Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times by Thomas Hauser

Only about a quarter of the book was written by the author. The rest was excerpts of interviews with people who Ali knew and with Ali himself. Basically it was a collection of interview excerpts arranged in a logical order.

One of the most eye opening parts of the book was how much it taught me about the Nation of Islam. I had no idea of the extent of the black supremacy that was part of it. Even though Ali later changed his views I was surprised at his stance on segregation early on.

No one had anything bad to say about Ali, and I guess that’s ok as long as you remember this is a book more about celebrating his achievements than an accurate historical account.

I am a martial artist but boxing is not my preferred discipline. I keep half an eye on what’s currently going on in the boxing world, but I don’t know a lot of boxing history. I think someone who knew nothing of the boxing world could read this and not be lost in the history and terminology of the sport, yet those of us who do have some understanding were still able to gain some new information from it.

What comes through strongly from the interviews with Ali and others is that he really is a kind, caring and gentle person. The trash talk and the showboating were all part of him too, but a very specific part. At his core he just enjoys seeing people happy, even if it means he suffers for it.

This book was written in 1991, only 10 years after he finally retired from boxing. During that 10 years his health had deteriorated but he had made a life for himself outside of the ring. It was quite sad to read it with the future knowledge of how bad his physical condition would become over the next 25 years. In 1991 there was still an air of hope and optimism that this was as bad as it would get and it could be managed with medication. Still, he lived to age 74, which is a long life, it’s just sad that he had to suffer the physical ramifications of the choices he made in the first half of his life.

There were many doctors quoted throughout the book who claimed that Ali’s physical ailments were not a consequence of his boxing. The eventual consensus was opposite, and finally doctors did admit that boxing was, if not the whole cause, then at least a major factor. I just found it so sad that many people suggested that the early signs they were seeing of his decline were caused by boxing, yet little effort was made to do anything about it. Knowing more about Ali’s personality I doubt that anyone could have stopped him, but no one really even tried.

I enjoyed reading this book, and I think I’m glad that I read it after his death. If I’d read it before I don’t think I would have taken in as much and I wouldn’t have had as much respect for all his achievements.

4 out of 5 strong left hooks.

Have you read Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times? Leave me a comment and let me know what you thought!