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A review by nashwa017
Redemption Song: Muhammad Ali and the Spirit of the Sixties by Mike Marqusee
5.0
You know a nonfiction book is good when it not only informs you but challenges you, and forces you to look at resources beyond the scope of the book. That's what this book did for me. I knew about the fact that Muhammad Ali refused to enlist in the war in Vietnam but I knew that information without any context and this book set the scene for that, and made it clear why it was a politically charged and a controversial decision at the time.
This book not only focuses on Ali's defiance to the war but it discusses his change of religion and name, his allegiance to the Nation of Islam, his falling out with Malcolm X and being a global icon by standing in solidarity with the people of Vietnam. While the civil rights movement was taking place in the United States, the process of decolonisation was taking place in Africa, and Muhammad Ali became of great significance during that time especially with his actions outside the ring. It discusses his treatment by the American press and politicians alike, and how attitudes changed towards him once he returned to the ring after a three year ban, and later, as he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
This book also offers a history of boxing as a sport, how it used black athletes to make money for their white counterparts, without expressing any political inclination of their own. There is extensive commentary on the expectations from black athletes and how they should behave, in and out of the ring.
If you're looking for a book that details each fight of Ali's career, this one is not it. While it does talk about the political scenario and Ali's career trajectory as a whole, it sheds light on the most important fights of his career.
This book not only focuses on Ali's defiance to the war but it discusses his change of religion and name, his allegiance to the Nation of Islam, his falling out with Malcolm X and being a global icon by standing in solidarity with the people of Vietnam. While the civil rights movement was taking place in the United States, the process of decolonisation was taking place in Africa, and Muhammad Ali became of great significance during that time especially with his actions outside the ring. It discusses his treatment by the American press and politicians alike, and how attitudes changed towards him once he returned to the ring after a three year ban, and later, as he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
This book also offers a history of boxing as a sport, how it used black athletes to make money for their white counterparts, without expressing any political inclination of their own. There is extensive commentary on the expectations from black athletes and how they should behave, in and out of the ring.
If you're looking for a book that details each fight of Ali's career, this one is not it. While it does talk about the political scenario and Ali's career trajectory as a whole, it sheds light on the most important fights of his career.