Reviews and recommendations of boxing books, featuring tomes from Wales and the rest of the wider boxing world.
Welsh boxing books
- Ron Berry, “So Long Hector Bebb” (Parthian, Library of Wales, Cardigan, 2006; first published 1970)
- Rick Broadbent, “The Big If: The life and death of Johnny Owen” (Macmillan, London, 2006)
- Jeff Burns, “Swansea Boxers, 1916-2010” (Llandybie, 2011)
- Enzo Calzaghe and Michael Pearlman, “Enzo Calzaghe: A Fighting Life” (Great Northern Books, 2012)
- Joe Calzaghe with Brian Doogan, “No Ordinary Joe” (Century, London, 2007)
- Alexander Cordell, “Peerless Jim” (Hooder and Stoughton, London, 1984)
- Alex Daley, Nipper: The Amazing Story of Boxing’s Wonderboy (TPD Associates, 2011)
- Lawrence Davies, “Mountain Fighters: Lost tales of Welsh boxing” (Peerless Press, Cardiff, 2011)
- Fred Deakin, “Peerless Jim Driscoll: The original Welsh wizard, a biography” (Crescendo Publications, Stone, Staffs, 1987)
- George M Evans, “A Bagful of Monkeys” (Llanrwst, 2004)
- Andrew Gallimore, “Occupation: Prizefighter” (Seren, Bridgend, 2006)
- Gareth Harris, “Jim Driscoll: The Peerless One” (Pontypridd, 2000)
- Brian Hughes, “Reaching for the Stars: The Howard Winstone Phenomenon” (Collyhurst and Moston Lads Club, 2005)
- Gareth Jones, “The Boxers of Wales: Volume One, Cardiff” (Cardiff, 2009)
- Gareth Jones, “The Boxers of Wales: Volume Two, Merthyr, Aberdare and Pontypridd” (Cardiff, 2011)
- Gareth Jones, “The Boxers of Wales: Volume Three, Rhondda” (St David’s Press, Cardiff, 2012)
- Gareth Jones, “The Boxers of Wales: Volume Four, Swansea and Llanelli” (St David’s Press, Cardiff, 2015)
- Graeme Kent, “A Welshman in the Bronx: Tommy Farr vs Joe Louis” (Llandysul, 2009)
- Tony Lee, “All in my Corner: A tribute to some forgotten Welsh boxing heroes” (Ammanford, 2009)
- Bob Lonkhurst, “Gentleman of the Ring: The life and career of Jack Petersen” (Potters Bar, 2001)
- Bob Lonkhurst, “Man of Courage: The Life and Career of Tommy Farr” (The Book Guild, Lewes, Sussex, 1997)
- Jeff Murphy, “Johnny Owen” (Mainstream Publishing, Edinburgh, 2004)
- Michael Pearlman, “Team Calzaghe” (Accent Press, Bedlinog, 2010)
- Michael Prestage, “Celtic Fists” (Breedon Books, Derby, 1997)
- Alan Roderick, “Johnny!: Story of the Happy Warrior” (Heron Press, Newport, 1990)
- Peter Stead and Gareth Williams (eds.), “Wales and its Boxers: The Fighting Tradition” (Cardiff, 2008)
- Jimmy Wilde, “Fighting Was My Business” (Robson Books, London, 1970; first published 1938)
- Jimmy Wilde, “Hitting and Stopping: How I won 100 fights” (Peerless Press, Cardiff, 2012)
Books including Welsh boxing angles
- Ken Buchanan, “The Tartan Legend” (London, 2000)
- Chris Eubank with Martin Roach, “Chris Eubank: The Autobiography” (London, 2003)
- George Foreman and Joel Engel, “By George: The Autobiography of George Foreman” (New York, 2000)
- Ronald K Fried, Corner Men: Great Boxing Trainers (Four Walls Eight Windows, New York, 1991)
- John Jarrett, “Champ in the Corner: The Ray Arcel story” (Stroud, 2007)
- Martin Johnes, “A History of Sport in Wales” (University of Wales Press, Cardiff, 2005)
