The Game Is Not Over

After publishing the Quebec Major Junior hockey League: from Lafleur to Lemieux and Crosby, in 2012, authors, Jean-Pierre D’Auteuil (right) and Jean-Philippe Otis (left), present The Game Is Not Over: The epic story of the most prestigious Pee wee hockey tournament in the world. The Quebec City International Pee Wee Hockey Tournament took off in 1960, when five die-hard hockey fans, led by Gérard Bolduc, decided to bring together young Pee-Wee calibre players in Quebec City. After starting out at the Aréna du Parc Victoria, the adventure continued for many years at the Colisée de Québec and currently takes place at the Centre Vidéotron. This book tells the beautiful and great story of this prestigious event, which has enabled millions of hockey fans to see the great players of yesterday and the stars of today at work: Guy Lafleur, Auston Matthews, Wayne Gretzky, Manon Rhéaume, Connor McDavid, Patrick Roy, Jonathan Quick, Nikolaj Ehlers, Brett Hull, Brendan Gallagher, Nico Hischier, Mario Lemieux, Sylvain Côté, Steven Stamkos, Thomas Chabot, Anze Kopitar, Jonathan Audy-Marches-sault, Pierre Larouche, Yanni Gourde, Réal Cloutier, Mathew Barzal et Guy Chouinard, just to name a few. While reading this book, you will also discover Gaétan Boucher, Arthur Quoquochi, Raynald Fortier, Gilles Levasseur, Benoît Parke, Jeannot Ferland, Tim Connolly, Gilles Duclos, Freddie Meyer and many others, as well as players, who are less well known today, but who have made their own mark on the history of the Quebec City International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. Statistics, anecdotes, highlights, quotes and more than 400 photos. A real piece of anthology!

On November 17, 1968, the Oakland Raiders staged a last-minute comeback against the New York Jets, scoring two touchdowns in the final minute for a dramatic finale. But there was a problem: no one saw it. NBC, broadcasting the game nationally, cut away with 1:01 remaining and the Jets still leading to air a previously scheduled movie, Heidi. The ensuing public outcry was so significant that the rules for football broadcasting were quickly and forever changed. In this perceptive, finely argued book, Gregg Easterbrook shows that the so-called "Heidi Bowl" was not just an isolated bizarre moment. It was the beginning of the football era in America. The sport boomed alongside television, soon becoming our national campfire--one of the few points of agreement across the political spectrum and a genuine source of community even as religion's influence waned. It is no coincidence, Easterbrook argues, that we now see in football the same issues that we perceive elsewhere in America--including recent problems with bullying, violence against women, racial injustice, and financial skulduggery. These problems are significant, and many have been moved to limit their engagement with the NFL's venal culture--or boycott it entirely. Yet as Easterbrook shows, there's something here worth saving. He expounds on the benefits of football, and throws its many problems into relief, finally arguing that the work of reforming and changing one of our great pastimes is American as the game itself.

Is there anything more universally American than NFL football? Love of the NFL runs deep and broad. It is a primetime TV event on multiple national networks, subsidized by public funds and popular from Mount Rainier to Miami Beach. The 2015 Super Bowl, a thriller between the Patriots and Seahawks, was the most-watched program in the history of television, with more than a third of the country watching. Yet football is in trouble. Public anxiety over football spiked in 2014 during the heat of the Ray Rice domestic violence scandal, the ongoing concussion crisis and the league's appropriations of tax money for its own ends. The mounting problems have led some to question the ethics of watching America's beloved game. In this sharply argued, witty, observant book, Gregg Easterbrook makes a spirited case in defense of the NFL. As he shows, the league brings together Americans of all stripes, providing a rare space to talk about what matters. Indeed, the various issues we see in the league are often microcosms of the ones we see elsewhere, whether it's suspicion of the rich, or gender politics or even concern over bullying. The NFL's social, economic and legal problems are real, but they also produce some of our best and most valuable discussions of those issues. Football is a magnificent incarnation of our national character. It has many flaws, and they need fixing--but the game's not over.

More American children recognize Super Mario, the hero of one of Nintendo’s video games, than Mickey Mouse. The Japanese company has come to earn more money than the big three computer giants or all Hollywood movie studios combined. Now Sheff tells of the Nintendo invasion–a tale of innovation and cutthroat tactics.

“Enlightening” essays on athletes, activism, and the important role sports plays in our society (Publishers Weekly). Sportscaster Howard Cosell dubbed it “rule number one of the jockocracy”: sports and politics just don’t mix. But in truth, some of our most important debates about class, race, religion, sex, and the raw quest for political power are played out both on and off the field. From the NFL lockout and the role of soccer in the Arab Spring to the Penn State sexual abuse scandals and Tim Tebow’s on-field genuflections, this timely and hard-hitting new book from the “conscience of American sports writing” offers new insights and analysis of headline-grabbing sports controversies (The Washington Post). It explores the shady side of the NCAA; the explosive 2011 MLB All-Star Game; and why the Dodgers crashed and burned. It covers the fascinating struggles of gay and lesbian athletes to gain acceptance, female athletes to be more than sex symbols, and athletes everywhere to assert their collective bargaining rights as union members. Dave Zirin also illustrates the ways that athletes are once again using their exalted platforms to speak out and reclaim sports from the corporate interests that have taken it hostage. In Game Over, he cheers the victories—but also reflects on how far we have yet to go. “A book that no thinking sports fan can afford to miss.” —Jonathan Mahler, author of Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning

Video game designer River Weston is ready to sell her soul to smooth out the glitches in her latest project. When she unwittingly taps into a parallel dimension via cutting-edge technology, a Dark Lord is quick to take her up on her inadvertent offer. Trapped in the world she thought she'd created for her game, River finds herself in a very real alternate dimension that she must escape from before her soul can be used to unleash evil--upon this dimension and many others. River's only ally is the sexy and mysterious Chase Hawkins. A prisoner of the Dark Lord, Hawk is a man adrift—literally. His body safe at home under the watchful care of the Guardians' scientists, his astral-traveling spirit has been enslaved by his people's worst enemy, the Dark Lord. Clinging desperately to his sense of self, Hawk is determined to turn the tables on his captor before the connection to his body is lost. When the beautiful, achingly familiar River enters the picture, he vows he will do everything he can to save her from her bleak fate. Drawn together with an inescapable force, Hawk and River must wrest her soul from the Dark Lord's grasp before it's too late. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.