Reviews
"Finally Muhammad Ali has a biography as big, complex, and memorable as the man himself--or as close as any book can come. From panoramic views of Ali''s place in racial, political, and cultural conflicts, to gripping accounts of his fights, to vivid close-ups of his outsized personality and relationships based on new sources, Ali will fascinate you from beginning to end." --T.J. Stiles, author of Custer''s Trials and The First Tycoon "Some people want to grow up to be an astronaut. Or maybe even president. Or heavyweight champion of the world. I always wanted to be a storyteller. The hardest story to tell is one that''s been told and told well before. In Ali , Jonathan Eig, a fearless reporter, as relentless on his turf as Muhammad Ali ever was within the ring, has taken on one of 20th century America''s biggest, baddest, most important stories and told it bigger and badder than it''s ever been told before. Ali: A Life floats like a butterfly and stings likes a bee. Stop the fight. It''s over. Eig in a knockout." --Jane Leavy, author of Sandy Koufax and The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America''s Childhood " Ali is a marvelous biography - deeply reported, illuminating, dripping with detail chapter after chapter--in every way worthy of one of the great figures of 20th century America." -- David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi "Finally, after so many works focusing on this fight or that, the whole man, the whole life, is presented here. And what a revelation it is--to be able to see how this remarkable man was shaped by his world, and how that world was, in turn, profoundly influenced by this exceptional and complicated kid from Louisville. Bravo!" --Ken Burns "A warm, compelling portrait of a winsomely enduring man. Eig''s richly impressive roster of interviews informs an authoritatively critical biography that is both punchy and sure-footed." -- David J. Garrow, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Bearing the Cross and Rising Star "Jonathan Eig''s Ali is a tour de force! It is an independent, insightful and masterful assessment of ''The Greatest!'' Eig''s biography puts flesh and bone on Ali''s fuller humanity. It is a must read for sports fans, boxing fans, students of American history, culture and religion." --Dr. Randal Maurice Jelks, author of Benjamin Elijah Mays, Schoolmaster of the Movement "A monumental study the scope of which has not been matched. An utterly absorbing and richly detailed account of the most charismatic and controversial athlete of the 20th century." --Mike Silver, author of The Arc of Boxing "Eig''s revelatory bio traces the late boxer''s path from pariah to national treasure." -- People , The Best Books of Fall "Drawing on interviews with Muhammad Ali''s friends, family, and colleagues--as well as recently discovered recordings from the 1960s and extensive FBI files--Eig tells the life story of the legendary boxer, political radical, and hero in all its complexity." -- Entertainment Weekly , Fall''s 20 Must-Read Books "This hefty biography may be the deepest dive yet into the life of Muhammad Ali." -- AARP , 12 New Books for Fall "An appropriately outsized--and first-rate--biography . . . Eig does a fine job of covering all the bases . . . An exemplary life of an exemplary man who, despite a few missteps, deserves to be remembered long into the future." -- Kirkus Reviews , starred review "This evenhanded account will likely be one of the most read . . . Eig has produced a thorough overview of a complex person . . .Sharp quotations and expert pacing make the 600-plus pages light on their feet." -- Publishers Weekly, "Finally Muhammad Ali has a biography as big, complex, and memorable as the man himself--or as close as any book can come. From panoramic views of Ali''s place in racial, political, and cultural conflicts, to gripping accounts of his fights, to vivid close-ups of his outsized personality and relationships based on new sources, Ali will fascinate you from beginning to end." --T.J. Stiles, author of Custer''s Trials and The First Tycoon "Some people want to grow up to be an astronaut. Or maybe even president. Or heavyweight champion of the world. I always wanted to be a storyteller. The hardest story to tell is one that''s been told and told well before. In Ali , Jonathan Eig, a fearless reporter, as relentless on his turf as Muhammad Ali ever was within the ring, has taken on one of 20th century America''s biggest, baddest, most important stories and told it bigger and badder than it''s ever been told before. Ali: A Life floats like a butterfly and stings likes a bee. Stop the fight. It''s over. Eig in a knockout." --Jane Leavy, author of Sandy Koufax and The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America''s Childhood " Ali is a marvelous biography - deeply reported, illuminating, dripping with detail chapter after chapter--in every way worthy of one of the great figures of 20th century America." -- David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi "Finally, after so many works focusing on this fight or that, the whole man, the whole life, is presented here. And what a revelation it is--to be able to see how this remarkable man was shaped by his world, and how that world was, in turn, profoundly influenced by this exceptional and complicated kid from Louisville. Bravo!" --Ken Burns "A warm, compelling portrait of a winsomely enduring man. Eig''s richly impressive roster of interviews informs an authoritatively critical biography that is both punchy and sure-footed." -- David J. Garrow, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Bearing the Cross and Rising Star "Jonathan Eig''s Ali is a tour de force! It is an independent, insightful and masterful assessment of ''The Greatest!'' Eig''s biography puts flesh and bone on Ali''s fuller humanity. It is a must read for sports fans, boxing fans, students of American history, culture and religion." --Dr. Randal Maurice Jelks, author of Benjamin Elijah Mays, Schoolmaster of the Movement "A monumental study the scope of which has not been matched. An utterly absorbing and richly detailed account of the most charismatic and controversial athlete of the 20th century." --Mike Silver, author of The Arc of Boxing "Eig''s revelatory bio traces the late boxer''s path from pariah to national treasure." -- People , The Best Books of Fall "Drawing on interviews with Muhammad Ali''s friends, family, and colleagues--as well as recently discovered recordings from the 1960s and extensive FBI files--Eig tells the life story of the legendary boxer, political radical, and hero in all its complexity." -- Entertainment Weekly , Fall''s 20 Must-Read Books "An appropriately outsized--and first-rate--biography . . . Eig does a fine job of covering all the bases . . . An exemplary life of an exemplary man who, despite a few missteps, deserves to be remembered long into the future." -- Kirkus Reviews , starred review "This evenhanded account will likely be one of the most read . . . Eig has produced a thorough overview of a complex person . . .Sharp quotations and expert pacing make the 600-plus pages light on their feet." -- Publishers Weekly
