Boxing Books

Book SynopsisNipper Pat Daly was boxing's most amazing prodigy. Extraordinary but tragic, his was a career like no other in sports history. Born in Wales in 1913, he became a professional boxer at age ten after moving to London. With his exceptional talent, by age 14 he was beating grown men in gruelling 15-round fights. At 15 he was thrashing national champions and at 16 was ranked by America's The Ring magazine in the world's top ten. In the late 1920s, audiences across Britain sat spellbound as the Wonderboy delivered boxing masterclasses against Europe's elite fighters. Daly beat three British champions, a European champ and the reigning champions of Italy, Belgium and Germany. A magnetic figure, leading sportswriters saw him as a future world champion and possible all-time great. Tragically, however, he was recklessly overworked and forced to retire aged 17, after well over 100 pro fights. Incorporating Nipper's previously unpublished memoirs, Born to Box is the story of his unique career, life and times.

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Book SynopsisThe hard-hitting, personal stories shared by some of boxing's biggest names are presented in a series of short, sharp features in Tales from the Top Table. Seventeen world champions are among the main attractions. Delve deep into the psyche of the famous fighting men and relive their experiences in the ring - the good, the bad and the ugly. There are many fresh and surprising stories included here, as these memorable anecdotes about the fighters' lives and times were originally intended only for the ears of those in attendance at the Bar Sport in Cannock - and could easily have stayed that way. The bar's upstairs Premier Suite holds just 300 people but countless sporting idols have passed through its doors, helping to put the Staffordshire town on the map. Now Craig Birch's exclusive notes on Bar Sport's after-dinner speakers put you right in the room. Every chapter is packed with the unique stories and inside information from boxing's beloved aficionados. Foreword by Richie Woodhall, former WBC super-middleweight world champion.

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Book SynopsisBenny Leonard was arguably the greatest lightweight champion of all time. With superb boxing skills and potent punching power, he fought over 200 times and suffered just five defeats. He spent his boyhood in a crime-ridden ghetto in Manhattan's Lower East Side, and was the greatest of a long line of Jewish boxers to emerge from the slums. Leonard was still only 19 when he knocked out Freddie Welsh to become world lightweight king in 1917. He defended the title eight times and retired as undefeated champion in 1925, to please the only woman he loved, his mother. But the 1929 Wall Street Crash wiped out his fortune and he was forced to make a comeback at 35. Leonard fought the best of his era: Johnny Dundee, Johnny Kilbane, Rocky Kansas, Jack Britton, Ted Kid Lewis and Lew Tendler among them. Apart from being a sublime boxer, Benny was a first-class showman who helped to put boxing on a higher plane. He died as he lived - in the ring - while refereeing a fight at age 51. This is the definitive account of his remarkable life and career.

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Book SynopsisMatthew Saad Muhammad was arguably the most exciting fighter of all time. He was WBC light-heavyweight champion from 1979 to 1981, but it wasn't what he did that captured the hearts of fight fans, it was how he did it. Fight after fight was war after war. He would get beaten up, cut, dropped and virtually knocked out only to astonishingly rally and score come-from-behind victories. But through it all there was a shocking backstory. Abandoned by his birth parents aged just four, Matthew was raised in a Catholic orphanage and then adopted by a Portuguese family. He fell into a life of gangs and prison before boxing provided an escape, becoming a vehicle for him to find his real identity: who was he, and who were his parents? His rise to stardom was followed by a long, sad decline as he travelled the world trying to reclaim his former glories. He spent his final years in a Philadelphia homeless shelter, plagued by health issues. This is the definitive account of Matthew's incredible but heart-rending story.

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Book SynopsisBetween defeat by Trevor Berbick in December 1981 and lighting the Olympic flame in Atlanta in July 1996, Muhammad Ali spent the 15 most turbulent years of his life traversing the globe, seeking a higher purpose. Depending on the day, the retired champion could be a diplomat trying to liberate hostages in the Middle East, a salesman flogging cookies and cologne across America, or an amateur magician performing sleights of hand everywhere from prison yards to school halls to Valentino fashion shows. Sometimes hilarious, often terribly poignant, this kaleidoscopic account of the most bizarre episodes in his epic life chronicles Ali preaching Islam, causing havoc and touching lives from Beijing to Birmingham, Detroit to Damascus, Khartoum to the Khyber Pass. One minute hanging with Donald Trump, the next with Nelson Mandela, even as his own body and mind battled the onset of Parkinson's Syndrome, here are so many previously untold stories about 'The Greatest' treating statesmen and strangers, popes and paupers just the same.

