Synopses & Reviews
andlt;Bandgt;FRANK SINATRA FAWNED OVER HIM. WARREN ZEVON WROTE A TRIBUTE SONG. andlt;/Bandgt;Sylvester Stallone produced his life story as a movie of the week. In the 1980s, Ray and#8220;Boom Boomand#8221; Mancini wasnand#8217;t merely the lightweight champ. An adoring public considered him a national hero, the andlt;Iandgt;real andlt;/Iandgt;Rocky. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;From the mobbed-up steel city of Youngstown, Ohio, Mancini was cast as the savior of a sport: a righteous kid in a corrupt game, symbolically potent and demographically perfect, the last white ethnic. He fought for those left behind in busted-out mill towns across America. But most of all, he fought for his father. Lenny Manciniand#8212;the andlt;Iandgt;original andlt;/Iandgt;Boom Boom, as he was calledand#8212;had been a lightweight contender himself. But the elder Manciniand#8217;s dream ended on a battlefield in November 1944, when fragments from a German mortar shell nearly killed him. Almost four decades later, Ray promised to win the title his father could not. What came of that vow was a feel-good fable for network television. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;But it all came apart November 13, 1982, in a brutal battle at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Manciniand#8217;s obscure Korean challenger, Duk Koo Kim, went down in the 14th round and never regained consciousness. Three months later, Kimand#8217;s despondent mother took her own life. The deaths would haunt Ray and ruin his carefully crafted image, suddenly transforming boxingand#8217;s All-American Boy into a pariah. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Now, thirty years after that nationally televised bout, Mark Kriegel finally uncovers the storyand#8217;s full dimensions. In tracking the Mancini and Kim families across generations, Kriegel exacts confessions and excavates mysteriesand#8212;from the killing of Manciniand#8217;s brother to the fate of Kimand#8217;s son. In scenes both brutal and tender, the narrative moves from Youngstown to New York, Vegas to Seoul, Reno to Hollywood, where the inevitably romantic andlt;Iandgt;idea andlt;/Iandgt;of a fighter comes up against reality. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;With the vivid style and deep reporting that have earned him renown as a biographer, Kriegel has written a fast-paced epic. andlt;Iandgt;The Good Son andlt;/Iandgt;is an intimate history, a saga of fathers and fighters, loss and redemption.
Review
and#8220;Our American literary tradition happily disregards the intellectuals and cherishes the sportswriters. As we should, for the great sportswriter combines the fanand#8217;s love of American Culture with the scribeand#8217;s intuition of tragedy. Or, as Red Smith, Damon Runyon, or Bill Heinz might have put it: and#8216;Kriegel does for Boom Boom what Margaret Mitchell did for the Civil War.and#8217;and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; andlt;bandgt;and#8212;David Mametandlt;/bandgt;
Review
and#8220;Itand#8217;s easy to say andlt;iandgt;The Good Sonandlt;/iandgt; will go down as one of the great boxing books of all time. But in telling the story of Ray (Boom Boom) Mancini, Mark Kriegel has accomplished something beyond sports. His book is, put simply, a masterpiece; an ode to father-son relationships, to the drive and makeup of champions; to what it is to experience the high of a world championship and the low of watching an opponent die in the ring. Thereand#8217;s a reason Kriegel is one of Americaand#8217;s elite biographers. andlt;iandgt;The Good Sonandlt;/iandgt; is spectacular.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; andlt;bandgt;and#8212;Jeff Pearlman, andlt;iandgt;New York Times andlt;/iandgt;bestselling author of andlt;iandgt;Sweetness: The Enigmatic Life of Walter Paytonandlt;/iandgt; andlt;/bandgt;
Review
and#8220;As told by Mark Kriegel, the true tale of Boom Boom Mancini is one of blood and spirit, of the ghosts bequeathed from fathers to sons, from pugilists to their progeny. If andlt;iandgt;The Good Sonandlt;/iandgt; is a sports book, itand#8217;s the best Iand#8217;ve ever read. Either way, in any genre, it is masterful storytelling.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; andlt;bandgt;and#8212;David Milchandlt;/bandgt;
Review
