Falling Hard: A Rookie's Year in Boxing [Hardcover]

Chris Jones (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 3, 2002

Rookie reporter Chris Jones had no idea what he was getting himself into when he decided boxing would be his sports beat. In his first year ringside, the sport crept inside him, setting his heart pumping one minute and breaking it the next, making him stare at the violence-in himself and others-and daring him not to flinch. Jones gets dressed down by Don King, interviews the troubled guy who found Holyfield's ear, crashes Ali's birthday party, and watches Prince Naseem explode while Tyson implodes. Equal parts victory and defeat, FALLING HARD is an intoxicating mix of boxing distilled to its essence.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In a mixed effort, Toronto-based Jones chronicles a year of professional fights and learning the ropes as a neophyte ringside newspaper reporter for the newly formed National Post. In what is always a dicey move, he places himself squarely in the focus of his story. Rather than yielding interesting results, the exercise becomes a distraction that strays into a nuisance. Covering his first fight, Jones quotes a promoter saying that no matter what happens, the event will make his boxer "a bigger player." Jones adds, "Yes, I agree. Me too." Add to this photos of Jones's press credentials at the beginnings of chapters, a prevalent sense of awe at actually being a boxing writer and even a scene where Jones scolds Eddie Murphy for interrupting him and the self-absorption becomes tiresome. Jones's strength lies in his reporting skills, and he uses them aptly to paint vivid character portraits of the boxers, giving readers a vested interest in his descriptions of their bouts. But those descriptions themselves often lack solidity, as if Jones is still feeling the pinch of column inches instead of using the opportunity of a book to explore and elaborate. He writes, "The action is desperate. Both fighters consent to furious exchanges. Lefts and rights batter heads and bellies." At other times, the writing is much more effective, particularly when Jones ruminates on his first trip to Las Vegas and the sorry decline of Mike Tyson. Despite its flaws, the book offers enough flourishes of this kind and behind-the-scenes details to entice a fan of the sport to go the distance.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Having fallen into an unplanned career in journalism with the newly created Toronto National Post and then been placed in the sports department, Jones decided to hitch his young star to boxing and ride it to his destiny. Not unlike a legion of boxers who "coulda been contendahs," in his year covering the sport he discovered that while it has the ability to enthrall, even to uplift, it has a more than equal capacity to bring down, to break dreams and lives. Jones discovered in that short time that not only doesn't the good guy always win but often the right guy doesn't even win when judges' decisions are involved. Unlike many a boxer who hangs on for one fight too many, he left the boxing beat after a memorable year that included encounters with, in addition to some famous champions and promoters, the man who found part of Evander Holyfield's ear. This is not intended to be an expos of the sport, just a very personal and often entertaining account of boxing's power to seduce and betray. Recommended for all medium to large public libraries. Jim Burns, Jacksonville P.L., FL
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 190 pages
• Publisher: Arcade Publishing; 1st Us Edition edition (April 3, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155970621X
• ISBN-13: 978-1559706216
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,211,542 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Short But Not Sweet, September 8, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Falling Hard: A Rookie's Year in Boxing (Hardcover)

Chris Jones showed the signs of a decent writer in this short book.I found it worth a read but it could have been better had he shown more depth.This ingredient could be found with a writer of some maturity.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars An Amatuer Attempt...A Boxing Neophyte, January 20, 2006

By 

Tropicalwolf "Freelance Writer" (Ohio, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Falling Hard: A Rookie's Year in Boxing (Hardcover)

Just because one is a sportswriter does not mean that they can cover all sports accurately. Not all sports have the same depth or the same level of needed understanding. It is all the worse when a sport is covered by someone who had neither a passion for the sport nor any intellectual interest in the sport. Chris Jones really doesn't have any knowledge of the history of boxing that delves deeper than a previous short newspaper clip or a 30 second sound byte.

It would be nice if this author would attempt to write at least one complete sentence. How about an attempt not to use "sportswriter" jargon or "present slang". A professional examination of this topic would have been much more digestible.

Latching onto the "feel good" character of Otis Grant was sad. The author only attempted to understand his history AFTER his assignment was given. Then he paints Mr. Grant as a helpless figure who is abused and tormented by the evil world of boxing. Oh yeah, forget that Otis Grant loved boxing...

This is a read for those with a short attention span and no interest in the true history/reality of boxing. If you like boxing...and good writing...it will just make you sick.