The Boxing Kings

When American Heavyweights Ruled the Ring

By: Paul Beston

Narrated by: Alexander Cendese

The Boxing Kings tells the story of the heavyweight title in the days when it was a defining institution in the United States. Author Paul Beston places special emphasis on those champions who held a central place in American culture beyond just in the boxing ring, including John L. Sullivan, who made the title a commercial property; Jack Johnson, who in 1908 became the first black man to claim the title; Joe Louis, whose contributions to racial tolerance and social progress transcended even his greatness in the ring; Rocky Marciano, who became an embodiment of the American dream; Muhammad Ali, who took on the US government and revolutionized professional sports with his showmanship; and Mike Tyson, a hard-punching student of boxing history who exemplified the modern celebrity.

The gallery of champions also includes comics, dandies, bookworms, divas, ex-cons, workingmen, and a tough guy turned preacher. The Boxing Kings treats these and other champions as three-dimensional human beings, flawed but sympathetic men placed on great public stages. As the title shifts from one claimant to another, their stories also open a window into the larger history of the United States.

©2017 Paul Beston (P)2017 HighBridge, a Division of Recorded Books

Kings

I found this book to be a particularly very comprehensive. I truly enjoyed all the boxing Kings from the beginning of John l Sullivan. The book led up to Mike Tyson, and a very good book to the Sweet science.

Got me in the head, then the gut

A fantastic trip through the lineage of heavyweight champs, from Sullivan to Tyson. And while the greatest fights are told, there is also a lot about the personalities and history of each champ, and how they related to, or fought against, the times they lived in.

The narrator is perfect. I wish he narrated more books as well-written as this one. His talent is wasted on all those romance books (hard abs and fainting maidens on the cover)!

I love this book

I love this book. Reading it was so inspiring and got me through a hard time and re-ignited my love for boxing. It reads more like a novel than a biography. It’s captivating and I finished it in a week.

Heavyweight Boxing History

Absolutely loved this heavyweight boxing book!
If you're a wanna be boxing Heavyweight historian this book is perfect. Book gives one a big bang for the buck giving so many bios of champions in one book. Personally I purchased the Audible version. Narrator was excellent. Bio on each fighter was in-depth and at the same time moved along quickly. This book was so great I emailed the author and asked him if he would consider doing a middleweights boxing champions book also. The author was very polite and said he would consider it. I hope so!!!

Amazing collection of stories

This helped rekindle my love of Boxing, and especially the heavy weight title. It demonstrated how the sport mirrored and influenced American society. i loved all the stories about the Champions who's names we've heard.