Edmonton Journal review of Bret Hart's book
Full review is on the Journal's website.
While I enjoyed Bret's book tremendously as a gritty and detailed behind-the-scenes look at his wrestling career, I can't disagree with reviewer Ruth Myles's comment that "Hart slams others for their betrayals, real and perceived, but doesn't hold the mirror up to his own behaviour."
That's true. And it shows up most in the book when he's slamming his then-wife Julie for being cold to him at various points - whether she had jetted out from Calgary to New York or somewhere else to join him at a pay-per-view, only to go shopping during his match, or if she wasn't talking to him when he was home from a grueling road trip. Bret was very quick to point out Julie's perceived failings as a wife, but he was far less likely to admit his failings as a bad husband who was constantly cheating on his wife.
Not to mention, Julie raised their kids virtually alone as a single mother, and not once in the book do I recall Bret praising her for that - or even acknowledging that fact.
It's a shame that for all of Bret's openness in the otherwise brilliant book that he didn't open up a little more for some self-reflection on how his actions hurt his own family.
posted by Mike Jenkinson at
8:52 AM
3 Comments:
Well I have really put of reading the book but I am going to buy it today.I have a problem with Bretts exwife here we have a person who was really no one and is doing a show and writing a book and who knows what else to make money but the really thing here is she is using the hart name to make her money really who is she it was brett who got into the ring not her and you cant tell me she was a angel herself threw all of this.
I do have a Question for Brett did you know anything about Julie when you meet her.
By
Anonymous, At
March 3, 2008 6:19 PM
f you don't agree with the way Bret sees things, that is a commentary the man, not the book. The greatness of the book is that it is uncompromising in telling what the view of the world was from Bret's eyes. The book is an AUTOBIOGRAPHY - not a definative historical account, and it should be viewed as such.
By
Anonymous, At
August 28, 2008 11:45 AM
I appreciate the detailed accounts in this book. I am disappointed, however, for a few reasons. First, as aforementioned, Bret appears to be incredibly harsh in judgment towards others, but justifies his numerous infidelities. Most disappointing is his behavior toward Shawn Michaels. It's one thing to have a negative opinion about someone; it's an entirely different thing to attempt to make that person seem deplorable. He paints HBK as some type of despicable subhuman devil. Much of his book is spent degrading Shawn as a person and pointing out Shawn's many flaws, rather than recounting their interactions from an objective standpoint. It's been well over a decade since they've interacted; yet, Hart is hellbent on degrading Shawn and holding on to his hatred of this man. Additionally, some of his accounts are inaccurate, such as his account of the original DX or Chyna's emergence into the WWF. Many of them directly contradict Shawn's accounts in his book, so someone is lying. Bret also seems to manipulate certain situations, such as insinuating that Shawn is the cause of Davey Boy's heart attack, as well as some instances that occurred in the match. Overall, I wished Bret would've shown a little more maturity, but he'll only be ale to do that once his heart heals from his hurts.
By
Anonymous, At
February 1, 2009 7:00 PM
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