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Book SynopsisIn the era of boxing's pay-per-view superstars, Tris Dixon invested in a Greyhound bus pass and spent several months traversing America on a shoestring budget, tracking down fighters from yesteryear who had vanished from the limelight. Venturing from New York to Las Vegas and from Toronto to Miami, the young writer - himself a former amateur boxer - sought out coulda-been contenders and cult heroes from the 1950s to the 2000s, all now faded from popular memory. He visited old people's homes, gyms and too many prisons, discovering that life after boxing can be a cruel place when the ropes are no longer in place to keep fighters safe from the outside world. Dixon meets men who shaped boxing history, fighting the likes of Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson. He shares their memories and weaves together their forgotten tales over the course of a remarkable American journey.

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Book SynopsisAged fifty, on a whim, Marion Dunn joined a boxing gym. Training to improve fitness quickly became something of an addiction, and then a source of transformation. This is her myth-busting tale of four years of slogging in an amateur boxing gym in northern England. Marion's story is one of a developing love affair with the 'sweet science'. It's also about obsession, hard work, companionship and occasional bravery. But The Boxing Diaries is not just a story of hard graft. It's a revealing account of life in the amateur boxing gym: its idiosyncratic inhabitants, non-judgmental spirit, dedicated coaches and respect for all comers, irrespective of age or gender - provided their commitment to training is total. From the sweat and toil in draughty halls, Marion takes us through the years of preparation before she is finally ready to spar in the ring. Every micro-improvement, every emotion is laid bare, and along the way she considers the influences and events that might have ignited her passion for the sport in the first place. Warning: this is a knockout memoir that could make you want to start swinging punches, too.

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Book SynopsisThe Greatest brings together nearly 100 photographs of Muhammad Ali at the height of his careerby Chris Smith. The images are accompanied by Smith's memories of his time spent with Ali fromthe early days of his career until his final years before retirement.

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Book Synopsis"Inoki can use his bare fists. He can use karate. This is serious. There's $10 million involved. I wouldn't pull a fraud on the public. This is real. There's no plan. The blood. The holds. The pain. Everything is going to be real. I'm not here in this time of my life to come out with some phony action. I want you to know this is real." --Muhammad Ali, June 14, 1976, The Tonight Show On June 26, 1976, Muhammad Ali fought in a mixed-rules contest against iconic pro wrestling champion Antonio Inoki for the so-called "martial arts championship of the world." Broadcast from Tokyo to a potential audience of 1.4 billion in 34 countries, the spectacle foreshadowed and, in many ways, led to the rise of mixed martial arts as a major sport. The unique contest was controversial and panned by wrestling and boxing supporters alike, but the real action was behind the scenes. Egos, competing interests, and a general sense of apprehension over what would happen in the ring led to hodgepodge rules thrown together at the last minute. Bizarre plans to "save" Ali if the fight got out of hand were even concocted. In Ali vs. Inoki, author Josh Gross gets inside Ali's head leading up to the match by resurrecting pre-fight interviews. Gross also introduces us to Inoki, the most famous face in Japan who was instrumental in shaping modern mixed martial arts.Trade Review"It's only fitting the Josh Gross--an early MMA adopter and as fine a writer/reporter as the sport has--gives us this dispatch of an original boxer-versus-grappler contest. Our only question: when's the movie coming out?" --L. Jon Wertheim, executive editor, Sports Illustrated "If you're interested in Muhammad Ali, the history of combat sports or pro wrestling, this book is a must-have in your collection." --Denny Burkholder, features writer for CBS Sports

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Book SynopsisA tribute to Billy Conn, one of the greatest light-heavyweight boxing champions of all timeTrade Review"Affectionate yet evenhanded biography of the fighter known as 'The Pittsburgh Kid.' O'Toole makes a relatively normal life sing with his obvious passion for his subject, his meticulous research and his ability to empathize with Conn, his family and the colorful characters who inhabited the boxer's literal and metaphorical corner. A welcome addition to the boxing-literature canon."--Kirkus Reviews, October 15, 2007"The rough-and-tumble sports world of the late 1930s and early 1940s emerges vividly, as O'Toole describes the way mobsters infiltrated the fight game and how Conn needed the help of Pittsburgh Steeler owner Art Rooney to stay clear of the unsavory types. Conn, though not widely known today, was a beloved, blue-collar American hero in his era, and O'Toole masterfully re-creates both the life and the times. For all fans of boxing history."--Wes Lukowsky, Booklist“Before Roberto Clemente, Terry Bradshaw, or Mario Lemieux became household names, Billy Conn was Pittsburgh’s most famous athlete. In Andrew O’Toole’s Sweet William: The Life of Billy Conn, the East Liberty-born boxer’s career is examined, and there’s much to enjoy. O’Toole is a thorough chronicler, but the best parts of the book are the colorful backroom stories that seem to be intrinsic to boxing lore."--Pittsburgh Tribune-Review"Unapologetic, fearless and uncompromising: That's the Billy Conn, and that's the city of Pittsburgh, that O'Toole portrays in Sweet William. The book is a great read for sports fans and local historians alike. Family dustups notwithstanding, Conn is the 'Pittsburgh Kid' that Pittsburgh kids should learn about and look up to."--Pittsburgh City Paper"A rich, solid book. . . .The author has a command of the mores of both the street and the seamy life of smalltime boxing; thus the reader does indeed see a slice of 'sport in society' as told through experience, interviews, and newspaper accounts rather than the colder eye of a historian. . . . This book is best suited to scholars and fans in search of an authentic voice. Recommended."--Choice"Sweet William compellingly captures the personal life of a public icon--and beloved lifelong Pittsburgh resident--and the pageantry of American sports during the 1930s and 1940s."--Pennsylvania Heritage"A masterful biography of Billy Conn. . . . An excellent portrayal of the Golden Age of boxing."--Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography"As no one else has, O'Toole writes extensively and revealingly about [Conn's life]."--Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "A mesmerizing account."--Aethlon: Journal of Sports Literature"More than just a biography, Sweet William is a sweeping portrayal of an era just before, during, and after World War II when boxing was in its Golden Age. Andrew O'Toole brilliantly captures the essence of the many unique characters of the time, including the dashing, handsome, fearless Billy Conn, the Pittsburgh Kid, whose colorful personality would have made him a celebrity in any era. The book includes his odyssey from the smoke-filled environs of Pittsburgh to New York's famed Jacobs Beach where the enigmatic Conn became the greatest light heavyweight champion of all time."--Angelo Prospero, boxing writer and historian "In Sweet William, Andrew O'Toole takes you to the streets of Pittsburgh and New York prior to World War II. You can't help but feel the sweat, feel the struggle, and get caught up in the glamour. It's a superb piece of storytelling—and an important book about an important fighter from boxing's Golden Age."--Russell Sullivan, author of Rocky Marciano: The Rock of His Times