"A bloody, beautiful elegy to hard-won manhood, andlt;iandgt;The Good Son andlt;/iandgt;is a great read. Kriegel, one of America's best writers, is every bit as fierce and fearless as his subject." andlt;BRandgt; andlt;bandgt;and#8212;Scott Raab, author of andlt;iandgt;The Whore of Akronandlt;/iandgt; and andlt;iandgt;Esquireandlt;/iandgt; Writer at Largeandlt;/bandgt;
Review
andlt;iandgt;and#8220;The Good Sonandlt;/iandgt; is muscular, literary sportswriting at its best, which is what we've come to expect from Mark Kriegel. But it's also much, much more. Here is the story not just of the rise and fall of a great prizefighter from a hard-luck industrial townand#8212;rendered, throughout, with tremendous heartand#8212;but of fathers and sons, (and brothers), of America's hunger for mythic heroes, of the tragic collision of two lives. It's a slender, yet epic book, as graceful, layered and achingly intimate as the finest novel.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; andlt;bandgt;and#8212;Jonathan Mahler, author of andlt;/bandgt;andlt;iandgt;andlt;bandgt;Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx Is Burningandlt;BRandgt; andlt;/bandgt;andlt;/iandgt;
Review
"Honestly, it's simply not possible to write a better bookand#8212;sports, non-sports, fiction, non-fictionand#8212;than andlt;Iandgt;The Good Son,andlt;/Iandgt; Mark Kriegel's remarkable biography of Boom Boom Mancini, which is by equal turns uplifting, heartbreaking, cautionary and redemptive. And impossible to put down."and#8211;and#8211;andlt;Bandgt;Mike Vaccaro, andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;Bandgt;andlt;Iandgt;New York Postandlt;/Iandgt; columnistandlt;/Bandgt;
Review
"Kriegel is a meticulous researcher and gifted interviewer, and, in this stirring biography, the joy and tragedy experienced by the Mancini family is palpableand#8212;never more than in the account of a meeting between Kimand#8217;s son and Ray 30 years after Kim died at Rayand#8217;s hand. Kriegel picks his subjects carefully and does them justice. Can there be higher praise for a biographer?"and#8211;and#8211;andlt;Bandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Booklist, andlt;/Iandgt;starred reviewandlt;/Bandgt;
Review
"Kriegel's smoothly written biography tells the story of a rust belt hero whose boxing career was marred by tragedy in the ring.
Review
"Masterful." < -="" b="" -=""> - < -="" i="" -=""> - Los Angeles Times - < -="" -=""> - < -="" -="">
Review
"Superb." < -="" i="" -=""> - < -="" b="" -=""> - Boston Globe - < -="" -=""> - < -="" -="">
Review
"The best sports biographer we have today." < -="" b="" -=""> - < -="" i="" -=""> - The Buffalo News - < -="" -=""> - < -="" -="">
Review
“A timeless mythic tale of fathers and sons . . . Kriegel’s reporting is impeccable, his passion muted but no less heartfelt for that. It takes one hell of a writer—period—to handle so rich a mix of manhood, legacy, and blood sport with such grace.” Scott Raab, Esquire, Best Books of the Year
Review
“An absorbing blend of psychological drama and fearless reportage, Kriegel deconstructs the sprawling consequences of that fateful day at Caesars Palace, driving at the heart of where the heady romanticism and stark reality of the cruelest sport converge.” Sports Illustrated, Best Books of the Year
Review
“With The Good Son, Kriegel plays a long shot and wins a unanimous decision. . . . Kriegel knows how to set up a good emotional punch, and plays on the major themes of Mancini’s life like a master novelist.” Allen Barra, Chicago Tribune
Review
“Goes so deep into the history and entanglement of the dysfunctional and violence-based immigrant Mancini family and the men who strived to make their mark within it, that it reads like something Dostoyevsky might have served up, had he been a modern-day sportswriter.” < -="" b="" -=""> - < -="" i="" -=""> - Chicago Sun Times - < -="" -=""> - < -="" -="">
Review
"Kriegeland#8217;s smoothly written biography tells the story of a rust belt hero whose boxing career was marred by tragedy in the ring. . . . as a saga of two families dealing with hardship and violent death, this boxing history is completely engaging."and#8211;and#8211;andlt;Iandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Publishers Weeklyandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;/Iandgt;
Synopsis
From the bestselling, critically acclaimed author of Namath and Pistol comes another remarkable biography--the life of Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini.
