The Mammoth Book of Muhammad Ali

by David West (Editor)

From his gold medal at the 1960 Olympic Games to his defeat of Sonny Liston to claim the world heavyweight championship in 1964—and for decades since—the unforgettable Muhammad Ali has captured the attention of the world. Here, drawn from books, specialty periodicals, newspapers, college magazines (covering his speaking tours), and the work of major literary figures such as Norman Mailer and Thomas Hauser is the best collection ever of writing on “The Greatest.”

Genres: Sports

512 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Librarian note: there is more than one author with this name.

Others:
David 2^ West: GR author, Humor & Comedy, Science Fiction, Fantasy
David 3^ West: Latin professor
David 4^ West: Children's books
David 5^ West: b. 1923
David 6^ West: b. 1948
David 7^ West: Philosophy
David 8^ West: b. 1959
David 9^ West: b. 1964, Adults Travel

Reviews

[Chris Dean · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is billed as "the best collection of writing" on Muhammad Ali. Indeed, this book is not the typical fare of articles from the mainstream American sporting press. Many of the articles are from the UK and give another perspective on Ali during his life and times. Some of the articles included are from Ebony magazine. What I truly enjoyed is that some of the articles came from the perspective of Ali's opponents, such as George Foreman and Oscar Bonavena.

[Oliver Hodson · Rating 4 out of 5]

It got up as a good book on points.

The last article was my favourite, talking about how ali's political and social legacy was compromised by corporate packaging and his own sense that he'd earnt the corporate lunches. The book definitely captures his power as a person, and at its best the writing captures that power over a range of moments, in those moments. At its worst it is a typo addled collection of articles chosen because they were probably easier to licence than better alternatives. In a way mimicking Ali's career.