I'm A Little Special: A Muhammad Ali Reader - Softcover

Early, Gerald

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0224059459 ISBN 13: 9780224059459

Publisher: Yellow Jersey, 1999

Synopsis

I'm A Little Special: A Muhammad Ali Reader collects 30 of the best pieces ever written about this sporting legend in an anthology by the greatest about the Greatest. Muhammad Ali's story is told by a stellar array of authors, athletes and social commentators, all of them compelled to write about this amazing man.

In addition to pieces by Hunter S. Thompson, Tom Wolfe and Norman Mailer, Floyd Patterson defends Ali's right to criticise America's participation in the Vietnam War; Malcolm X explains how he went from 'entertainer' to 'threat' with his declaration as a 'man of race'; Ali himself contributes with some poetry in his famous interview with Playboy magazine; and Gay Talese gives us a front seat on the 1996 ride to Cuba where Ali met Fidel Castro.

Spanning four decades and including 16 pages of photographs, I'm A Little Special is the ultimate book about one of the true heroes of the twentieth century.

About this title

Review:

Muhammad Ali is still one of the best known figures in the world--a sports man, but seen by his fans and admirers as more--someone who ranks as one of the heroes of his generation.

Those who saw him fight talk of Ali with a dreamy look in their eyes, as if he was like nothing or nobody they had ever seen grace the canvas of the boxing ring before or after.

I'm A Little Special follows Ali's boxing career and life from his days as Cassius Clay in the 1960s to the slowed frame that we have seen in his later days as a shadow of his former self.

Magazine and newspaper articles of the time tell the story of a supreme boxer and talker, a world champion who believed--no, knew--that he was in his rightful place at the very top of the sport.

A variety of articles--news stories and features, observations and interviews--are threaded together to form a unique reading on boxing's most famous ambassador.

The book tells the story of a true superstar, but shows the slowing down of Ali through boxing-induced Parkinson's disease.

Articles are introduced chronologically and the tome includes writings from some of the world's most respected journalists and publications.

The differing styles of writing and the carefully selected and edited articles add a spice to the book and give the excellent collection a changing pace.

Gerald Early has shown through his choices--out of literally thousands of pieces written on the great showman--his respect and admiration of the man, not just the boxer, that is Muhammad Ali. --Andrea Thursday

Review:

"Here is a book littered with brilliant offerings from the finest writers in modern America- Tom Wolfe, Hunter S. Thompson, George Plimpton - to remind us that Ali was a giant, not just in boxing, but in life" (Jim White Guardian)

"Fighter, celebrity, draft dodger, activist, poet, victim, inspiration, champion - pick a year and choose a label. Muhammad Ali has been them all. With the excellent I'm A Little Special, Gerald Early sets out to reintrodcue some perspective to the myth that has grown up around the man" (Total Sport)

"Celebrate[s] Ali's extraordinary power without being dazzled by it... The pieces in I'm A Little Special offer variously interesting takes and out -takes on [his] artistry" (Geoff Dyer Guardian)

"Contemplative and reflective pieces... capturing different aspects of Ali and the conditions under which he came to prominence" (Observer)

About this edition

• Publisher: Yellow Jersey
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0224059459
• ISBN 13: 9780224059459
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320