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
Timed to come out just as he breaks the fabled Gehrig streak of 2,130 consecutive games played, this is the first adult bio of Cal Ripken Jr., written by freelancer Rosenfeld (Roger Maris: A Title to Fame, not reviewed). By and large, Baltimore Orioles shortstop Ripken is an all- American boy/man. Son of a major-league coach and manager, Ripken is a superb performer, an excellent defensive shortstop who is built (and hits) like a third baseman. A two-time American League MVP and multiple Gold Glove winner, he is also quiet, modest, likeable, and a good husband, son, and father. In short, Rip is the kind of guy you'd want your son to be or your daughter to marry. Unfortunately, people like that don't necessarily make for interesting biography, and so Rosenfeld is at something of a disadvantage. An authorized biography written with the cooperation of the family (but, significantly, without interviewing Cal Jr.), this is surprisingly honest in facing the negative side of Ripken's career, which mainly consists of questions about the Streak's effect on his hitting, the struggles that accompanied his last contract negotiation with the Orioles, and his reaction to his father's firing as the Orioles' manager in 1988. But the Streak is obviously the raison d'àtre for this book, and although he has done considerably more homework than such a volume would require, Rosenfeld's tome reads like a quickie cut-and-paste bio. The high- and lowlights of Ripken's career are here in numbing detail, filled out with quotes from teammates, opponents, and family members. The result is like reading 13 seasons' worth of old game stories from the Baltimore area papers. Too bad an Iron Man inspired such leaden prose.
Pub Date: Sept. 13, 1995
ISBN: 0-312-13524-6
Page Count: 256
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1995
Who’d have thought it was possible to make professional football boring?
A self-congratulatory commercial for the NFL and the NFL Network disguised as an insider examination of America’s most popular sport.
Best known as a former ESPN SportsCenter stalwart, Eisen has been the face of the NFL Network since it launched in 2003. The first channel to focus on a single sport 24/7/365, the Network isn’t included in your typical basic cable package, thus it’s not included in your typical football fan’s life. This wouldn’t matter if it were an inherently interesting entity or if Eisen were more of an investigative reporter. But here he comes off as another wide-eyed fan. Only Eisen, for example, would tag as “classic” a meandering blab-fest featuring the CBS studio crew of Jim Nantz, Deion Sanders and Dan Marino. It’s one of many direct transcriptions of TV interviews that fail to translate to the page. The book’s best section is a collection of reprinted emails that Eisen received from players answering the question, “Do you have a ritual or superstition before every game?” Indianapolis Colts receiver Reggie Wayne waxes poetic about his unshakeable desire for pregame soup, while Cleveland Browns defensive back Gary Baxter craves Lay’s potato chips. If Eisen had followed this route throughout and focused more on the players as people—and less on the Network and mind-numbing NFL minutia—he might have had something special. As it’s presented, though, the book is a self-indulgent, mildly informative trip through the bowels of the NFL and cable television.
Who’d have thought it was possible to make professional football boring?Pub Date: Oct. 30, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-312-36978-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Dunne/St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2007
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