- Daryl Leeworthy, “Fields of Play: The Sporting Heritage of Wales” (Gomer Press, Llandysul, 2012)
- Frank Maloney with Kevin Brennan, “No Baloney” (Edinburgh, 2003)
- Hugh McIlvanney, “The Hardest Game: McIlvanney on Boxing” (Edinburgh, 2001)
- Kevin Mitchell, “Jacobs Beach: The Mob, the Garden & the Golden Age of Boxing” (London, 2009)
- Ron Ross, “Nine… Ten… And Out!: The Two Worlds of Emile Griffith” (Bloomington, 2008)
- Budd Schulberg, “Ringside: A Treasury of Boxing Reportage” (Chicago, 2006)
- Bert Sugar and Teddy Atlas, “The Ultimate Book of Boxing Lists” (Running Press, Philadelphia, 2010)
- Russell Sullivan, “Rocky Marciano: The Rock of his Times” (Chicago, 2002)
General boxing books
- Michael Arkush, “The Fight of the Century: Ali vs Frazier, March 8, 1971” (New Jersey, 2007)
- Nigel Benn, “Nigel Benn” (London, 2010)
- James Carlos Blake, “The Killings of Stanley Ketchel” (New York, 2005)
- Jack Cavanaugh, “Tunney” (New York, 2006)
- Joe Frazier with Phil Berger, “Smokin’ Joe” (London, 1996)
- Andrew Gallimore, “Babyface Goes to Hollywood: The Jimmy McLarnin Story” (Dublin, 2009)
- Leonard Gardner, “Fat City” (Los Angeles, 1996)
- Christian Giudice, “Hands of Stone: The Life and Legend of Roberto Duran” (Reading, 2006)
- Thomas Hauser with Muhammad Ali, “Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times” (London, 1997)
- James S Hirsch, “Hurricane: The Life of Rubin Carter, fighter” (London, 2000)
- Evander Holyfield with Lee Gruenfeld, “Becoming Holyfield: A Fighter’s Journey” (New York, 2008)
- Oscar De La Hoya with Steve Springer, “American Son: My Story” (New York, 2008)
- Brian and Damian Hughes, “Hit Man: The Thomas Hearns Story” (Chatham, 2009)
- Chris Jones, “Falling Hard” (London, 2003)
- George Kimball, “Four Kings: Leonard, Hagler, Hearns, Duran and the Last Great Era of Boxing” (Edinburgh, 2008)
- Mark Kram, “Ghosts of Manila” (London, 2001)
- Joe Layden, “The Last Great Fight” (New York, 2007)
- Norman Mailer, “The Fight” (London, 1975)
- Clay Moyle, “Sam Langford: Boxing’s Greatest Uncrowned Champion” (Bennett & Hastings Publishing, Seattle, 2006)
- Steve Marantz, “Sorcery at Caesars: Sugar Ray’s Marvelous Fight” (Portland, 2008)
- Kevin Mitchell, “War Baby: The Glamour of Violence” (London, 2001)
- Jake La Motta, “Raging Bull” (Bantam Books, 1997)
- Sugar Ray Robinson with Dave Anderson, “Sugar Ray” (New York, 1992)
- Jeremy Schaap, “Cinderella Man” (London, 2005)
- Budd Schulberg, “Loser and Still Champion: Muhammad Ali” (London, 1972)
- Budd Schulberg, “The Harder they Fall” (1947)
- Rob Steen, “Sonny Liston” (London, 2008)
- Jose Torres and Bert Randolph Sugar, “Sting Like a Bee: The Muhammad Ali story” (New York, 2002)
- Geoffrey C Ward, “Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson” (Pimlico, 2006)
- Michael Watson with Steve Bunce, “The Biggest Fight: Michael Watson’s story” (London, 2004)
- Gary B Youmans, “The Onion Picker: Carmen Basilio and boxing in the 1950s” (New York, 2007)
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