A. J. Liebling: The Sweet Science and Other Writings Book

For the first time in one volume, Pete Hamill presents five great books that demonstrate A. J. Liebling's extraordinary vitality, humor, and versatility as a writer. Named the best sports book of all time by Sports Illustrated in 2002, The Sweet Science (1956) is a lively and idiosyncratic portrait of boxing in the early 1950s, when Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, and Floyd Patterson ruled the ring. A classic of political reporting, The Earl of Louisiana (1961) is a vivid account of Governor Earl Long's bid for reelection after his release from a mental asylum in 1959. The Jollity Building (1962) collects hilarious true-life stories of Manhattan night-club promoters, cigar store owners, and scheming “Telephone Booth Indians,” as well as a portrait of “The Honest Rainmaker,” the racing columnist and confidence man extraordinaire, Colonel John R. Stingo. Between Meals: An Appetite for Paris (1962) is a richly evocative memoir of Liebling's introduction to Paris and its food and wine as a student in the late 1920s. The Press (1964) brings together the best of Liebling's influential and insightful “Wayward Press” pieces, in which he established himself as the first great media critic. Together with a 2008 companion Library of America volume, World War II—Writings, this is the essential Liebling.

The Washington Post - Michael Dirda

In the end, though, we now read Liebling … for the sentences. These reveal a sharp eye and the assumption that readers relish a slightly arch verbal chutzpah.