Book Review: Divergent Trilogy

Last week I finished Allegiant, the third installment of the Divergent trilogy. This brilliant series composed by young author Veronica Roth is sure to become the next big thing, if it hasn't already. That is not to say, however, that these books were without flaws.

I first tried to read Divergent over Christmas break and couldn't get past the first 20 pages- it just didn't grab me. However, after hearing more and more from friends who loved it I gave it another try. And I'm glad I did.

One of the first things I noticed is that Roth tells the story in present-tense, first person narrative. Much like the Hunger Games, this is a story about a post-apocalyptic America as told through the eyes of a teenage girl who tries to break free of the Machiavellian societal structure and in turn sparks a revolution.

It's difficult not to compare this series to the Hunger Games, and there are those who dismiss it as a knock-off or even an unoriginal piece crafted after Suzanne Collins' works. I'm not sure that's a fair assessment, but the books are very similar in the general premise. However, the stories are very different.

Film Review: The Monuments Men

In an effort to expand the topics covered in Beantown Lifestyle, I'm going to start reviewing films, shows, and books as I finish them with my opinions and analysis. I'm in the process of several books and TV shows, so I'll be sure to cover them when the time comes.

My first one will be the movie I saw last weekend: The Monuments Men.

I must admit, I had very high hopes for this when watching the previews in the weeks leading up to its release. The subject matter is an intriguing one and harshly understated in history: with all of the destruction in Europe during World War II, thousands of priceless pieces of art and artifacts were being stolen, lost, or ruined.

The cast was also obviously appealing, with George Clooney and Matt Damon being complimented by John Goodman, Bill Murray, and Cate Blanchette.

Random Thought: Lefties vs. Righties in the NHL

I'm a left-handed athlete, and I always took pride in that. It was just a subtle way to be a little bit different and unusual. However, generally speaking, the world is built for those right-handed. It can be a disadvantage to lefties a times. However, that might not be true in hockey.

I've been checking in on some of the Olympic games so far, which have all been phenomenal, and a thought struck me. It seems like most of the best players in the NHL are lefties. So, naturally, I did a little research and compiled two lists of the best players in the league: one for lefties, one for righties. The results are fascinating.

Lefties in the NHL: Crosby, Kane, Malkin, Toews, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Tavares, Parise, H. Sedin, D. Sedin, Chara, Keith, Staal, Jagr, Thornton, Marleau, Backstrom, Hall, Yakupov, Benn, Nash, Gaborik, Hossa, Stastny, Landeskog, Duchene, Kronwall, Kopitar, Suter, Richards, St. Louis.

Righties in the NHL: Stamkos, Ovechkin, Iginla, Alfredsson, Getzlaf, Perry, Brown, Seguin, Eberle, Vanek, Kesler, Kessel, Backes, Weber, Subban, Letang, Spezza, Karlsson, Giroux.

Let me know if I'm missing anyone. But these are pretty distinct lists. It gets even more skewed if you take defensemen out of the equation.

What does it mean? Maybe nothing. What does this information mean to you?

Victory or Death: War Films Superlatives

As I've mentioned before, I consider myself a bit of a war film connoisseur. It was certainly a much bigger hobby of mine when I was younger, indulging in the "ye olde" cinematic adventures of John Wayne, Richard Widmark, and William Holden. Those tastes developed into a much more progressive list of modern films as I got older, but I'm proud not to have lost my appreciation for the older films.

I started thinking more on just how the older films compare to the modern ones. Call me old fashioned but I think they hold up just about every bit as well. They're good in different ways- the action is not quite the fast-paced inferno that you'd see in a Spielberg movie, but it's nothing to scoff at either. Ultimately, however, it's about the story. That's what makes a film great more than anything else.

That's an argument for another day, though.

I tend to digress, but what I'm really interested in is producing a list of superlatives for war movies. This is a carefully, moderately, deliberately, whimsically compiled analysis from my self-proclaimed living room expertise. Keep in mind, this is all from memory.

NHL All-Overpaid Team

One of the things I like most about the NHL is that it hasn't been commercialized to the extent that the NFL, NBA, and even the MLB have. You won't see any hockey players inking ridiculous contracts for $200+ million any time soon.

However, that is not to say that there aren't plenty of overpaid players in the National Hockey League. It seems to be that GM's don't learn from the mistakes of their colleagues and keep dishing out lengthy deals for too much money.

I've a little research and I put together the most overpaid players at each position to make the official All-Overpaid team. Not to say that these aren't good- or even great- players, but they haven't played at a high enough level to earn the amount of money they're making.

Note- this is all based off current salaries. I'm not basing it off of horrible contracts (I'm looking at you, Scott Gomez).

It's Hockey Night in Hollywood

Yesterday, NESN.com published an article highlighting which baseball players have had careers and lives interesting enough to make a movie about. Not to say that any of them would ever come to fruition, but the idea of someone buying the movie rights of Josh Hamilton's struggles or Ichiro's legend as a pioneer of the game is certainly interesting.

I thought I would take this idea and apply it to hockey: which players have stories that people would pay to see at the theatre? You'd be surprised how many fascinating players are out there, defying the odds like a real-life Rudy.

Spoiler: a lot of these guys are my favorite playes. Am I just writing about their stories because they're my favorites? No. They're my favorites because of their stories. See how that works?

For my next trick, I'll also take a shot at suggesting which actors might play them in a movie. This is where it gets tricky.