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Roch Carrier reflects on popularity of 'The Hockey Sweater'

Quebec author giving reading in Sudbury tomorrow as part of Reading Town
Although Quebec author Roch Carrier's beloved story, “The Hockey Sweater,” is based on a real experience he had as a child growing up in Sainte-Justine, his mother wasn't too impressed when the story came out.

The story tells how he was a fan of the Montreal Canadians hockey team, and his mother mistakenly ordered a Toronto Maple Leafs sweater after his old one wore out, making him the target of his peers' ridicule.

Carrier said he got a call from his mother in the early morning — a rare event indeed because she always phoned at precisely the same time Sunday afternoon — and she accused him of making things up.

“She said 'Roch, you're a big liar. What are you writing? What did you write? What will people think about me?” he said. “She doesn't remember that story at all.”

He figures that's because she had a hard time keeping track of everything that happened to her large brood of kids.

Carrier said he wrote the story after being asked by CBC Radio to write a piece on what Quebecers want. It was the early 1970s, the height of the Quebec sovereignty movement.

After a week's work, he told the station he just couldn't do it. He was told he better write something, as the station had time slotted for him. So over the weekend, he wrote “The Hockey Sweater.”

First published in 1979, the story is Carrier's most famous work and is considered an iconic piece of Canadian literature. It has sold over 300,000 copies and has been republished in numerous anthologies. 

A year after publication, the National Film Board of Canada adapted the story into a 10-minute animated short film called “The Sweater.” 

It exemplifies the nation's passion for hockey, and while it is often considered an allegory of the relationship and tensions that exist between francophones and anglophones, the story is popular throughout the entire nation. 

A line from the story appears on Canadian five-dollar bills printed between 2001 and 2013. 

Carrier, who turns 79 later this month, has a catalogue of published works going back more than 50 years. 

His latest is an ambitious non-fiction work about the early days of Quebec called “Montcalm et Wolfe” (translated as “Montcalm and Wolfe” by Donald Winkler), for which he researched for 15 years.

But he said he's more than happy about the popularity of The Hockey Sweater. “To a writer, when something like that happens, it's kind of a privilege,” he said. “It's a miracle.”

He said he thinks it's popular because it's about hockey, a sport almost every Canadian can relate to.

Carrier's famous story is being feted tomorrow at a downtown Sudbury event as part of Reading Town Sudbury, a week-long festival celebrating the written word wrapping up on Sunday.

The Hockey Sweater Family Tailgate Party celebration is set to take place starting at 4 p.m. at the corner of Minto and Elgin Streets, in front of the Stompin' Tom statue (the rain location is Sudbury Theatre Centre).

“Roch Carrier's classic 'The Hockey Sweater' meets Stompin' Tom's ghost in this made-in-Canada-only not-to-be-missed treat of magical storytelling and The Hockey Song combo,” a press release said.

The event will include a reading of The Hockey Sweater by Carrier and performances by several local musicians.

Carrier said he doesn't know much about Stompin' Tom other than a documentary he once watched, but he did say he's thrilled to have been invited to participate in Reading Town.

“I read a lot in my life, and I wrote a lot,” he said, in his trademark French accent.

“I think it's a privilege and an honour to have the opportunity of what I call the key to the world. That's what I tell to the kids. If you read, there is no more kids that are favourized, and some that are not favourized

“You're all equal, and you have access to all the richness of the world. I'm trying to encourage kids to read, to discover. The world is getting very competitive, and they have to have access to what will make them grow and make them informed.”

To learn more about Reading Town Sudbury, visit www.readingtownsudbury.ca.

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Heidi Ulrichsen

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