Hockey is truly a different sport today then it was forty years ago, the time when Bobby Orr played in the NHL. Stephen Brunts' biography of Bobby Orr details these differences and Bobby's massive impact on the game, making it what it is today. This is done through telling the story of Bobby's entire life focusing on some of his major accomplishments in the National Hockey League such as winning trophies and entering into significant contracts.
In the writing of this book Stephen Brunt perfectly conveyed this theme, something which is no easy task when writing about a topic some forty years in the past. He was discussing issues that occurred so far in the past that a good chunk of the readers may not have had any prior knowledge of them. The task of conveying the thesis when it took place historically is difficult as you also have to make sure the situation at the time was clear to the reader. The author's success in doing this came from his ability to introduce the topic so well and his use of comparisons to similar topic's today that the majority of readers would know about. I was thus able to fully understand the state the NHL was in when Bobby Orr played and the state it was in after he had achieved what he did in the league.
As a reader, and also a huge hockey fan, I was extremely entertained throughout the entire book, eager to find out what was going to happen next in the great journey through Bobby Orr's career. The book was so entertaining for me as a sports fan for a number of reasons. First, Stephen Brunt, also a hockey fan, was able to always keep me on my toes by balancing his focus on exciting events, like the 1970 Stanley cup playoff series, and more significant events in the world of hockey, like Al Eagleson's gutless betrayal of Bobby Orr. Next, this book is a great read for all sports fans, as Stephen Brunt constantly brings up details regarding other significant sporting events, players, announcers, etc. These references make this an extremely informative book about the world of sports, one of my personal favourite accomplishments of Brunt in his writing.
There are few weaknesses when reviewing Brunt's writing in this text, which are heavily outweighed by the many positives, but still need to be mentioned. The main weaknesses stem mostly from the fact that Brunt catered this book to a specific audience. If someone who was neither a sports nor hockey fan and really didn't know anything about either subject were to read this book, they would be slightly lost with all the “lingo” and thus miss out on some of the important points being made. The author must not have cared about this as he knew that most of the people reading the book would be like him, hockey fans. The only other possible problem could be the authors' bias toward Bobby Orr. Being a Canadian child around the time when Bobby Orr was at the height of his hockey playing career, Stephen Brunt was most likely a diehard fan. This should be taken into consideration when reading the book because, although many other Canadians would undoubtedly agree, Stephen Brunt most likely believes that Bobby Orr is without debate the best player of all time.
In conclusion, Stephen Brunt did an excellent job in portraying Bobby Orr, the legend, in a way which is enjoyable to hockey fans of all ages. At the same time in doing this he was also able to show how Bobby Orr had effects on the game of hockey that few other players have ever had, even to this day.
Hockey is truly a different sport today then it was forty years ago, the time when Bobby Orr played in the NHL. Stephen Brunts' biography of Bobby Orr details these differences and Bobby's massive impact on the game, making it what it is today. This is done through telling the story of Bobby's entire life focusing on some of his major accomplishments in the National Hockey League such as winning trophies and entering into significant contracts.
ReplyDeleteIn the writing of this book Stephen Brunt perfectly conveyed this theme, something which is no easy task when writing about a topic some forty years in the past. He was discussing issues that occurred so far in the past that a good chunk of the readers may not have had any prior knowledge of them. The task of conveying the thesis when it took place historically is difficult as you also have to make sure the situation at the time was clear to the reader. The author's success in doing this came from his ability to introduce the topic so well and his use of comparisons to similar topic's today that the majority of readers would know about. I was thus able to fully understand the state the NHL was in when Bobby Orr played and the state it was in after he had achieved what he did in the league.
As a reader, and also a huge hockey fan, I was extremely entertained throughout the entire book, eager to find out what was going to happen next in the great journey through Bobby Orr's career. The book was so entertaining for me as a sports fan for a number of reasons. First, Stephen Brunt, also a hockey fan, was able to always keep me on my toes by balancing his focus on exciting events, like the 1970 Stanley cup playoff series, and more significant events in the world of hockey, like Al Eagleson's gutless betrayal of Bobby Orr. Next, this book is a great read for all sports fans, as Stephen Brunt constantly brings up details regarding other significant sporting events, players, announcers, etc. These references make this an extremely informative book about the world of sports, one of my personal favourite accomplishments of Brunt in his writing.
There are few weaknesses when reviewing Brunt's writing in this text, which are heavily outweighed by the many positives, but still need to be mentioned. The main weaknesses stem mostly from the fact that Brunt catered this book to a specific audience. If someone who was neither a sports nor hockey fan and really didn't know anything about either subject were to read this book, they would be slightly lost with all the “lingo” and thus miss out on some of the important points being made. The author must not have cared about this as he knew that most of the people reading the book would be like him, hockey fans. The only other possible problem could be the authors' bias toward Bobby Orr. Being a Canadian child around the time when Bobby Orr was at the height of his hockey playing career, Stephen Brunt was most likely a diehard fan. This should be taken into consideration when reading the book because, although many other Canadians would undoubtedly agree, Stephen Brunt most likely believes that Bobby Orr is without debate the best player of all time.
In conclusion, Stephen Brunt did an excellent job in portraying Bobby Orr, the legend, in a way which is enjoyable to hockey fans of all ages. At the same time in doing this he was also able to show how Bobby Orr had effects on the game of hockey that few other players have ever had, even to this day.