FRANK SINATRA FAWNED OVER HIM. WARREN ZEVON WROTE A TRIBUTE SONG. Sylvester Stallone produced his life story as a movie of the week. In the 1980s, Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini wasn't merely the lightweight champ. An adoring public considered him a national hero, the real Rocky.
From the mobbed-up steel city of Youngstown, Ohio, Mancini was cast as the savior of a sport: a righteous kid in a corrupt game, symbolically potent and demographically perfect, the last white ethnic. He fought for those left behind in busted-out mill towns across America. But most of all, he fought for his father. Lenny Mancini--the original Boom Boom, as he was called--had been a lightweight contender himself. But the elder Mancini's dream ended on a battlefield in November 1944, when fragments from a German mortar shell nearly killed him. Almost four decades later, Ray promised to win the title his father could not. What came of that vow was a feel-good fable for network television.
But it all came apart November 13, 1982, in a brutal battle at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Mancini's obscure Korean challenger, Duk Koo Kim, went down in the 14th round and never regained consciousness. Three months later, Kim's despondent mother took her own life. The deaths would haunt Ray and ruin his carefully crafted image, suddenly transforming boxing's All-American Boy into a pariah.
Now, thirty years after that nationally televised bout, Mark Kriegel finally uncovers the story's full dimensions. In tracking the Mancini and Kim families across generations, Kriegel exacts confessions and excavates mysteries--from the killing of Mancini's brother to the fate of Kim's son. In scenes both brutal and tender, the narrative moves from Youngstown to New York, Vegas to Seoul, Reno to Hollywood, where the inevitably romantic idea of a fighter comes up against reality.
With the vivid style and deep reporting that have earned him renown as a biographer, Kriegel has written a fast-paced epic. The Good Son is an intimate history, a saga of fathers and fighters, loss and redemption.
Synopsis
From the bestselling, critically acclaimed author of Namath and Pistol comes another remarkable biography—the life of Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini. In the early 1980s, Mancini was more than the lightweight champ. He was a national hero. Sinatra fawned over him. Warren Zevon wrote a tribute song. Sylvester Stallone produced his life story as a movie of the week. After all, an adoring public considered Boom Boom the real Rocky. Lenny Mancini—the original Boom Boom, as he was known—had been a lightweight contender himself before fragments of German mortar shell almost killed him in 1944. By winning the championship just as he vowed—for his wounded father—Ray produced his own feel-good fable for network television.
But it all came apart in a brutal 1982 battle against an obscure Korean challenger. Deuk Koo Kim lost consciousness in the fourteenth round and died within days. Three months later, his despondent mother took her own life. The deaths would haunt Ray and ruin his image, turning boxing’s All-American Boy into a pariah. Now, thirty years later, Kriegel finally uncovers the story’s full dimensions, tracking the Mancini and Kim families across generations and excavating mysteries—from the killing of Mancini’s brother to the fate of Kim’s son. Even as the scenes move from Youngstown to New York, Las Vegas to Seoul, Reno to Hollywood, The Good Son remains an intimate history, a saga of fathers and fighters, loss and redemption.
About the Author
andlt;Bandgt;Mark Kriegel andlt;/Bandgt;is the author of two critically acclaimed bestsellers, andlt;iandgt;Namath: A Biographyandlt;/iandgt; and andlt;iandgt;Pistol: The Life of Pete Maravichandlt;/iandgt;. He is a veteran columnist and a commentator for the NFL Network. He lives with his daughter, Holiday, in Santa Monica, California.