Comments Thread For: Best Books on Boxing - Holiday Reading: 2019

[BIGPOPPAPUMP]

Each year during the holiday season, I publish a list of what I consider to be the best books on boxing. That list, updated to accommodate recently published titles, follows. Taken together, the books offer a compelling look at the sweet science from bare-knuckle days to the present. Some of these books are now out of print. But with the proliferation of online services like Abebooks.com and Amazon.com, all of them can be found. I've listed the US publisher for each book, but many of them have been published in the UK as well.
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[KillaMane26]

My fav books i read were the Teddy Atlas Bio, Sugar Ray Robinson bio, The 4 kings ( Srl, Duran, Hearns, Hagler).

The Sugar Ray bio was my all time fav. tho. Im surprised i didn't steal it from the library lmao

[YoungManRumble]

Good list thanks!

The Road to Nowhere by Tris Dixon looks really interesting I think I'll get myself an early present.

[mattr]

Some nice picks here. I'm actually reading the Rocky Marciano one at the moment. Very interesting. Best boxing book I have ever read is by far Thomas Hauser's own Muhammad Ali's Life and Times.

[mattr]

Yeah I read Sugar Ray, the SRR biography and the Teddy Atlas one too. Both very good.

[Monzon99]

Heavyweight Armageddon: The Tyson vs. Lewis Championship Battle was called by Emanuel Steward one of the best books he ever read, along with the Four Kings. Lots of insights and details and inside stories in this book.

https://www.amazon.com/Heavyweight-A.../dp/1493625888

[ShoulderRoll]

Nice! Lots of boxing books and subjects to pick from.

I highly recommend Mike Tyson's "Undisputed Truth" to anyone that hasn't read it yet.

[Marchegiano]

Boxiana

Pugilistica

Fistiania

These are the books all historians use to write their history books....well bare knuckle history

Captain Godfrey's Treatise for Self Defense ( Much longer name actually but that's enough to find it with, this book debunks **** found in the other three)

Bare knuckle 1722-1888 ( Best overview of the bare knuckle era)

Peter Maher - The Irish HW champion ( rounds out the other bare knuckle books' info, you'll pick up a lot more than a good story about a good 1890s HW)

Boxing in The Time of Christ (is what it sounds like, great overview of the ancients)

Athletics in the Ancient World (little more in depth on the sport side than time of jesus, but more in depth on the fighters themselves)

Sundowners (Black boxing history)

Black Genesis (ditto)

The first Black Boxing Champions ( Pretty much a repeat, of the other two but, has some good info and is much smaller)

Boxing: a concise history (nice full sport coverage)

Boxing: a cultural history (decent history course)

The Manly Art: Bareknuckle (decent outliner)

I fight for a living: Boxing and the battle for black manhood (decent)

Sports and Spectacle of the ancient world (decent)

Western Fighting Science (decent medieval text)

American Slave :Slyvie Dubois ( just a really good story about a lady-slave boxer, trust, she were badass)

When Boxing Was like Ridiculously Racist (decent coverage)

Talhoffer's ****

Philostratus ****

Pausanias' ****

Dio's ****

Papers: Brooklyn Eagle, Chicago Tribune, & Police Gazette jump to mind.

And MANY many more I can't remember right off!

A lot of what jumps to mind is black boxing history because it's so hard to get good black boxing history today I got much more excited when I found good books covering it than I did normal 1888-present boxing books. I can't hardly even think of a good modern book even though I know I've read some zingers. It's just easier to remember who taught me about bare knuckle, ancients, and black history because those are buried and so more exciting when I found them. I don't mean to say they are better books, just from a research pov better finds.

Seriously, if y'all have an interest I probably have a book I could recommend to you. I just have to look at my shelf and folders and ****.


Finally, the hands down greatest boxing book of all time is written by a member here who goes by escudo

He's more active on BF24/ESB, but, no one comes close to his scope, knowledge, or team of researchers aiding him.

A History of Violence is what it's called. I don't know if he's published yet but I did get to read rough drafts and let me tell y'all straight up, it's better to wait for him then to try to catch up to me by reading the books I read. Time saver and a half. Even his half done rough draft is better than most the books I ever read.

Putting over escudo a little more, he's the only historian I've ever read that does not pretend the unknown is just the unspoken. What isn't known by researchers at orgs like IBRO is pointed out rather than alluded to like the historian knows more than they lead on.

I need to get back to the real research but that **** takes both time and money and I've had just a terrible year business wise so all my time and money goes to real work....it sucks.


Great thread, loads on good info here.

