Ghosts of Manila

Ghosts of Manila

Mark Kram

New edition

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

An account of the dual lives of Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier and the long-running feud between them. Be prepared to have your previously held opinions challenged, then shattered, by this thought-provoking study. This title gives a dramatic insight into the 30-year feud between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. American sports journalist Mark Kram has spent nearly the same amount of time preparing to write this book - and the result is a piece of research and social history. When Ali and Frazier met in Manila for the third act of their trilogy of fights, their rivalry had spun out of control. More than a clash of personalities and fighting styles, the rivalry, inflamed by the media, took on overtones of politics and race. But in the aftermath of Manila the hype no longer mattered: one man was left with a ruin of a life; the other was battered to his soul. Frazier is now in an advanced state of blindness, still consumed by hate; Ali's once agile and powerful body is withered by the grip of Parkinson's disease. The book begins with the boxers themselves - who they are and were. They began as friends, with a genuine, if grudging, respect for each other.They were turned into enemies as much by pride as forces over which they had no control. Weaving together past and present, Kram explodes the hagiography surrounding both fighters, particularly Ali, and presents the reader with the rarest of literary achievements: a psychological study of two heroes, complete with the myths and the reality behind it all.

GST Note: GST is included in the price of this item. GST is included in the freight.