An engaging look at life and legacy of Muhammad Ali for readers of all ages Muhammad Ali was one of the world’s best-known figures, and this incredible biography delves into precisely why. From his unlikely beginnings as a skinny, young Cassius Clay learning to box at a local gym to becoming the heavyweight champion of the world at the famous “Rumble in the Jungle,” where even the skies let loose with rain right after his victory, Ali has captivated the world. Tonya Bolden’s careful research and elegant telling, paired with R. Gregory Christie’s incredible paintings, make this a book that will inform and inspire readers of all ages. "Bolden's engaging text has a free-verse structure punctuated with enthusiastic exclamations that is enjoyable to read aloud.... The illustrations are striking." —School Library Journal (Starred review)
Recently recognized by Sports Illustrated as still the best-known athlete in the world, Muhammad Ali has played a fascinating role in American culture, with an influence that has reached far beyond sports. In addition to Ali the boxer, there are Ali the Black Muslim, Ali the cultural icon, Ali the anti-war protestor, Ali the telecelebrity, Ali the narcissist, and more. And it is these various incarnations -- Ali as a window onto his time, our time -- that build upon each other in this book to give us a vivid portrait of one of the greatest protagonists in the ring of public history. As the first book by scholars on the significance of his life and times, Muhammad Ali, the People's Champ is a fresh reassessment of the place of a giant sports idol and the role he has played in American history. Ali both shaped and reflected the times in which he lived. He touched the lives of people in a way unprecedented by almost any sports figure before or since. The contributors conclude that we can have no full understanding of our era without him. A volume in the series Sport and Society, edited by Benjamin G. Rader and Randy Roberts
The legendary boxer’s personal photographer from 1977–1978 shares fascinating stories and stunning rare photographs. Michael Gaffney traveled the world with Muhammad Ali, covered three fights, took eight thousand photographs, and produced hours of recordings that, pieced together in this book, define and reveal an authentic Ali. Poignant, funny, and brutally honest, this book reveals the struggles of the legendary fighter who fought to stay in the game he loved. This is a dramatic and up-close look at the trilogy of Ali’s fights from 1977–1978: A tough win against Earnie Shavers, a shocking loss to Leon Spinks, and a glorious redemptive comeback victory to win the World Heavyweight Championship for an unprecedented third time, a feat never accomplished before or since. Filled with dramatic photos, The Champ is also a compelling personal journey inside the good heart and courageous spirit of one of the most extraordinary people of our lifetime. “The Champ is one helluva achievement and one helluva book.” —Bert Randolph Sugar, Hall of Fame boxing historian
An engaging look at life and legacy of Muhammad Ali for readers of all ages Muhammad Ali was one of the world’s best-known figures, and this incredible biography delves into precisely why. From his unlikely beginnings as a skinny, young Cassius Clay learning to box at a local gym to becoming the heavyweight champion of the world at the famous “Rumble in the Jungle,” where even the skies let loose with rain right after his victory, Ali has captivated the world. Tonya Bolden’s careful research and elegant telling, paired with R. Gregory Christie’s incredible paintings, make this a book that will inform and inspire readers of all ages. "Bolden's engaging text has a free-verse structure punctuated with enthusiastic exclamations that is enjoyable to read aloud.... The illustrations are striking." —School Library Journal (Starred review)
Based on more than 500 interviews, including Muhammad Ali's closest associates, and enhanced by access to thousands of pages of newly released FBI records, this is a thrilling story of a man who became one of the great figures of the twentieth century.
"I am the greatest! I am the king!" Muhammad Ali was one of the most electrifying, inspiring, and confrontational athletes of his generation. At the height of his boxing career, Ali was as despised as he was adored. Loud and aggressive as well as confident and dedicated, he was the quintessential showman, the undeniable champion of his sport, and one of the most recognizable faces in the world. He was challenged at every turn: faced with racial discrimination in his everyday life, mocked by the sports media as his career began, ridiculed for adopting a new religion, and stripped by the U.S. government of his very livelihood for refusing to go to war. Muhammad Ali faced the obstacles in his life the way he faced his opponents in the ring, brashly and with all the force at his command. In his private life, he was also deeply spiritual, committed to standing up against social injustice, and steadfast in his beliefs. Featuring stunning illustrations and covering his entire life from childhood through his professional career to his end of life battle with Parkinson's Syndrome, this is a moving tribute to the legacy of this impressive figure.
