Holiday Shopping List: 6 Women's Hockey Books To Add To Your Gift List

With the holiday season approaching, women's hockey fans will be back in the gift giving spirit.

Here's a look at six women's hockey books, fiction, and non-fiction, to add to your holiday shopping list for readers of all ages.

Bea Mullins Takes A Shot

"When a 7th grader is forced to join her school's hockey team, she discovers unexpected friendships and a budding crush on the team captain. This fierce and heartfelt queer romance explores the courage to face your fears, even when your dreams are on thin ice.

Some goals are worth falling for.

After a lifetime of humiliating sports experiences, Bea Mullins knows the best way to survive middle school is to stick to the sidelines. When PE is suddenly canceled, though, Bea is forced to join an after-school activity...which is how she ends up as a member of the Glenwood Geese, her middle school's first all-girls hockey team. 

Bea would be happy sitting on the bench, but she doesn't want to let down her best friend, Celia. Plus, the more time Bea spends on the rinks, the more she comes to enjoy her teammates, especially the incredibly talented--and incredibly cool--co-captain Gabi. But when low funding puts the Geese in danger of never playing again, Bea realizes she may lose everything she didn't know she wanted.

A hilarious and heartfelt middle-grade contemporary about first crushes and fierce friendships from debut author Emily Deibert."

Bea Mullins Takes a Shot After a lifetime of humiliating sports experiences, Bea Mullins knows the best way to survive middle school is to stick to the sidelines. When PE is suddenly canceled, though, Bea is forced to join an after-school activity...which is how she ends up as a member of the Glenwood Geese, her m...

Ice In Their Veins: Women's Relentless Pursuit of the Puck

"Women have been playing hockey since the beginning—but their fights took place off the ice. 

Hockey wasn’t meant to include girls. Women attracted to the speed, finesse and physicality of the game had to overcome condescending attitudes, lack of resources, legal barriers and even sexual assault in their quest for legitimacy and ice time. For more than 150 years, their gender was questioned, monitored, hidden, disparaged and trivialized. Even so, teams were formed and stars emerged. Early tournaments were catalysts, inspiring pioneers with visions of what could be.

From “the miracle maid” of the early 20th century to members of today’s Professional Women’s Hockey League, these are the stories of women who truly had ice in their veins."

Foreword by Hockey Hall of Famer, Geraldine Heaney, afterword by Olympic gold medalist Sami Jo Small, and praised by American members of the Hockey Hall of Fame:

"An enlightening deep dive into the rich history of women’s hockey. From those who won gold medals, to the women who never had the chance, Ice in Their Veins brings to life the collaborative journey to play the game we love, and build a brighter future" - Cammi Granato

"Kennedy hits the mark in delivering powerful and inspirational stories of overcoming obstacles and triumph of the history of women in hockey. You can feel the passion for the game in this book. Ice in Their Veins is a must-read and a book that will leave you inspired" - Natalie Darwitz

Ice in Their Veins: Women's Relentless Pursuit of the Puck

Breakaway: The PWHL and the Women Who Changed the Game

"When the first puck dropped in the Professional Women’s Hockey League in January 2024, it had been a long time coming. Women have been playing hockey since at least 1890 and playing professionally for decades. But until 2024, even the highest-level female players had never been compensated as professionals: some paid for their own gear and worked second jobs, earning a pittance, if anything, from their chosen profession.

In Breakaway, Karissa Donkin tells the story of the players’ efforts to create the PWHL, long before the first full season in 2024. Following the unnamed 2024 Montreal PWHL team, with some of the best players in the sport, like Marie-Philip Poulin and Erin Ambrose, Donkin takes readers through the League’s founding, the draft process, the practices, and the dramatic arc of the first season. Defying all expectations, with larger crowds and higher revenues than anticipated, this first season was a gamechanger for professional women’s sports leagues."

Breakaway: The PWHL and the Women Who Changed the Game

Rosie The Hockey Player (Series)

"Rosie loves hockey - it’s all she ever wants to do!

But Rosie’s world is turned upside down when her family moves to a new city. Although Rosie doesn’t want to be the new girl on a new team, she agrees to go to one practice and try it out. She soon realizes the reasons why she loves the game of hockey are with her no matter where she plays, or who she plays with.

Follow Rosie on her adventures in this seven-part girls hockey book series as she navigates her first season with her new team, the Ice Hawks. Rosie finds herself making new friends and setting off on new adventures, all while facing challenges and learning lessons along the way playing the game she loves so dearly."

Rosie the Hockey Player: The New Team Rosie loves hockey more than anything, but when her family moves to a new city, she is forced to leave her team and her two best friends behind. Faced with being the ‘new girl’ at school, Rosie isn’t sure she is up to the challenge of being the ‘new girl’ at hockey too. But Rosie makes her mom a...

Blackness Is a Gift I Can Give Her: On Race, Community, and Black Women in Hockey

"From the founder of Black Girl Hockey Club, a collection of deeply insightful and piercing essays shedding light on the history of Black excellence in hockey, the future of Black joy within the sport, and the ways we can all do better when it comes to recognizing—and upheaving—systemic and institutionalized racism.

Growing up, R. Renee Hess didn’t care for hockey. In fact, she was barely aware of it. She was born and raised in Southern California, hardly a hot spot for the game, despite the state having three NHL teams. But, as Hess puts it, she is “a fan of being a fan,” and when she found herself stuck in traffic after a Pittsburgh Penguins game, the streets filled with cheers, something sparked within her. Ever since Hess made that discovery, she has been actively trying to bust the myth that “Black folks don’t like hockey.”

In this collection, Hess shares her hockey origin story and how she came to recognize hockey culture’s lack of authentic engagement with Black communities, tracing her journey to becoming a true game changer. But, as an academic, Hess knows that her singular viewpoint can’t tell the full story, so she reached out to former hockey players, league executives, activists, fans, media, and to the parents and youth shaping the future of the game. We hear directly from players such as Sarah Nurse and Saroya Tinker; from trailblazers like Bernice Carnegie and Kim Davis; and from the collective of Black Girl Hockey Club scholarship awardees and their families, emphasizing the importance of community and support for marginalized players. The result is a hockey book truly unlike any other.

With essays that touch on representation and harmful stereotypes, the many nuanced aspects of biracial identity, being the only person of colour in the room, and the virtues of a lively group chat, Blackness Is a Gift I Can Give Her is a love letter to Black women everywhere, as well as a scathing ode to a game that Hess loves, even if it doesn’t always love her back."

Blackness Is a Gift I Can Give Her: On Race, Community, and Black Women in Hockey Growing up, R. Renee Hess didn’t care for hockey. In fact, she was barely aware of it. She was born and raised in Southern California, hardly a hot spot for the game, despite the state having three NHL teams. But, as Hess puts it, she is “a fan of being a fan,” and when she found herself stuck...

Women's Hockey Fanbook: All Access 

"The debut of the Professional Women’s Hockey League was a wild success, with thousands of cheering fans packing the arenas . . . but it took a lot to get there. This colourful fact-and-photo filled scrapbook has everything a fan needs to know about previous women’s hockey leagues, how the PWHL was born, the stellar inaugural season, and its rapid expansion. Complete with profiles of the biggest stars (and up-and-comers!), trivia, a quiz and more!"

Women's Hockey Fanbook: All Access The debut of the Professional Women’s Hockey League was a wild success, with thousands of cheering fans packing the arenas . . . but it took a lot to get there. This colourful fact-and-photo filled scrapbook has everything a fan needs to know about previous women’s hockey leagues, how the PWHL ...