More than a dozen previously uncollected boxing essays (nearly all done for The New Yorker) from the sure hand of Liebling, whose The Sweet Science (1955) tightly earned him a knockout reputation among fans of the fight game—and of elegant writing. Floyd Patterson, who went from amateur glory at the 1952 Olympics to the heavyweight championship of the world, is the main event here. Liebling covers no less than six of his matches: a tuneup with English opponent Brian London; three brawls with Ingemar Johansson (a Swede with a devastating right but little else); and two losing efforts against Sonny Liston. The undercard is in many cases a stellar proposition as well, featuring the likes of young Cassius Marcellus Clay (now known as Muhammad Ali), Dick Tiger, and ageless Archie Moore. And Liebling does not confine himself to headliners or big-time arenas. In chronicling a brutal sport he relishes without apology on its own unsentimental terms, the wayward pressman reports on bouts between no-name pugs in London's East End, Tunisia, and other unlikely venues. In allusive, digressive fashion, Liebling pays graceful tribute to professional boxing's roots as well as its often colorful seconds—cut-men, managers, promoters, sparring partners, trainers, etc. Before being counted out himself at age 59 in 1963, he offers a prescient, if discontinuous, account of how TV began to co-opt the fight game during the 1950's. A 15-rounder that goes the distance and leaves one to mourn the impossibility of a rematch.
Pub Date: Oct. 18, 1990
ISBN: 0865474958
Page Count: 258
Publisher: North Point/Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1990
Exquisite photographs and 97 essays, ranging from dubious to exemplary in quality and relevance, trace the 125-year history of professional baseball. Major League Baseball lends its logo to the fan's ultimate coffee-table book. By having unmatched access to various baseball archives, including those belonging to Major League Baseball, the National Baseball Hall of Fame, and the New York Public Library's Spalding Collection, Wallace has compiled a powerful visual account of the sport. Photographs of legendary players—including Christy Mathewson, Babe Ruth, Frank Robinson, and, in one especially riveting still, Yankees' catcher Thurman Munson bracing for a collision at the plate—beautifully, almost eerily, preserve these heroes at the height of their youthful powers. Other effects, including uniforms, endorsements, cartoons, and trading cards, forcefully yet subtly demonstrate baseball's far-reaching cultural impact. While Wallace (The American Museum of Natural History's Book of Dinosaurs and Other Ancient Creatures, p. 1116) intends to show the game from all angles, the text occasionally struggles to meet the estimable standards set by the illustrated sections. Laudable is Wallace's inclusion of reports from the Reach and Spalding baseball annuals of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Other noteworthy items are a 1955 scouting report on Brooks Robinson, who later became one of the greatest infielders ever, and Brooklyn Dodgers general manager Branch Rickey's explanation of his choice of Jackie Robinson as major league baseball's first black player in over 60 years. But the impact of such documentation is somewhat mitigated by the inclusion of ghostwritten autobiographies and ``flack'' pieces of questionable objectivity, and by Wallace's own introductory passages, which, with their boosterish tone, gloss over some of the game's less obvious undercurrents. But above all, baseball is a fan's game, and this book, compiled lovingly by a fan, deserves notice as a beautiful and enjoyable baseball time capsule.
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-8109-3135-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1994
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
With the capable help of sportswriter Levine (Life on the Rim, 1990), the smallest man ever to play in the NBA tells his story with warmth and humor. At 53'' Muggsy Bogues is an unlikely basketball star, but the Charlotte Hornets' pesky point guard is annually among the leaders in assists and steals, and he averages 10 points per game. Raised in the projects of East Baltimore, Bogues describes a tough life that included being shot when he was 5 years old and, at 12, watching his father go to prison for armed robbery. But there was always basketball, even if no one would take him seriously. He led his Dunbar High School team to 59 straight victories and national prominence in 1981 and '82 and was sought after by college coaches who were sharp enough to overlook his height. At Wake Forest, he averaged 14.8 points per game, collected 275 steals, and amassed an Atlantic Coast Conference record of 781 assists. He was drafted in the first round by the Washington Bullets in 1987 and became great friends with 76'' teammate Manute Bol (much to the delight of photographers). When Washington didn't protect him in the 1989 expansion draft, Bogues was thrilled to be selected by the Hornets. His career hit its stride when coach Gene Littles instituted ``an up-tempo offense'' with Bogues at the point. Later, with the additions of $84 million power forward Larry Johnson and, in 1992, center Alonzo Mourning, Bogues sparked the Hornets to a first-ever playoff appearance. Asked how he can play against men as much as a foot-and-a-half taller, he simply notes that ``the ball's on the floor more than it's in the air. And down there is Muggsland.'' A refreshingly good-natured sports biography by a man who's proud of his achievements but not an egomaniac. As he says, he's ``one happy little fella.'' (20 b&w photos, not seen)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-316-10173-7
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1994
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