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Book SynopsisGleason's Gym is the last remaining institution of New York's Golden Age of boxing. Jake LaMotta, Muhammad Ali, Hector Camacho, Mike Tyson--the alumni of Gleason's are a roster of boxing greats. Founded in the Bronx in 1937, Gleason's moved in the mid-1980s to what has since become one of New York's wealthiest residential areas--Brooklyn's DUMBO. GTrade Review"Trimbur ... capture[s] the faces and dramas--often internal--of a modern, urban boxing gym."--Choice "This is rich and fascinating book... Lucid and refreshingly free of unessential academic jargon, this is a book that should be read by any anthropologist, historian or sociologist seeking to understand the changing world of sport and leisure since the 1980s. Most importantly, it is a book is written with great humanity."--Tony Collins, Sport in History "Trimbur has written a wonderful book about the world of boxing, specifically that place and space dedicated to boxing known as Gleason's Gym. Anyone who wants to understand boxing as practiced in 21st-century Brooklyn should read the sociological gift bestowed upon us called Come Out Swinging."--Joseph Trumino, American Journal of SociologyTable of ContentsAcknowledgments xi List of Prominent Participants xv Preface xvii Chapter One: Survival in a City Transformed: The Urban Boxing Gym in Postindustrial New York 1 Chapter Two: Work without Wages 16 Chapter Three: Tough Love and Intimacy in a Community of Men 39 Chapter Four: Passing Time: The Expressive Culture of Everyday Gym Life 63 Chapter Five: The Changing Politics of Gender 89 Chapter Six: Buying and Selling Blackness: White-Collar Boxing and the Cultural Capital of Racial Difference 117 Epilogue 142 Methodological Appendix: Ethnographic Research in the Urban Gym 149 Notes 155 References 181 Index 193

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Book SynopsisThe Noble Art of Heavyweight Boxing is a knockout trip through the history of this popular sport, from the last thrilling bareknuckle contest in 1889 between champion John L. Sullivan and challenger Jake Kilrain, right through to modern times, covering key fights and boxing greats such as Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Rocky Marciano, Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Lennox Lewis, and many, many more. Illustrated with contemporary photographs and packed with fascinating true details about the personalities and bouts, this book will be a winner with every sports fan and boxing enthusiast.Trade Review'Another knockout!' Diss Express 'a book packed packed with interesting facts and statistics' ... 'After over 25 years of writing boxing books it's clearly a labour of love for the author' Barking and Dagenham Post 'packed with facts and feats of interest on the division' -- Kate Royall Eastern Daily Press 'a knockout success' Norwich Evening News

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Book SynopsisThis absorbing book unravels the reasons for the enduring respect and reverence that Muhammad Ali commands long after the end of his athletic career. It will appeal to those teaching and studying cultural studies, social theory, sports studies, and sociology, as well as to general readers interested in Muhammad Ali.Trade Review"A brilliant meditation on celebrity and spectatorship and an astute cultural analysis of race and sport, Charles Lemert's Muhammad Ali is also an affectionate biography of one of the most significant figures of our age." Barry Glassner, University of Southern California, author of The Culture of Fear "Ali's fame was launched on the tide of his astonishing athletic prowess, but it was borne along by the spurting cross-currents of culture, race and politics which boiled so fiercely during the 1960s and 1970s. Lemert is excellent on Ali in relation to these cross-currents, but he also dares to dive deeper, into the secret waters of myth, totem and taboo which still underlie more of human thought and feeling than we may like to admit … This is a remarkably interesting and re-readable essay." Financial TimesTable of Contents1. From the Beginnings : GG is Gonna Whip Everybody. 2. Celebrity, Tricks, and Culture: Float like a Butterfly, Sting like a Bee. 3. Trickster Queers the World: I Don’t Have to Be What You Want Me to Be. 4. The Irony of Global Cultures: No Viet Cong ever Called me Nigger. 5. Coming Home to the Heart of Darkness: When we were Kings. 6. Trickster Bodies and Cultural Death: You’ll Die One Day So Better Get Ready. Ali and the World: A Chronology. Notes. Acknowledgments. Index.

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Book SynopsisThis absorbing book unravels the reasons for the enduring respect and reverence that Muhammad Ali commands long after the end of his athletic career. It will appeal to those teaching and studying cultural studies, social theory, sports studies, and sociology, as well as to general readers interested in Muhammad Ali.Trade Review"A brilliant meditation on celebrity and spectatorship and an astute cultural analysis of race and sport, Charles Lemert's Muhammad Ali is also an affectionate biography of one of the most significant figures of our age." Barry Glassner, University of Southern California, author of The Culture of Fear "Ali's fame was launched on the tide of his astonishing athletic prowess, but it was borne along by the spurting cross-currents of culture, race and politics which boiled so fiercely during the 1960s and 1970s. Lemert is excellent on Ali in relation to these cross-currents, but he also dares to dive deeper, into the secret waters of myth, totem and taboo which still underlie more of human thought and feeling than we may like to admit … This is a remarkably interesting and re-readable essay." Financial TimesTable of Contents1. From the Beginnings : GG is Gonna Whip Everybody. 2. Celebrity, Tricks, and Culture: Float like a Butterfly, Sting like a Bee. 3. Trickster Queers the World: I Don’t Have to Be What You Want Me to Be. 4. The Irony of Global Cultures: No Viet Cong ever Called me Nigger. 5. Coming Home to the Heart of Darkness: When we were Kings. 6. Trickster Bodies and Cultural Death: You’ll Die One Day So Better Get Ready. Ali and the World: A Chronology. Notes. Acknowledgments. Index.

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Book SynopsisForced to fight other Jews in bare-knuckle bouts for the perverse entertainment of SS officers, Harry quickly learned that his own survival depended on his ability to fight and win. Presenting a story of endurance, desperation, and love, this title provides the first-hand testimony of the author's father, Harry Haft, a holocaust victim.Trade ReviewThe riveting and tragic story of Harry Haft should be, indeed, must be told, for Holocaust narratives have the mandate to provide a lesson for generations to come. I might go even so far as to state that the Harry Haft story is what Hollywood movies are made of. - George Eisen, author of Ethnicity and Sport in North American History and Culture

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisTells the story of how the African American boxer Jack Johnson - the bombastic and larger-than-life reigning world heavyweight champion - met Jim Flynn on the fourth of July in Las Vegas, New Mexico.

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Book SynopsisKnockout: The Boxer and Boxing in American Cinema is the first book-length study of the Hollywood boxing film, a popular movie entertainment since the 1930s, that includes such classics as Million Dollar Baby, Rocky, and Raging Bull. The boxer stands alongside the cowboy, the gangster, and the detective as a character that shaped America's ideas of manhood. Leger Grindon relates the Hollywood boxing film to the literature of Jack London, Ernest Hemingway, and Clifford Odets; the influence of ring champions, particularly Joe Louis and Muhammad Ali; and controversies surrounding masculinity, race, and sports.Knockout breaks new ground in film genre study by focusing on the fundamental dramatic conflicts uniting both documentary and fictional films with compelling social concerns. The boxing film portrays more than the rise and fall of a champion; it exposes the body in order to reveal the spirit. Not simply a brute, the screen boxer dramatizes conflicts and aspirations central to an American audience's experience. This book features chapters on the conventions of the boxing film, the history of the genre and its relationship to famous ring champions, and self-contained treatments of thirty-two individual films including a chapter devoted to Raging Bull.

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Book SynopsisThe boxer stands alongside the cowboy, the gangster, and the detective as a character that shaped America's ideas of manhood. Knockout: The Boxer and Boxing in American Cinema is the first book-length study of the Hollywood boxing film, a popular movie entertainment since the 1930s, that includes such classics as Million Dollar Baby, Rocky, and Raging Bull. Leger Grindon relates the Hollywood boxing film to the literature of Jack London, Ernest Hemingway, and Clifford Odets; the influence of ring champions, particularly Joe Louis and Muhammad Ali; and controversies surrounding masculinity, race, and sports.Knockout breaks new ground in film genre study by focusing on the fundamental dramatic conflicts uniting both documentary and fictional films with compelling social concerns. The boxing film portrays more than the rise and fall of a champion; it exposes the body in order to reveal the spirit. Not simply a brute, the screen boxer dramatizes conflicts and aspirations central to an American audience's experience. This book features chapters on the conventions of the boxing film, the history of the genre and its relationship to famous ring champions, and self-contained treatments of thirty-two individual films including a chapter devoted to Raging Bull.

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Book SynopsisIn 1988, then struggling writer Davis Miller drove to Muhammad Ali’s mother’s modest Louisville house, knocked on the door and introduced himself to his childhood idol. Nearly thirty years later, the two friends have an uncommon bond, the sort that can be fashioned only in serendipitous ways and fortified through shared experiences. Miller now draws from those remarkable moments to give us a beautifully written portrait of a great man physically devastated but spiritually young—playing tricks on unsuspecting guests, performing sleight of hand for any willing audience and walking ten miles each way to get an ice cream. Following in the tradition of writers such as Gay Talese and Nick Hornby, Miller gives us a series of extraordinary stories that coalesce to become a moving introduction to the human side of a boxing legend.Trade Review"[Miller's] new book gives you an intimate glimpse of Tragic Ali: a man of once-uncontainable animation now locked behind facial features that do not move 'one-tenth of an inch'." -- Financial Times"Ali’s friendship with Davis is brilliantly detailed in the author’s latest book Approaching Ali: A Reclamation In Three Acts." -- Mirror Online

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Book SynopsisIn 1988, then struggling writer Davis Miller drove to Muhammad Ali’s mother’s modest Louisville house, knocked on the door and introduced himself to his childhood idol. Nearly thirty years later, the two friends have an uncommon bond, the sort that can be fashioned only in serendipitous ways and fortified through shared experiences. Miller now draws from those remarkable moments to give us a beautifully written portrait of a great man physically devastated but spiritually young—playing tricks on unsuspecting guests, performing sleight of hand for any willing audience and walking ten miles each way to get an ice cream. Following in the tradition of writers such as Gay Talese and Nick Hornby, Miller gives us a series of extraordinary stories that coalesce to become a moving introduction to the human side of a boxing legend.Trade Review"[Miller's] new book gives you an intimate glimpse of Tragic Ali: a man of once-uncontainable animation now locked behind facial features that do not move 'one-tenth of an inch'." -- Financial Times"Ali’s friendship with Davis is brilliantly detailed in the author’s latest book Approaching Ali: A Reclamation In Three Acts." -- Mirror Online

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Book SynopsisIn 2016, Booklist observed, “Thomas Hauser is a treasure. Whatever he writes is worth reading. Boxing is blessed that he has focused so much of his career on the sweet science.”There Will Always Be Boxing continues this tradition of excellence. A poignant look at Muhammad Ali – whose life was celebrated throughout the world following his death on June 3, 2016 – highlights this collection of Hauser’s work. The year’s biggest fights are, as always, put in perspective. And once again, Hauser takes readers behind the scenes, giving them a seat at the table with boxing’s biggest power brokers as he reveals the inner workings of the sport and business of boxing.There Will Always Be Boxing is sure not to disappoint the readers, writers, and critics who look forward to Hauser’s annual collection of articles about the contemporary boxing scene. This collection shows, once again, why Hauser is one of the last real champions of boxing and one of the very best who has ever written about the sport.

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Book SynopsisEach year, readers, writers, and critics alike anticipate Thomas Hauser’s newest collection of articles about the contemporary boxing scene, where his award-winning investigative journalism is on display. The annual retrospective of the previous year in boxing is always a notable moment in the sport that no one knows better than Hauser.Protect Yourself at All Times offers a behind-the-scenes look at Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor, dressing room reports from big fights like Canelo Alvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin, and compelling portraits of luminaries like Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis, Mike Tyson, and Don King, all filtered through the perspective of a true champion of boxing.Trade ReviewBoxing fans know Hauser from his extraordinary biography Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times (1991) and from this annual series, which details the previous year in boxing and typically includes some always-meaty profiles. This year’s edition opens with a dual profile of two charismatic boxers of the 2000s, Jermain Taylor and Kelly Pavlik. Both held titles, and both succumbed to the pitfalls that often await successful young boxers: too much fame and money too soon, and a support team unable or unwilling to say no when things start veering out of control. This piece is Hauser in a nutshell: compassion, character, and context. He also includes some lighter reminiscences, such as a story about the time Ali awoke to an elephant in the yard of his Michigan home. There’s also a conversation Hauser had with Russian boxer Wladimir Klitschko in which they discussed Pythagoras and agreed it is probably a rare topic among boxers and the journalists who follow them. On the more reportorial front, he explores concussion-based CTE as it manifests itself in boxing and looks at the curious doings of state boxing commissions. As always, an annual delight." —Wes Lukowsky, Booklist, August 2018

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Book SynopsisEach year, readers, writers, and critics alike look forward to Thomas Hauser's newest collection of articles about the contemporary boxing scene. Reviewing his 2018 collection, Booklist proclaimed, "This is Hauser in a nutshell: compassion, character, and context. As always, an annual delight."A Dangerous Journey continues Hauser's tradition of excellence, turning his award-winning investigative reporting skills on the scandal surrounding the use of illegal performance enhancing drugs and the failures of corrupt and incompetent state athletic commissions. Hauser also takes readers into Canelo Alvarez's dressing room in the hours before and after his rematch against Gennady Golovkin, the biggest fight of the year, and offers in-depth portraits of boxing's biggest stars-past and present-as well as reflections on fight-related curiosities ranging from Ronda Rousey to David and Goliath. Thirty-five years ago, Hauser began writing about boxing with his superb The Black Lights, which has long been regarded as a boxing classic. He only gets better.

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Book SynopsisWhen Thomas Hauser was selected for induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2019, his relationship with Muhammad Ali was widely cited. But Ali was just one of the many fighters who have shared momentous times with Hauser. For decades, elite fighters like Evander Holyfield, Manny Pacquiao, Gennady Golovkin, and Canelo Álvarez have welcomed him into their dressing room to record their journey on fight night.Drawn from his critically-acclaimed yearly collections of boxing essays, In the Inner Sanctum celebrates these most dramatic hours in fighters’ lives—chronicling the very moment when a fighter’s physical well-being and financial future are on the line, when the fighter is most alive and most at risk.Trade Review“Many journalists have written fine boxing pieces, but none has written as extensively or as memorably as Thomas Hauser.”—Wes Lukowsky, Booklist

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Book SynopsisReaders, writers, and critics alike look forward to each new collection of Thomas Hauser's articles about today’s boxing scene. Reviewing these books, Booklist has proclaimed, “Many journalists have written fine boxing pieces, but none has written as extensively or as memorably as Thomas Hauser. Hauser remains the current champion of boxing. He is a treasure.” Hauser’s newest collection meets this high standard. The Universal Sport features Hauser’s coverage of 2021 and 2022 in boxing. As always, Hauser chronicles the big fights and gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at boxing’s biggest stars. He offers a cogent look the rise of women’s boxing and shines a penetrating light on the murky world of illegal performance enhancing drugs and financial corruption at the sport’s highest levels. He explores how boxing has become a tool in the high-stakes world of “sportswashing” by Saudi Arabia and a flash point for discussions about Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine. The book culminates in a memorable four-part essay on the craft of writing coupled with reflections on Hauser’s own induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

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Book SynopsisNot everything has been told about the life of Muhammad Ali. One fight has been forgotten and the extraordinary story - of racism, celebrity, an audacious crime and, above all, an important boxing match - is told here for the first time.

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Book Synopsis“Rahaman has, at last, written the definitive biography on his late brother, which tells the real Ali story.” —Mike TysonMore words have been written about Muhammad Ali than almost anyone else. He was, without doubt, the world’s most-loved sportsman. At the height of his celebrity he was the most famous person in the world. And yet, until now, the one voice missing belonged to the man who knew him best—his only sibling, and best friend, Rahaman Ali.No one was closer to Ali than Rahaman. Born Cassius and Rudolph Arnett Clay, the two brothers grew up together, lived together, trained together, travelled together, and fought together in the street and in the ring. A near-constant fixture in his sibling’s company, Rahaman saw Ali at both his best and his worst: the relentless prankster and the jealous older brother, the outspoken advocate, the husband and father. In My Brother, Muhammad Ali, Rahaman offers an insider's perspective on the well-known stories as well as never-before-told tales, painting a rich and intimate portrait of a proud, relentlessly polarizing, yet often vulnerable man.In this extraordinary, poignant memoir, Rahaman tells a much bigger and more personal story than in any other book on Muhammad Ali—that of two brothers, almost inseparable from birth to death. It is the final and most important perspective on an iconic figure.

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Book SynopsisThis Maileresque combination of personal reflection, boxing analysis, and sports biography is a must read for fight fans.... Booklist, Starred ReviewAn intimate portrait of Joe Frazier, whose ferocious rivalry with Muhammad Ali made them both boxing legends and cultural touchstones for an era. Just in time for the fiftieth anniversary of the Fight of the Century (AliFrazier I), Sparring with Smokin' Joe provides a penetrating, at times brutally candid, look at legendary champion Joe Frazier. Glenn Lewis spent several months in the gym, on the road, and in verbal tussles with Frazier in 1980, when Frazier was at a crossroads in his life and career. Lewis recounts Frazier's candid takes on his still-recent Hall-of-Fame career, wars with Ali, and hard-scrabble roots. Frazier also reflects on Ali's upcoming comeback fight against Larry Holmes, his own possible return to the ring, preparing his son Marvis for a pro boxing debut, and the impact of racial tensions and cultural upheaval on his fighting legacy. Sparring with Smokin' Joe reveals compelling, never-before-heard anecdotes that give new insight into the usually private Frazier, including how Ali's verbal attacks on Frazier alienated him from his own people and continued to trouble him long after retiring from the ring. An intimate portrait of a legendary fighter, Sparring with Smokin' Joe finally shares Frazier's side of an unforgettable rivalry.

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Book SynopsisIncluding material and photographs not included in most of the 100 other books about the champion, Ishmael Reed's The Complete Muhammad Ali is more than just a biography - it is a fascinating portrait of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st. An honest, balanced portrayal of Ali, the book includes voices that have been omitted from other books. It charts Ali's evolution from Black Nationalism to a universalism, but does not discount the Nation of Islam and Black Nationalism's important influence on his intellectual development. Filipino American author Emil Guillermo speaks about how The Thrilla In Manila brought the Philippines into the 20th century. Fans of Muhammad Ali, boxing fans, and those interested in modern African American history and the Nation of Islam will be fascinated by this biography by an accomplished American author.Trade ReviewIn The Complete Muhammad Ali, Ishmael Reed reveals fresh information and dozens of new ideas about a subject whose meaning has become increasingly difficult to tap. This book is definitely worth your time." —Michael Ezra, author, Muhammad Ali: The Making of an Icon"The pre-eminent African American novelist, essayist, and poet Ishmael Reed's latest book, The Complete Muhammad Ali, stands as one of Reed's most important projects to date . . . if you want to engage with the spirit of the man [Ali] in his time, and get punched by the prose of one of our greatest living writers, The Complete Muhammad Ali is the book for you." —Brian Flota, thehairsplitter.com"This expansive masterpiece . . . There are so many new revelations about Elijah Muhammad, Muhammad Ali, the Nation of Islam, and Black Nationalism to praise The Complete Muhammad Ali about. Suffice it to say that Reed's book is a masterful contribution to our understanding and appreciation of the legacy of Muhammad Ali, Elijah Muhammad, the Nation of Islam, Black Nationalism, and what it means to be a black athlete or sports person in America." —Pierre-Damien Mvuyekure, Professor, Department of Languages and Literature, Northern Iowa University; counterpunch.org

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Book SynopsisKing of the Journeymen is the gripping autobiography of Peter Buckley, a pro boxer who fought 300 times and was a 'stepping stone' for world champions such as Naseem Hamed and Duke McKenzie. As a boy, Buckley shone as an amateur boxer, but outside the ring he was heading for trouble. He was suspended numerous times from school and sent to prison at age 15 for assault and robbery. Whilst inside, his father died. His life felt hopeless and seemed to be going nowhere. But after his release he turned to professional boxing and things started to improve. Labelled a journeyman, he fought often and lost often, whilst earning more money than he'd thought possible. Buckley never refused a fight, often accepting bouts at a few hours' notice or after a night out. King of the Journeymen is an inspirational tale of a man tenaciously fighting for a better life. Although he lost more fights than he won, Buckley persevered with his career and attained widespread respect from boxers and fans alike.

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Book SynopsisThis boxing handbook provides up-to-date, in-depth coaching for serious contenders. Weaving fundamental skills into a progression of drills that hone technique in increasingly complex, demanding, and realistic fighting situations, the handbook aids fighters in developing the reflexes of a complete boxer and teaches the move from a process-and-react mentality to one of seeing-and-reacting. Hundreds of sequential images illustrate vital steps in the progression—from proper stance, effective footwork, and range to defense and counters, the importance of angles, and creating winning strategies.

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Book SynopsisMuhammad Ali is one of the most remarkable sports personalities and celebrities of our time. He is a legend who transcended boxing and rose above all sport. A man of mythic proportions, Ali rose to become a prominent feature of our cultural landscape. Through exclusive accounts from family members, close friends, associates and adversaries, Fiaz Rafiq has compiled a compelling and intriguing insight into a sporting legend. Muhammad Ali's story is an epic one, one of bravery, courage, hope, skill and indomitable will. Muhammad Ali: The Life of a Legend is an oral biography of the greatest icon of world sport who continues to influence millions. Among those interviewed include, George Foreman, Larry Holmes, Chuck Wepner, Joe Bugner, Angelo Dundee, Don King, Jim Brown, Lou Gossett Jr., Dr. Harry Edwards, Butch Lewis, Sugar Ray Leonard, Evander Holyfield, some close family members and some of the top sports journalists who worked with Ali, and many more.Trade Review'An impressive collection of first-hand testimony from friends, rivals, contemporaries, scribes and his closest family illuminate Ali for a new generation while rekindling the memories for those that have always known he was The Greatest' * New York Daily News *'An obsorbing, insightful look at the most significant sporting figure of modern times. Conversations gives a fresh perspective on a genial man, his boxing legacy and the 'Greatest's' role in landmark changes of 20th century history' * Daily Mail *'A thoroughly absorbing read with intriguing insights into 'The Greatest' by those who know him best' * Daily Star *'Lets Ali admirers, friends and former foes speak for themselves, as well as providing fascinating insights...essential reading' * Men's Fitness *'A forensic examination of the greatest sportsman of his era, through the eyes of the people who knew him best, and an essential addition to the library' * The Independent *'Ali was the quintessential sports icon and media star who in his 20-year boxing career played into his image as a larger than life athlete who basked in the spotlight,but was actually an intensely private man. Particularly poignant in the book are the interviews with four of Ali’s adult children... Rafiq digs into Ali’s technical prowess up close with interviews with his opponents... giving the inside view unscripted recollections of Ali’s boxing style: the knockouts, the rope-a-dope strategies, and Ali’s mental tactics in the ring...Rafiq’s interview sessions with sports journalists are also revelatory' * New York Journal of Books *

