Customer Reviews

Saved

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4 star:		(2)
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With his first novel, Saved, legendary hockey writer Jack Falla (author of Home Ice) takes us behind the scenes for a season in the life of the Boston Bruins and, in particular, fictional starting goaltender Jean Pierre Savard. Drawing from his experience covering the NHL for Sports Illustrated [1-year Subscription], Falla brings the reader on a roller-coaster ride, humanizing the NHL experience in ways that are likely to make passionate fans care even more about Savard's real-life counterparts.

From the wacky and competitive relationships between both teammates and rivals to the unique challenges players face in their off-ice relationships, Falla's three-dimensional characters are extremely likable, their melange of attributes and flaws giving the reader a real sense of what life in the NHL is like. In particular, Falla's account of the trade deadline (and trades in general) will give diehard fans a whole new way to look at things when they're cavalierly posting trade rumors on their favorite hockey message board.

Falla's love for hockey is evident from cover to cover, the spirit of his backyard rink present in every on-ice scene. And where during his days with Sports Illustrated [1-year Subscription] Falla might have been limited in which stories he could--and couldn't--share with readers, the world in Saved is presented filter-free. From the frank depiction of the locker-room atmosphere to the unofficial code of conduct between teammates, Saved gives readers a unique opportunity to see the NHL in an entirely new way.

Although it's quite unlikely that anyone will feel much sympathy for Savard as he evaluates his multi-million dollar contract options, particularly in the wake of Alexander Ovechkin's landmark 13-year, $124 million deal with the Washington Capitals, it is refreshing to see that dollars and cents aren't the only factors when a player chooses where to play.

Perhaps the most controversial subject Falla broaches in Saved is that of concussions. Head injuries are a huge issue in sports at all levels, and Falla delicately toes the line between the player's desire to return to action and the prudence of keeping the player off the ice until all post-concussion symptoms have vanished. The urge to ignore the warning signs is often driven by a combination of loyalty to the team and machismo, but the lure of the Stanley Cup and the possibility of a huge offseason payday certainly exert tremendous influence as well.

A wonderful read for hockey fans from age 15 to 105, Saved captures the essence of the sport in all its glory. Combining the spirit of Home Ice (a collection of stories about his backyard rink) with the knock-down, drag-'em-out energy of the NHL, Saved is great fun from start to finish.

This book is GREAT! I immediately wanted to fly to Boston to try to find JP and crew. Jack Falla has created the kind of characters you will think about long after you've finished this hysterical, action packed and yes, heartwarming book. Heartwarming? Hockey? YES - they can go together! Not to give anything away, but JP's life outside of hockey will make you cry (just a little), laugh (a lot) and make a die hard Blackhawks fan root for Boston.. AND Montreal! It's that good. All hockey fans out there - you must make your linemates read this book. I loved every, single page.

I write this review with bittersweet feelings, as Jack Falla's recent passing has left a void in the hockey community. I don't know of many authors more qualified to touch on the subjects covered in "Saved" than the esteemed Boston University journalism professor, who touched so many lives with his professional writing skills and love of the sport. Although I met him only briefly a few years ago, he made my year when he recognized my name and acknowledged my own meager contributions to sports journalism.

"Saved" is the tale of a veteran NHL goaltender who is still trying to find his balance several years after losing his wife, an aging talent who realizes that his opportunities to win the coveted Stanley Cup are dwindling. Throughout the course of this fictional season, JP Savard will have his world turned upside down both on and off the ice, as he deals with positive changes in his life (a new love) along with challenges he never really seriously considered (an unexpected trade to a bitter rival).

Falla's intricate knowledge of the sport, the position (he was a goalie) and its real-life characters serve him well in this tale of modern athletes who are in many ways, still reflective of the old time hockey pro hockey players Falla grew up admiring/folllowing and later covering as Sports Illustrated's NHL correspondent. As a kid growing up near Boston in the 70's and 80's, I was a fanatical devotee of the Boston Bruins and can readily identify with so many of the themes and storylines surrounding the team in Falla's fictional yarn (the bottom-line conscious billionaire owner, the curmudgeonly, set-in-his-ways GM, the heart-and-soul captain who has never won a championship and desperately wants to before he can no longer play, the team that always comes up short to the hated Montreal Canadiens [sorry Habs fans]). I was (and am still) a hockey goalie, so Falla's book is especially meaningful to me, as I have quite a bit in common with JP Savard from a playing standpoint.

I wasn't good enough to pursue a professional hockey career, but my love of the game never subsided. Through Jack Falla's timeless hockey classic, I got to live vicariously through JP Savard and thoroughly enjoyed his quirky, yet honest NHL journey as if it had been my own.