“Rahaman has, at last, written the definitive biography on his late brother, which tells the real Ali story.” —Mike Tyson More words have been written about Muhammad Ali than almost anyone else. He was, without doubt, the world’s most-loved sportsman. At the height of his celebrity he was the most famous person in the world. And yet, until now, the one voice missing belonged to the man who knew him best—his only sibling, and best friend, Rahaman Ali. No one was closer to Ali than Rahaman. Born Cassius and Rudolph Arnett Clay, the two brothers grew up together, lived together, trained together, travelled together, and fought together in the street and in the ring. A near-constant fixture in his sibling’s company, Rahaman saw Ali at both his best and his worst: the relentless prankster and the jealous older brother, the outspoken advocate, the husband and father. In My Brother, Muhammad Ali, Rahaman offers an insider's perspective on the well-known stories as well as never-before-told tales, painting a rich and intimate portrait of a proud, relentlessly polarizing, yet often vulnerable man. In this extraordinary, poignant memoir, Rahaman tells a much bigger and more personal story than in any other book on Muhammad Ali—that of two brothers, almost inseparable from birth to death. It is the final and most important perspective on an iconic figure.
One of the most recognisable, respected and inspirational men on earth, Muhammad Ali is the world's most famous boxing hero. Ali brought unprecedented speed and grace to the sport, and his charm and wit changed forever what the world expects of a champion athlete. In the words of over two hundred of Ali's family members, associates, opponents, friends and enemies, this comprehensive and honest portrait relates his legendary sporting accomplishments, as well as the high drama of life outside the boxing ring. From Olympic gold in Rome, to stunning victory over George Foreman in Zaire, every historic victory and defeat of Ali's career is covered. His controversial embrace of the Nation of Islam - with the renunciation of his 'slave name', Cassius Clay - and the historic refusal to be inducted into the US Army makes for compelling reading. Ali became America's first national conscientious objector, and with a willingness to stage his fights in Third World locales, he continued his advocacy for people in need which was honoured in 2000 when he became a United Nations Messenger of Peace. Charismatic, dedicated and a skilful self-publicist, Ali is the living embodiment of the American Dream. This is the biography to match his achievements.
GOAT - GREATEST OF ALL TIME: A Tribute to Muhammad Ali "... the biggest, heaviest, most radiant thing ever printed in the history of civilization. - Der Spiegel, Hamburg, October 6, 2003 Muhammad Ali is one of the most remarkable personalities of our time and the greatest sportsman ever to walk the earth. To honor this living legend, TASCHEN has created a work that is epic in scale and as unique and vibrant as the man himself. A worthy tribute to his life should reflect the scale of his achievements, and GOAT - GREATEST OF ALL TIME is fully up to that task: The Collector's Edition: No. 1,001 - 10,000 The "Collector's Edition" shows Ali's torso with pink lettering. Limited to 9,000 individually numbered copies, each one signed by Muhammad Ali and Jeff Koons. Every "Collector's Edition" comes with the photo-litho Radial Champs by Jeff Koons in the size 50 x 40 cm (20" x 16"). Over 3,000 images - photographs, art and memorabilia, much of it published for the first time - from over 150 photographers and artists. Original essays and the best interviews and writing on the Champ of the last five decades, from hundreds of writers, totaling 600,000 words. XXL-format: 792 pages, including two gatefold sequences measuring 200 cm x 50 cm (80" x 20") and nine gold-metallic double-page spreads printed in silkscreen, open each chapter. Measuring 50 cm x 50 cm (20" x 20"), GOAT tips the scales at 34 kgs (75 lbs). Each copy comes in a silk-covered box illustrated with Neil Leifer's iconic 1966 photo, Ali vs Williams. Bound by the official bindery for the Vatican, in pink leather, the color of Ali's first Cadillac. The bindery, specializing in the most elaborate and oversized editions of the Bible and the Koran, enforces the strictest standards of quality control and only several hundred copies can be assembled per week. Utilizing state-of-the-art digital technology, no expense has been spared to restore the original photographic materials to the highest possible standards. The results of this effort create unparalleled intensity and range in the colors, and exquisite tone and density within the duotone images. Eight-color printing on Galaxi Keramik 200 gsm semi-matte paper with gloss varnish on all images. Prioritized delivery of GOAT has started in the Spring of 2004. As copies are completed they will ship to customers in the order in which the pre-orders were received. "Full of stunning, never seen before photographs and articles, GOAT will fairly take your breath away with its sheer beauty and size. The book is a must-have collector's item." --In Press, Manila, on GOAT
I Shook Up the World is an illustrated tribute to Muhammad Ali written by his oldest daughter, Maryum. The book tells Ali’s story from the beginning to the present—how he started boxing, earned an Olympic Gold Medal, won the heavyweight championship, worked for civil rights, and made a principled stand against the Vietnam War. Ali’s trademark rhyming, a joy to him and the bane of his opponents, in interspersed throughout the “rounds” (chapters). Young readers will appreciate Patrick Johnson’s colorful illustrations and the introduction provided by the great man himself. A historical timeline of Ali’s life is included.
