Biography & Autobiography Books
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Why We Fight: One Man's Search for Meaning Inside the Ring
Rosenblatt, Josh
(Paperback)
List Price: $16.99 Our Price: $5.99
A physical and philosophical mediation on why we are drawn to fight each other for sport, what happens to our bodies and brains when we do, and what it all means.Anyone with guts or madness in him can get hit by someone who knows how; it takes a different kind of madness, a more persistent kind, to stick around long enough to be one of the people who does the knowing.Josh Rosenblatt was thirty-three years old when he first realized he wanted to fight. A lifelong pacifist with a philosopher’s hatred of violence and a dandy’s aversion to exercise, he drank to excess, smoked passionately, ate indifferently, and mocked physical activity that didn’t involve nudity. But deep down inside there was always some part of him that was attracted to the idea of fighting. So, after studying Muay Thai, Krav Maga, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and boxing, he decided, at age forty, that it was finally time to fight his first—and only—mixed martial arts match: all in the name of experience and transcending ancient fears.An insightful and moving rumination on the nature of fighting, Why We Fight takes us on his journey from the bleachers to the ring. Using his own training as an opportunity to understand how the sport illuminates basic human impulses, Rosenblatt weaves together cultural history, criticism, biology, and anthropology to understand what happens to the human body and mind when under attack, and to explore why he, a self-described “cowardly boy from the suburbs,” discovered so much meaning in putting his body, and others’, at risk.From the psychology of fear to the physiology of pain, from Ukrainian shtetls to Brooklyn boxing gyms, from Lord Byron to George Plimpton, Why We Fight is a fierce inquiry into the abiding appeal of our most conflicted and controversial fixation, interwoven with a firsthand account of what happens when a mild-mannered intellectual decides to step into the ring for his first real showdown.
Iceman: My Fighting Life
Liddell, Chuck
(Paperback)
List Price: $15.00 Our Price: $5.99
Chuck Liddell is the face of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and superstar of Mixed Martial Arts - the fastest growing sport in America. In 1998, he won his first Mixed Martial Arts fight, soon after joining the UFC to become the #1 ranked light-heavyweight contender in the world. He is a walking lethal weapon. Here, for the first time, is the story of Chuck Liddell inside and outside the Octagon - from his childhood in the poor section of Santa Barbara to the bloodiest battles of his career, to balancing life as a father, a UFC champ, and a superstar. With never-before-seen photos - and an all-new chapter added for this edition - Iceman is the true, no-holds-barred story of Chuck Liddell’s fight to become a champion.
Bruce Lee: A Life
Polly, Matthew
(Paperback)
List Price: $20.00 Our Price: $8.09
The most authoritative biography—featuring dozens of rarely seen photographs—of film legend Bruce Lee, who made martial arts a global phenomenon, bridged the divide between Eastern and Western cultures, and smashed long-held stereotypes of Asians and Asian-Americans.Forty-five years after Bruce Lee’s sudden death at age thirty-two, journalist and bestselling author Matthew Polly has written the definitive account of Lee’s life. It’s also one of the only accounts; incredibly, there has never been an authoritative biography of Lee. Following a decade of research that included conducting more than one hundred interviews with Lee’s family, friends, business associates, and even the actress in whose bed Lee died, Polly has constructed a complex, humane portrait of the icon.Polly explores Lee’s early years as a child star in Hong Kong cinema; his actor father’s struggles with opium addiction and how that turned Bruce into a troublemaking teenager who was kicked out of high school and eventually sent to America to shape up; his beginnings as a martial arts teacher, eventually becoming personal instructor to movie stars like James Coburn and Steve McQueen; his struggles as an Asian-American actor in Hollywood and frustration seeing role after role he auditioned for go to a white actors in eye makeup; his eventual triumph as a leading man; his challenges juggling a sky-rocketing career with his duties as a father and husband; and his shocking end that to this day is still shrouded in mystery.Polly breaks down the myths surrounding Bruce Lee and argues that, contrary to popular belief, he was an ambitious actor who was obsessed with the martial arts—not a kung-fu guru who just so happened to make a couple of movies. This is an honest, revealing look at an impressive yet imperfect man whose personal story was even more entertaining and inspiring than any fictional role he played onscreen.
Bruce Lee: A Life
Polly, Matthew
(Hardcover)
List Price: $35.00 Our Price: $9.09
The most authoritative biography - featuring dozens of rarely seen photographs - of film legend Bruce Lee, who made martial arts a global phenomenon, bridged the divide between Eastern and Western cultures, and smashed long-held stereotypes of Asians and Asian-Americans.Forty-five years after Bruce Lee’s sudden death at age thirty-two, journalist and bestselling author Matthew Polly has written the definitive account of Lee’s life. It’s also one of the only accounts; incredibly, there has never been an authoritative biography of Lee. Following a decade of research that included conducting more than one hundred interviews with Lee’s family, friends, business associates, and even the actress in whose bed Lee died, Polly has constructed a complex, humane portrait of the icon.Polly explores Lee’s early years as a child star in Hong Kong cinema; his actor father’s struggles with opium addiction and how that turned Bruce into a troublemaking teenager who was kicked out of high school and eventually sent to America to shape up; his beginnings as a martial arts teacher, eventually becoming personal instructor to movie stars like James Coburn and Steve McQueen; his struggles as an Asian-American actor in Hollywood and frustration seeing role after role he auditioned for go to a white actors in eye makeup; his eventual triumph as a leading man; his challenges juggling a sky-rocketing career with his duties as a father and husband; and his shocking end that to this day is still shrouded in mystery.Polly breaks down the myths surrounding Bruce Lee and argues that, contrary to popular belief, he was an ambitious actor who was obsessed with the martial arts - not a kung-fu guru who just so happened to make a couple of movies. This is an honest, revealing look at an impressive yet imperfect man whose personal story was even more entertaining and inspiring than any fictional role he played onscreen.
The Bruce Lee Way: Motivation, Wisdom and Life-Lessons from the Legend
Baker, Tim
(Hardcover)
List Price: $15.99 Our Price: $6.49
In his too-brief time on Earth, Bruce Lee became one of the most beloved figures in martial arts history thanks to his performances in films like Enter the Dragon and The Way of the Dragon. But Bruce was more than just a fighter or an actor: He was also a philosopher who left behind his thoughts on life, technique, work, love and more in both his films and personal writings.In The Bruce Lee Way, Bruce's story is distilled through a series of lessons that will lead you on the path of what Bruce called "self-actualization." Featuring personal effect, handwritten letters, sketches and more, The Bruce Lee Way offers a unique window into the mind of the master, as well as empowering examples of how to channel his methods into your own life.
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