Thrashing Seasons

“Thrashing Seasons is a great book. Hatton presents the history of wrestling in Manitoba in a readable, accessible style, but with all the footnotes and references that make the book a solid academic history.”

“Generations of Canadians have grown up with pro wrestling. Some followed Stu Hart’s Calgary-based Stampede Wrestling while others watched WWF (now WWE) matches, where legends like Hulk Hogan and ‘Rowdy’ Roddy Piper turned a pseudo-ballet into massively lucrative sports entertainment. But the sport’s roots in Canada go far back, and cast a longer shadow than we may realize. Thrashing Seasons takes an intriguing look at old-time professional wrestling in Manitoba, with a view to illuminating that history, and its broader meaning.”

“Nathan Hatton’s new labour of love, entitled Thrashing Seasons, is a substantive and enlightening publication which should be mandatory reading for anyone seeking an academic degree in Manitoba sports, history, or sociology. It is that important a work.”

“Throughout Thrashing Seasons, Hatton’s exploration of combat culture and prairie wrestling in Manitoba in the 19th and 20th centuries, there is a kind of deep cognitive refrain: why do people do this to each other? Hatton’s research and writing moves in a series of wide circles around this idea, as he establishes the cultural context around the budding tradition of prairie wrestling. As he writes vivid accounts of the lives of several early wrestlers, he questions why they’re compelled to combat. As it explores the social and cultural constructs that draws in audiences, he worries at the notions: why are people drawn to this sport?”

C. Nathan Hatton grew up in the communities of Prairie River, Saskatchewan and White River, Ontario. He teaches history at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada.