Your favorite book about boxing

Unfortunately Mr. Rosenfeld passed away a few years ago.

P.S - Thanks for plugging my book!

 

There’s so many/too many to mention. It depends on what you’re looking for. Some like autobiographies and in that case I’d point them to Raging Bull (LaMotta), Somebody up there likes me (Graziano), Max Schmeling: An autobiography, The Tartan legend (Buchanan), Sugar Ray (with Dave Anderson) and Against the odds (Larry Holmes)

The Sweet Science by Liebling is a classic and “must have” of course
Corner Men by Ronald Fried
In this Corner by Peter Heller
Only the ring was square by Teddy Brenner
The ice punch by Brian Duncan
Jack Scarrots Prizefighters by Lawrence Davies
Ghosts of Manila by Mark Kram
Sporting blood by Carlos Acevedo

Everything by Springs Toledo. My personal favorites are Gods of War & Murderers Row which I’m sure if I’m pushed to, would both make my top 5 books.

Adam Pollack’s “In the ring” series, the latest one on Dempsey is fantastic. Part 2 of that coming soon I understand.

Some other great biographies that were heavily researched Clay Moyle’s Sam Langford book, Allen Rosenfeld’s Burley book is a gem, Compton’s Greb book, Mark Kram Jr’s recent Joe Frazier book and I’ll shamelessly plug my own Eder Jofre book!

There’s so many. Impossible to narrow it all down and I’m sure if you ask my next week my recommendations would have some different books.

 

Joe Louis' autobiography made me admire the great trainer Jack Blackburn.
One of my favorite quote of Blackburn that Louis wrote in his book was "If you get whipped by somebody who is a bum, you’re a bum too.”

 

"Boxing" By Edwin Hasilet

 

Echoing The Sweet Science by AJ Liebling. I must have read it through two dozen times, maybe more. And I always find some little piece or observation fascinating.

One of his great lines, on Rocky Marciano turning to go back to his corner after referee instructions for the Archie Moore fight:

“More than ever, he resembled a Great Dane who has heard to word ‘bone.’”

 

The more I read Klompton's posts in here, the less I like his book, which is a shame because it is the best researched book I've ever
SEEN much less read.

Pollacks Dempsey Part I is also very good and I'm waiting on Part II. I won't get Kompton's Demspey book; he's so biased on Dempsey that I don't think he can be objective, sorry to say.

 

I think the one that struck a chord in me the most is 'Mi Vida Loca: The Crazy Life Of Johnny Tapia'
It's not just about boxing, it's about courage and determination against the face of immense adversity and sorrow, in life. Absolutely a must, even if you're not a fan. You will be, by the end of the book.

'The Last Great Prizefight' by Steven Frederick which details the fight between Jack Johnson and James J. Jeffries and the events leading up to it is really good, too. It made me look at Johnson in a different light.

There are loads of good ones, many recommended in this thread.

Sadly, I haven't been able to pick up a boxing book in years. I get really jealous of you guys who can just hop onto Amazon and order stuff.

 

I won't buy it because he's a nasty, imperious person that I wouldn't feel right about supporting.

 

Klompton’s ability to research is surpassed only (and greatly) but his inability to draw conclusions from that research that are not supported by the facts he uncovers, as is evidenced by so many of his bitter posts on this forum.

He is a textbook case of (a) confirmation bias — when his research turns up something to support his already-reached conclusions; and (b) blindness to any fact uncovered which does not support his already-made conclusions.

I’d never put a dime in his pocket for one of his self-published treatises.

 

My favourite was the first book i owned about boxers back in the mid 70s called, Superfists : The Story of the World Heavyweight Champions, it started my interest into the history of our sport, seeing imagery and brief background info of all the heavyweight champions from John L Sullivan onwards was a eureka moment for the teenager that i then was.

 

I concur with regards it being a good book.

Jock McAvoy sure was a seething mass of bad intentions who had a hair trigger temper, a punch that was dynamite, and a willingness to fight at anytime, any place and anywhere, all covered with honesty in the book.

 

My old man has written two boxing books. The World Champion That Never Was, is a behind the scenes look at what went on in Chechnya for the Chagaev vs Browne fight. I'm obviously biased but it's a very interesting read, with loads of details of things that went on behind the scenes over there. Also tells some really interesting tales about the people we met there and what they went through in the wars with Russia.

The second is The Life and Times of Stanley Christodoulou. It tells his story from start to the present day and plenty of stories of the fights he's been involved in.

Now that my sales pitch is done my favourite boxing books are Hauser's Muhammad Ali Life and Times, Gene Tunney by Jack Cavanaugh. Another beauty is Heart, Soul, Fire: The journey of Paul Briggs. Very interesting read.