a life long Bruins and hockey fan, I could not wait to read this read this one, Don's insights are fantastic and uniquely his own. Great storyteller. Tough book to put down.
January 21, 2015
A good book. I liked it a lot. It was very well written by Don Cherry. I enjoyed reading it very much.
February 1, 2015
Very interesting read. To the point and honestly written. A little repetitive.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews