It’s been a pleasure to read some great books this past week, allowing us to interview some great authors about The hockey show. While I am fully aware of the need for these authors to promote their books to increase sales, it was a better experience to get to know the people who write these books through our conversations. That also applies to today’s book review, as Teebz’s Book Club proudly reviews Certified Beauties: More of Hockey’s Greatest Untold Storieswritten by James Duthie and published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. If you were a fan of James Duthie’s book, Beautiesthis is the second book he has written and it is about all the stories that hockey players exchange behind the scenes about their craziest experiences and often hard to believe moments off the ice. If you need a good hockey story, Certified beauties has a pile of them from the players themselves!
You already know James Duthie from his hockey work on TSN, but there is much more to James Duthie than just his TV work. James is an eight-time Canadian Screen Award winner, he co-hosts daytime Olympic coverage, he heads to Milano-Cortina for coverage of men’s hockey at another Olympic Games, he is a member of the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame, he holds the Key to the City in Ottawa, he hosts TSN’s coverage of The Masters and the CFL, he has appeared in Goon 2 as a character named “James Duthie”, he is a graduate of Carleton University and is the author of a number of books, including two that I reviewed here on HBIC in The man on the left And Beautiesand today a third book. James and his family live in Aurora, Ontario.For anyone who has sat through a hockey interview where the same clichés and statements have been made by countless players, you know it gets a bit repetitive. That’s true Certified beauties comes in because I’m pretty sure the players’ stories in this book haven’t been heard by fans anywhere. Some may be familiar, but there are so many entertaining, funny and heartfelt stories in here Certified beauties that you’ll probably want to read the next one as soon as you finish a story! That happened to me!
There are many players who contributed stories, including Kevin Bieksa, Darcy Hordichuk, Blake Coleman, Sam Gagner, Emma Maltais, Brady and Matthew Tkachuk, and Ray Whitney to name a few, but there were some great chapters on Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau and Gardiner MacDougall and the UNB Reds that really illustrate how great the game of hockey can be when great people focus on making the world a better place. For all the laughs on the covers of Certified beautiesthe chapters that made your heart beat faster will stay with you.
I would like to make a special mention of the chapter entirely devoted to Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau, because it is their family and friends who contribute the stories about them to Certified beauties. From these stories you can tell that these two men were special in their own way. It’s hard to know that these two incredible men, who cherished their time away from football with the people they loved more in hockey, were taken from us at such a young age, but the words their families and friends used to describe them will give you a new perspective on these two great men.
You might be wondering what kind of stories are in it Certified beautiesand I’m here to say that the stories you’ll read will range from funny to “that couldn’t possibly have happened.” For example, Duthie has a funny story from current Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving about his time playing in the now defunct Western Professional Hockey League for the Waco Wizards. He writes,
“The lights go out during the opening night introductions. Dramatic music plays. High above the rink, the wizard is attached to a wire and descends dramatically toward the ice. He waves his wand and pumps up the crowd. And then, twenty feet above the center of the ice, he passes out.”
Can you imagine seeing a mascot descend from the rafters, riling up the crowd, and then passing out? And the show must go on, so the opening ceremony continues until they finally realize that the magician, lying in the middle of the ice, is suddenly no longer a willing participant! What has Bram done? What did his teammates do? Fortunately, there is a happy ending to Treliving’s story, but… Certified beauties is full of fun stories like this!General, Certified beauties can be rated as a thing of beauty because the chapters are short and contain funny and heartfelt stories, making it easy to put the book down when you need a break. Duthie does not provide much, if any, editorial commentary in the book, allowing the players’ stories to emerge as if they were telling them to readers themselves. As such, it’s an enjoyable read, with some chuckles and the occasional tug at the heartstrings, and for these reasons it’s easy to give an award. Certified beauties with the Teebz’s Book Club Seal of Approval!
Certified beauties was released on October 21, 2025, so you can find it on bookstore shelves and libraries now, assuming there are any copies left. This book would make a perfect Christmas gift for your older hockey fan as it contains some strong language at times. Because of this Certified beauties is highly recommended for older teens and adult hockey fans. However, the book is an excellent read, with great stories, and Certified beauties by James Duthie is highly recommended for your hockey fans and your bookshelf!
Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!
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