Defender of Faith: The Mike Fisher Story, written by Kim Washburn, is a true story based on the life of Mike Fisher, a professional hockey player for the Nashville Predators.
Born in 1980, Fisher was brought up in a Christian home. He gave his heart to Jesus at the tender age of six. As he said, “When I was six years old, I made the step of faith to accept him into my heart. I remembered I prayed with my mom before I went to school. I didn’t want to wait any longer!”
Although the story provides a bit of background into his childhood, the main focus of the book is about Fisher’s years on the ice, as a kid, while in high school, then in college, and as a professional hockey player. His early commitment to Christ and the church has given him a solid foundation when things got tough either on or off the ice.
What I Like: I had never heard of Mike Fisher as I’m not a fan of ice hockey. But, I am a fan of biographies, so I enjoyed reading about him.
What I Dislike: The author presents several incidents where Mike is involved in fights on the ice. According to hockey tradition, apparently it’s okay to get into a scuffle on the ice as long as you are defending one of your teammates. The author brushes over these incidents making them sound like a normal part of the game. And, they might be just that. But the theme of the story is how Mike has kept his faith and stood up for what he believed his whole life, both on and off the ice. I find it difficult to justify his unsportsmanlike conduct on the ice even if it is just “part of the game”.
The author also used a lot of hockey-related terms that I wasn’t familiar with. However, most of them were in a context that lent some meaning to the words. I think it would have been better if a bit more definition had been provided, if not in the actual text, then with a glossary of terms at the end of the book.
Overall Rating: Overall, though, this story still deserves a very good rating as it is informative and well-written.
Age Appeal: 9-12.
Publisher Info: Zonderkidz, 2011; ISBN: 9780310725404; 128 pages, paperback, $6.99.
Buy now at ChristianBook $5.99!
Or buy at Amazon.com $6.99.
Special Info: The Kindle edition of this book is available from Amazon.com for $5.99.
Born in 1980, Fisher was brought up in a Christian home. He gave his heart to Jesus at the tender age of six. As he said, “When I was six years old, I made the step of faith to accept him into my heart. I remembered I prayed with my mom before I went to school. I didn’t want to wait any longer!”
Although the story provides a bit of background into his childhood, the main focus of the book is about Fisher’s years on the ice, as a kid, while in high school, then in college, and as a professional hockey player. His early commitment to Christ and the church has given him a solid foundation when things got tough either on or off the ice.
What I Like: I had never heard of Mike Fisher as I’m not a fan of ice hockey. But, I am a fan of biographies, so I enjoyed reading about him.
What I Dislike: The author presents several incidents where Mike is involved in fights on the ice. According to hockey tradition, apparently it’s okay to get into a scuffle on the ice as long as you are defending one of your teammates. The author brushes over these incidents making them sound like a normal part of the game. And, they might be just that. But the theme of the story is how Mike has kept his faith and stood up for what he believed his whole life, both on and off the ice. I find it difficult to justify his unsportsmanlike conduct on the ice even if it is just “part of the game”.
The author also used a lot of hockey-related terms that I wasn’t familiar with. However, most of them were in a context that lent some meaning to the words. I think it would have been better if a bit more definition had been provided, if not in the actual text, then with a glossary of terms at the end of the book.
Overall Rating: Overall, though, this story still deserves a very good rating as it is informative and well-written.
Age Appeal: 9-12.
Publisher Info: Zonderkidz, 2011; ISBN: 9780310725404; 128 pages, paperback, $6.99.
Buy now at ChristianBook $5.99!
Or buy at Amazon.com $6.99.
Special Info: The Kindle edition of this book is available from Amazon.com for $5.99.
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