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Book SynopsisGoing beyond the standard workout for boxers, this innovative manual introduces a diverse set of training methods, integrating them into drill sets that build the athletic attributes for which past and present fighters are known. From Leroy Jones sparring with chickens and Ken Norton’s 15 combined rounds of shadow boxing, sparring, and bag work to Ricky Hatton’s staggering 12-round sparring bouts with a body belt and Kosta Tszyu’s creative tennis-ball and head-strap punching apparatus, this guide highlights a wide vocabulary of exercises, all incorporating boxing-specific equipment. The drills can be performed solo or with a partner, and each piece of equipment is approached individually with detailed descriptions of routines, including floor exercises and drills with the heavy bag, medicine ball, horizontal rope, and jump rope. With two workout menus for weight training, this guide guarantees a regime to suit any individual need—be it professional or simply a desire to train like some of the best athletes in the world.

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Book SynopsisAll the tools necessary to build a powerful defensive base for boxing—every defense for every punch from every angle—are included in this manual. Punching prowess has become equated with boxing, but what is done in response to that incoming flurry makes a truly good boxer: how to make an opponent miss, how to easily defend, and, most importantly, how to counterattack. Building on that defensive base, this book explores natural punching triggers, or logical counterpunching sequences, that move past the beginner’s realm of being a mere puncher into the upper echelons of crafty counter boxing. With encyclopedic boxing defensive drills bolstered by numerous illustrative photographs, this is a one-stop resource for learning the art of counterpunching.

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Book SynopsisHow did the old school, all time champs — like Jack Dempsey, Kid McCoy, Sonny Liston and Stanley Ketchel — do it? This manual examines some of the best and most interesting fighters in boxing history and gets inside the historical import of what they accomplished. Examining the training, technique and tactics of past champions, this book provides readers with recreated templates to drill and box precisely as the greats did. Here are five benefits a reader will gain from this book: 1. Gain historical perspective on one of mankind's most riveting and oldest sports. 2. Hone boxing skills via historical recreation modeling. 3. Create bonding with the material through historical perspective and physical execution. 4. Transform your boxing game as you learn to shift gears through champion mindsets. 5. Learn the valuable skill of immersion training versus simulacra training.

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Book SynopsisIn the spring of 1970, a Pretoria schoolboy, Joe, becomes obsessed with Muhammad Ali. He begins collecting daily newspaper clippings about him, a passion that grows into an archive of scrapbooks. Forty years later, when Joe has become a writer, these scrapbooks become the foundation for a memoir of his childhood. When he calls upon his brother, Branko, for help uncovering their shared past, meaning comes into view in the spaces between then and now, growing up and growing old, speaking out and keeping silent.Trade Review"South African novelist Vladislavic delivers a moving, closely observed study in family dynamics in a time of apartheid...Vladislavic's tale unfolds with grace and precision. A memorable, beautifully written story of love and loss." -- Kirkus, Starred Review "Violence meets quiet, action edges toward observation, and personality gives way to place. But where The Distance, like Portrait with Keys before it, asks that the reader build links across and between planes of memory, history, and city, the virtual world with which the book's past collides is discomfitingly edgeless. Vladislavic is an auteur of this moment of collision. Always hovering just askew of the city he loves, his is a voice for making new spaces within it." -- Africa is a Country "Ivan Vladislavic occupies a place all of his own in the South African literary landscape: a versatile stylist and formal innovator whose work is nevertheless firmly rooted in contemporary urban life." - JM Coetzee "Ivan's sentences are like no one else's; how does he manage to do it? They rise in the air like balloons and never seem to come down. One reads them looking up." - Arvind Krishna Mehrotra "One of South Africa's most finely tuned observers." - Ted Hodgkinson, Times Literary Supplement "The writing has a quality of unpredicitability, a wildness that seeps through the fabric of Vladislavic's peerless linguistic control. Ivan Vladislavic is one of the most significant writers working in English today. Everyone should read him. " - Katie Kitamura, BOMB

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