BOOK REVIEW
Tracy Callis
A MAN AMONG MEN By Kelly Richard Nicholson
Kelly Richard Nicholson has published a fantastic book called A Man Among Men about the great heavyweight champion, Jim Jeffries. In a well-written manner, it covers the life experiences and ring battles of the famous fighter. It begins by introducing the fight game and early champions during the time when Jeffries was a youngster. Then, it traces the life and ring career of the Big Fellow into his later years after retiring from the ring.
Also, included is a chapter with various opinions of how great a fighter Jeffries was. In addition there is an appendix with his career record and another with additional views of Jeffries' skills - plus some philosophy on athletes and boxers. A Man Among Men is a fine read and contains some very nice photographs too.
I (Tracy Callis), as a boxing historian, have a number of ideas on how the all-time heavyweights would match up against each other and am pleased that Dr. Nicholson has included a number of my views in his work. Many boxing people and historians have strong views on Jeffries and some are included as well. This book is a wonderful reference for many facts of Jim Jeffries' career, is informative and is an important read for historians and fans.
Dr. Nicholson is a well-educated gentleman who writes in a relaxed style and has penned an extremely interesting account of Jim Jeffries. He has studied all the heavyweights of history and has a good feel as to how they would fare against one another. His boxing knowledge comes from his experience as an amateur boxer, years spent attending boxing contests, extensive reading of existing publications - boxing books, magazines, newspapers, microfilm, etc., and reviewing boxing films.
In addition, Kelly Nicholson is a world-traveled author and educator who has taught philosophy, English language, and integrated studies at the college level for most of the past 25 years. He received his Ph. D. in philosophy from the Claremont Graduate School in 1989 and has since written four acclaimed books on religion, metaphysics and moral philosophy.
His work in the academic area includes The Prospect of Immortality, Light on the Horizon, A Certain Mystery, and Body and Soul: The Transcendence of Materialism. He has lived and worked in China, Russia, and the Slovak Republic, as well as in his native Pacific Northwest and in the state of Utah. In 1998, he was a Visiting Fellow in philosophy and religious studies at the University of Wales, Lampeter.
During the 1970s, Kelly wrote feature articles for The Ring and Boxing Illustrated magazines and covered a good deal of fight action for The Ring in Oregon, Washington, and Nevada. A former firefighter and amateur boxer, he is a fan of boxing history and a collector of baseball and boxing memorabilia.
This very detailed book (ISBN: 0-9668911-4-7 , 187 pages , $29.95) can be ordered by contacting the author at knichols@raritanval.edu
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| A Man Among Men, Front Cover | |
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| A Man Among Men, Back Cover | |
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Callis description --
Jeffries is considered to be one of the
greatest heavyweights of all-time; He was not a polished boxer
but was blessed with enormous strength, power, stamina, chin and
determination |
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