Book Review of &Ldquo;king of The World”

Fist of solidarity, revelation to win, and watching each boxer eyeing the opposition as the bull’s eye to the target. This is my analysis of the novel, “King of the World” by David Remnick, who also received the “Pulitzer Prize” for this book and many others that followed and before.  The novel was a fine piece of precision and emotion in the accounts of punches and blows along with the sounding of the bell and the cheering from the audience in their favorite boxer in encouragement in being the victor.

The  focus was on Cassius Clay also known as Muhammad Ali with defeating two famous boxers by the names of Sonny Liston and Floyd Patterson. During the boxing in the ring, you could feel the agonizing moments and commotion of the fights with punches at the speed of pistols in fist strength aiming at the opponent.  It meant eyeing the opponents every move with detail in the timing of the pitch punch with tone into victory.

Cassius Clay as he was called before changing the classification into Muhammad Ali. He would practice at various gyms across the country to make his sucker punch his trademark and excellence in craftsmanship. He focused on being the greatest and stinging like a bee as he often stated at press conferences. Mr. Clay portrayed himself as the bee in knowing the challenger’s weak points in bringing them in the ring in a honey cone style with the right sting. He was coached by Angelo Dundee and some investment made by Italian partners. There was money at stake in Ali, and had to win otherwise, blood shed would have transpired into sacrifice of fate.

Cassius Clay began to travel to Egypt and at the request of Elijah Muhammad of the Muslim faith. Cassius got a fond account of what the world was truly like along with the prejudice’s that was being felt in the United States. It was heritage and proud to be a black man, and not the way society portrayed as America that wasn’t.

Cassius hadn’t yet joined the Muslims, but was strongly thinking about it. It wasn’t until he met Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz, Malcolm X’s wife and later widow. When the fight for civil rights was turning into a battle of war against all races of life. This in turn persuaded Cassius Clay to join the Muslim religion and convert his name to Muhammad Ali and follow the laws of Allah. This also forced Mr. Ali to denounce the draft for Vietnam, and was up on deep prosecution in his fight to keep from going into war with a cause in his own right. After all, he was already fighting a war in Racism, and with the Muslim faith, why would he go to war and he was standing by the principles of his belief and how the Muslim religion disapproves on war period. This book reviewer of this article had the honor and pleasure to be lectured by Dr. Betty Shabazz, widow of Malcolm X in a health class at Medgar Evers College, a CUNY unit.

Victory did find its way into the history books of Muhammad Ali’s boxing era accomplishments, and later retiring from the ring. However, he is suffering from Parkinson’s Disease which he was been battling for several years, but is yet holding on.

Sonny Liston had died and decreed that after his death, he wanted to pass through the Las Vegas strip one last time. The hearsh maneuvered through the strip for all to pay their final respects and say their final goodbyes. After, the hearsh proceeded to Parade Memorial Gardens where Sonny Liston was laid to rest in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The punches have sailed from ring side to the sunsets with tomorrow morning’s sunrise in a new Great White Hope of opponents and aspiring new Boxers taking the spotlight where Ali left off. A punch from the heavens with a toast of new challengers too come. Please don’t disappoint, as the raw from the audience calls, a mission which is unfinished with expected excellence, and the eye on the prize with commitment in entirety and with the saga of fulfillment in the boxers hands. “It is how they are prepared for the fight and delight in seeing the light”.