I Hate Hockey

Overview

"I hate hockey!" is the first and last sentence in this novel that offers a great take on our love-hate relationship with hockey. Narrator Antoine Vachon blames the game for killing his marriage with his beautiful ex-wife (well, that and the power outage that brought her home unexpectedly to find him in bed with her intern). But hockey is a pretext for unlikely adventure in this sardonic roman noir that at times flirts with the outrageous.Antoine Vachon is a total loser living in a pitiful bachelor apartment after he has lost his wife and his job as a car salesman. When his son’s hockey coach is found dead, he is browbeaten into coaching the team for one game. He makes it through the game (to great comic effect), but things take a turn for the worse when they stop at a motel after the game. Who killed the former coach and why? Was Antoine’s son involved? Or his ex-wife? The late coach was liked by all and was a pillar in the community. He was close to his player, perhaps too close… Why is Antoine unable to communicate with his son?

Reviews

"It is about the dark side of teenagers, and how hard it is for a father to find his place in his son's world. The style is tragic yet comical and you don’t know how it will end until the very end."  —Laetitia Le Cloch

"An excellent short thriller, set in somber surroundings, that also gets you laughing . . . darkly."  —Jessica Émond-Ferrat

"A brisk and often disturbing piece of fiction. . . . Readers are kept guessing until the end. . . . The book is genuinely funny. . . . A fast-paced and entertaining read that delivers a satisfying conclusion that will keep readers thinking even after the final page is turned." —www.TheHockeyWriters.com (December 13, 2011)

"Riddled with humour both broad and pointed. I found it to be a true satire (vicious at times, as satire must be.) . . . The picture is that of a profoundly dislocated society that implicitly offers little more than hockey, sexual molestation, social and political desolation, and suicide. . . . A bitter and courageous book." —Fred A. Reed, Governor General's Award-winning literary translator of Journey to the Morea

"Mr. Barcelo has done a good job at evoking emotions, and that's a skill that not a lot of authors can boast. I Hate Hockey certainly is worth reading if you're looking for a good crime story with a hockey element. Recommended reading if you're a mystery lover." —www.hockey-blog-in-canada.blogspot.com

"From Chapter Three on, I couldn't put it down. Rare is the time when I'll devour a book in one sitting, but this was one… a riveting story." —Marie White, Book Review Editor, Quebec Chronicle Telegraph

"I couldn't put it down. . . . This was good writing and a riveting story." —www.QctOnline.com

"Though this novella was originally published in French in 2011, McCambridge's excellent translation retains the prolific Quebecois author's tight narrative and biting voice in his tragicomic English-language debut. . . . Powerful." —Publishers Weekly (April 2, 2012)

Author Biography

François Barcelo is the author of more than 50 books in French, including Cadavres; Moi, les parapluies; and Nulle part au Texas. He was the first Quebec writer published in Gallimard's prestigious Serie Noire collection. He is the recipient of the Governor General’s Award for French-language children’s literature. He lives in Montreal, Quebec. Peter McCambridge is a certified, full-time translator, who has several years’ experience in translation, writing, editing, and international communications. He lives in Quebec City, Quebec.