[Split Decision]

Boxiana

Pugilistica

Fistiania

These are the books all historians use to write their history books....well bare knuckle history

Captain Godfrey's Treatise for Self Defense ( Much longer name actually but that's enough to find it with, this book debunks **** found in the other three)

Bare knuckle 1722-1888 ( Best overview of the bare knuckle era)

Peter Maher - The Irish HW champion ( rounds out the other bare knuckle books' info, you'll pick up a lot more than a good story about a good 1890s HW)

Boxing in The Time of Christ (is what it sounds like, great overview of the ancients)

Athletics in the Ancient World (little more in depth on the sport side than time of jesus, but more in depth on the fighters themselves)

Sundowners (Black boxing history)

Black Genesis (ditto)

The first Black Boxing Champions ( Pretty much a repeat, of the other two but, has some good info and is much smaller)

Boxing: a concise history (nice full sport coverage)

Boxing: a cultural history (decent history course)

The Manly Art: Bareknuckle (decent outliner)

I fight for a living: Boxing and the battle for black manhood (decent)

Sports and Spectacle of the ancient world (decent)

Western Fighting Science (decent medieval text)

American Slave :Slyvie Dubois ( just a really good story about a lady-slave boxer, trust, she were badass)

When Boxing Was like Ridiculously Racist (decent coverage)

Talhoffer's ****

Philostratus ****

Pausanias' ****

Dio's ****

Papers: Brooklyn Eagle, Chicago Tribune, & Police Gazette jump to mind.

And MANY many more I can't remember right off!

A lot of what jumps to mind is black boxing history because it's so hard to get good black boxing history today I got much more excited when I found good books covering it than I did normal 1888-present boxing books. I can't hardly even think of a good modern book even though I know I've read some zingers. It's just easier to remember who taught me about bare knuckle, ancients, and black history because those are buried and so more exciting when I found them. I don't mean to say they are better books, just from a research pov better finds.

Seriously, if y'all have an interest I probably have a book I could recommend to you. I just have to look at my shelf and folders and ****.


Finally, the hands down greatest boxing book of all time is written by a member here who goes by escudo

He's more active on BF24/ESB, but, no one comes close to his scope, knowledge, or team of researchers aiding him.

A History of Violence is what it's called. I don't know if he's published yet but I did get to read rough drafts and let me tell y'all straight up, it's better to wait for him then to try to catch up to me by reading the books I read. Time saver and a half. Even his half done rough draft is better than most the books I ever read.

Putting over escudo a little more, he's the only historian I've ever read that does not pretend the unknown is just the unspoken. What isn't known by researchers at orgs like IBRO is pointed out rather than alluded to like the historian knows more than they lead on.

I need to get back to the real research but that **** takes both time and money and I've had just a terrible year business wise so all my time and money goes to real work....it sucks.


Great thread, loads on good info here.

good post and have bookmarked for future reference

i want to read more boxing literature but dislike biographies, i think they can be a little over blown and throwaway

but history is something i can get my teeth into

cheers

[ShoulderRoll]

Boxiana

Pugilistica

Fistiania

These are the books all historians use to write their history books....well bare knuckle history

Captain Godfrey's Treatise for Self Defense ( Much longer name actually but that's enough to find it with, this book debunks **** found in the other three)

Bare knuckle 1722-1888 ( Best overview of the bare knuckle era)

Peter Maher - The Irish HW champion ( rounds out the other bare knuckle books' info, you'll pick up a lot more than a good story about a good 1890s HW)

Boxing in The Time of Christ (is what it sounds like, great overview of the ancients)

Athletics in the Ancient World (little more in depth on the sport side than time of jesus, but more in depth on the fighters themselves)

Sundowners (Black boxing history)

Black Genesis (ditto)

The first Black Boxing Champions ( Pretty much a repeat, of the other two but, has some good info and is much smaller)

Boxing: a concise history (nice full sport coverage)

Boxing: a cultural history (decent history course)

The Manly Art: Bareknuckle (decent outliner)

I fight for a living: Boxing and the battle for black manhood (decent)

Sports and Spectacle of the ancient world (decent)

Western Fighting Science (decent medieval text)

American Slave :Slyvie Dubois ( just a really good story about a lady-slave boxer, trust, she were badass)

When Boxing Was like Ridiculously Racist (decent coverage)

Talhoffer's ****

Philostratus ****

Pausanias' ****

Dio's ****

Papers: Brooklyn Eagle, Chicago Tribune, & Police Gazette jump to mind.

And MANY many more I can't remember right off!

A lot of what jumps to mind is black boxing history because it's so hard to get good black boxing history today I got much more excited when I found good books covering it than I did normal 1888-present boxing books. I can't hardly even think of a good modern book even though I know I've read some zingers. It's just easier to remember who taught me about bare knuckle, ancients, and black history because those are buried and so more exciting when I found them. I don't mean to say they are better books, just from a research pov better finds.

Seriously, if y'all have an interest I probably have a book I could recommend to you. I just have to look at my shelf and folders and ****.


Finally, the hands down greatest boxing book of all time is written by a member here who goes by escudo

He's more active on BF24/ESB, but, no one comes close to his scope, knowledge, or team of researchers aiding him.

A History of Violence is what it's called. I don't know if he's published yet but I did get to read rough drafts and let me tell y'all straight up, it's better to wait for him then to try to catch up to me by reading the books I read. Time saver and a half. Even his half done rough draft is better than most the books I ever read.

Putting over escudo a little more, he's the only historian I've ever read that does not pretend the unknown is just the unspoken. What isn't known by researchers at orgs like IBRO is pointed out rather than alluded to like the historian knows more than they lead on.

I need to get back to the real research but that **** takes both time and money and I've had just a terrible year business wise so all my time and money goes to real work....it sucks.


Great thread, loads on good info here.

I can't find Western Fighting Science on Amazon. Do you happen to know the author?