Wendel and The Great One
Written by Mike Leonetti
Illustrated by Greg Banning
Recommended for ages: 4-10
Scholastic $19.99

With Saint John Sea Dogs fever in full swing, this is a book sure to be enjoyed by our hockey-loving community. David is thrilled and yet a little scared when his teammates vote for him to wear the “C” on his jersey. He takes his job as Captain very seriously by watching his two favourite NHL captains, Wendel Clark and Wayne Gretzky. He studies how they treat their players and how they lead their team on and off the ice. In fact, David is so determined to excel as captain, he turns a school report into a research project on the great leaders of our country. He learns about the qualities of such famous Canadians as Pierre Trudeau, Terry Fox, Nancy Greene, Roberta Bondar and even Lester Pearson.

He helps Nikolai, who is not fluent in English yet is a great skater, by practicing special plays with him after school. It turns out the team has chosen the right person for the job.

As with Leonetti’s other books, this story is full of exciting game plays and statistics with which true hockey fans will be familiar. Many dads will recall the details mentioned in the games that David and his father watch.

The illustrations of Gretzky and Wendel are amazingly similar to the actual heroes themselves. Leonetti and Banning have teamed up yet again for another exciting picture book that combines hockey and Canadian history. This duo is famous for other books including, Gretzky’s Game and A Hero Named Howe.