RIP, Professor. You are dearly missed, but your spirit lives on this great book.

Saved is simply an engaging and fun read. Any sports fan will appreciate the sports quips and analogies that Falla has collected over a career of covering, watching and writing about the sport he loves. The characters are warm and well drawn, and the book is enjoyably well paced.

Read this book if you love hockey and can't hear enough about it. It's packed with hockey lore, plays, metaphors, and days in the life of fictional players. It's nobody's idea of a good novel, however. The characters are cardboard, the plot is totally Disney in that everything always works out just-so, and every setback is momentary. Hard luck backgrounds give way to lifestyles of the rich and famous. So incredible. A 'lite' read for the hockey enthusiast that tastes great and is less filling.

I loved this book! Parts of it are laugh-out-loud funny and all of it gives great insight into the minds and hearts of hockey players. Lots of good stuff that you know had to happen to someone, although I know names and locations have been changed. Also, a lot of interesting and informative bits of hockey lore. But, above all, the story is great and the characters are all three-dimensional ones. You care about them and want to know what happens next. I hope to see more hockey fiction from Mr Falla.

This book is a MUST for any hockey fan.Anybody looking for any behind the scenes expose of life in the Nhl should go elsewhere. The book took me two days to read.JP Savard is a goalie determined to hang on to his job and continue playing in the Nhl.Throughout one season we follow him through the highs and lows and how he deals with them. Jp is a very likeable protagonist as well as the rest of the characters. I really liked the way Falla includes hockey history throughout the book without bogging the story down.

The summer season is rapidly approaching and many travelers will be compiling a list of books to read while on vacation. The hockey fan should consider Saved, by Jack Falla. It follows the season of Jean Pierre Savard, a goalie for the Bruins and his quest to win the Cup as his career is winding down. There are no surprises here but the book is loaded with hockey history and behind the scenes looks at the life of a professional hockey player. Falla covered the NHL for many years for Sports Illustrated and he brings the reader into the locker room, the rink and lives of these fictional characters.
At first Jean Pierre (JP) appears to be the main character as the first thirty pages focus on his background information, how he became a goalie and his college career then launches into present day. We are introduced to his best friend and teammate Cam Carter, get a glimpse of JP's personal life which includes a Ferrari and a lot of sex, which should entice the male reader to pick up the book. However, as the book progresses the real main character becomes evident, the hockey culture and game. Hockey is all JP has ever known and as the end of his career looms, he is terrified by the prospect of not knowing what to do with the rest of his life. Three concussions during the season cannot deter him from his need to keep playing, even with a warning from his fiancée Faith McNeil, a former college classmate and hotshot basketball player, now a dotcom millionaire and doctor.
My husband obviously has done a good job over the past eight years because I was familiar with the majority of the names, terms and events mentioned in the book and some basic hockey knowledge does make the book more pleasurable. Falla does provide a lot of detail, so that the new hockey fan will not be completely lost while reading this book. An example is the description of the Vezina Trophy. The reader learns for whom the trophy is named and why, and the details about Vezina's final game and untimely death. Sports metaphors run amuck in the book, which at times was cumbersome to this reader. It may be a gender difference, as the book is told from a male point of view, because while a sports fan I certainly don't answer every question directed to me with a sports reference.
As JP moves through his season and a trade from the Bruins, he gives details about the games he playing, what they mean during the different points of the season, what needs to happen for his Cup run to continue and how it feels to have someone else gunning for his job the entire time. Most readers cannot identify with being a professional athlete and being paid millions of dollars a year. But they can relate to being in their thirties, not knowing what to do next in their lives and struggling to hold onto their youth. This, coupled with the hockey history woven throughout the book makes it an enjoyable and quick read. (Provided the reader does not have a four year old and six month old vying for his or her attention.) As you pack your bags for the beach, mountains and beyond make sure you include Saved.

Jack Falla has written the ultimate book about hockey, its characters, its culture and its athletic charm. It's like being dropped down into "hockey world" and allowed to be an invisible observer. Falla's style conveys the feeling of the sport without slowing it down with extraneous detail. You get to appreciate the characters and I wished it would just go on without end. It is the most enjoyable story that I can remember. Get yourself a copy to read whenever you feel the world around you sucks.

I really enjoyed this book as a hockey fan. The characters and relationships are well-drawn, and the choices and struggles of life are not short-changed.

Definitely recommended for anyone who enjoys sports (especially hockey) and is looking for a fun and fast read.