• Age: 12 to 18
• Grade: 7 to 12
• Reading age: 12 to 18

In 1931, a group of ten teenage girls from Preston (present-day Cambridge), Ontario, enlisted the help of the top women's sport journalists of the era, and the Preston Rivulettes hockey team was born. Within a decade the team became so good that no other team would dare to play against them. Yet the struggles these young women faced are ones that women can still relate to today, including criticism for aggressive play and fighting, lack of financial and fan support, the right to govern their own sports organizations, and ice time that went to boys' and men's teams first. [Fry Reading Level - 4.8

CARLY ADAMS is a sports historian at the University of Lethbridge, Alberta. She has written many articles on the history of women in hockey, including the Preston Rivulettes. Carly is also the Book Review Editor for the academic journal, Sport History Review. She is a member of the North American Society of Sport History and the North American Society for the Sociology of Sport.

Carly Adams' profile page

Filled with exciting action, this slim title in the Record Books series showcases the history of the Preston Rivulettes, a Canadian hockey team of teenage girls who played together for 10 seasons, from 1931 until 1940, without losing a game and at a time when many believed that girls could not play the sport and needed chaperones to make sure they did not get into trouble. The accounts of the games offer moment-by-moment details of the players skating down the ice, pushing through the opposing team, and shooting the puck past the goalie into the net, and Adams deepens the story with the historical background of the Great Depression and the team's struggle to find money. Occasional archival photos and boxed inserts add to the clear, readable account, which does not mince words about women's struggle at the time -- "back to the ice or back to the kitchen" -- even as it celebrates the Canadian champions.

Booklist Online (U.S.)

"Though Queens of the Ice is about a specific hockey team, it is equally a social history that speaks to the economic and gender challenges that women's sports faced."

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

"With its combination of lyrical prose, game-like narrative and moderate pacing, this book reads like a game in motion. It addresses a host of issues from equality in sports, Canadian history, to women's issues and the role of the Hockey Hall of Fame in recognizing the achievements of teams and individuals from outside the more popular NHL."

Canadian Teacher

"...overlooking Carly Adams's Queens of the Ice is a HUGE mistake for hockey fans...(it's) the type of book that will not only get young readers interested in history and reading, but will also keep the attention of older readers. "

thehockeywriters.com

"As an historical record, this volume covers all the bases. It is thoroughly researched and chronologically and seamlessly organized"

Resource Links

"...Adams deepens the story with the historical background of the Great Depression and the team's struggle to find money. Occasional archival photos and boxed inserts add to the clear, readable account, which does not mince words about women's struggle at the time -- "back to the ice or back to the kitchen" -- even as it celebrates the Canadian champions. "

Booklist Online (US)

"Schools and libraries where hockey is of interest may want to consider this title, as there is little existing material on women's hockey history."

VOYA (US)

"This effort describes in detail many of the key games the team played...and the way that their remarkable record has been largely ignored by the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto...Those with an interest in ice hockey or sports history will enjoy the account.."

Kirkus Reviews (U.S.)