The Longest Fight: In the Ring with Joe Gans, Boxing's First African American Champion
“A gem of a book . . . In lean prose, Gildea gives us a blow-by-blow account of Gans’s career. He pivots from describing the fight to exploring his subject’s life to examining the racism of the age and the contradictions of ‘sportsmanship’ that belittled blacks while making money off them.” —The Washington Post Book World “A biography of a champion who faced racial challenges at the turn of the 20th century that would presage those of a coming generation of athletic color-barrier breakers . . . Gildea makes a strong case for Gans as the pride of Black American before Johnson threw a punch.” —The Boston Globe “A memorable book about a time that should not be forgotten.” —The Economist “Knowledgeable fight fans know that Gans was the first American-born black champion and perhaps the most technically advanced fighter of his time . . . Now, thanks toThe Longest Fight, by William Gildea, Gans comes to life again.The Longest Fightwill enhance any reader’s appreciation and understanding of Gans. Gildea crafts a sense of time and place and a moving personal portrait of his subject.” —The Sweet Science “With fascinating period detail and skillful writing, the author highlights his subject’s considerable appeal and symbolic significance.” —Kirkus Reviews “Gildea gives full measure of Gans’ remarkable accomplishments as an athlete—Gans fought 196 matches while Tyson, for example, fought 58—while also showing Gans’ equally remarkable poise in the face of horrific prejudice, officially sanctioned or not, during his entire career. A strong title for any boxing collection.” —Alan Moores,Booklist “I vaguely knew the name Joe Gans, but Gildea introduces us to the man and the era, the early twentieth century. Gans was so good and so dignified that some white boxing fans of that time actually managed to get past their blatant prejudices and detect his humanity. Gildea has done masterful research and writing, recalling a gold-rush outpost in rural Nevada, where in 1906 Gans staged an epic fight-to-the-finish with Battling Nelson. The match itself is re-created excellently, but I liked even better the way Gildea presents the details of the time—what people ate, how they traveled, how whites and blacks interacted in daily life.” —George Vecsey, author ofStan Musial: An Americal Life“Before Jack Johnson, there was Joe Gans. William Gildea’s deep knowledge of boxing, his wonderful storytelling skills, and his love of Baltimore and of unappreciated characters makeThe Longest Fighta terrific read. It’s a championship book.” —David Maraniss, Pulitzer Prize–winning author ofWhen Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi“William Gildea has written a touching tribute to a boxer from long ago who’s largely been forgotten. Anybody who reads this fine book, though, will always remember Joe Gans.” —Frank Deford, author ofOver Time: My Life as a Sportswriter“William Gildea’sThe Longest Fightis a nifty and informative biography of one of the most important fighters of early-twentieth-century America: Joe Gans. A story of race, the sporting world, and masculinity in the Progressive Era,The Longest Fightwill be of interest not only to boxing devotees but to students of African American studies, American studies, and American industrialism.” —Gerald Early, Merle Kling Professor of Modern Letters, Washington University in St. Louis, and editor ofThe Muhammad Ali Reader