Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} The Complete Muhammad Ali by Ishmael Reed Ishmael Reed. Ishmael Reed calls this book The Complete Muhammad Ali because it includes material and photographs not found in other books about the Champion. The Complete Muhammad Ali also features new voices. Filipino American author Emil Guillermo speaks about how “The Thrilla’ In Manila” brought the Philippines into the Twentieth Century. The book charts Ali’s evolution from Black Nationalism to a universalism. But this does not discount the Nation of Islam and Black Nationalism’s important influence on Ali’s intellectual development. Instead of being dismissed as “Lunatics” and “thugs,” we hear from Black Nationalists and Nation of Islam members in their own words. More than a biography , The Complete Muhammad Ali is a fascinating portrait of the Twentieth Century and the beginning of the Twenty-First. "'The Complete Muhammad Ali' is twelve solid rounds of writing. Throughout the text, Ishmael Reed jabs and juts fades and dances. He even plays a little rope-a-dope. In the end, his biography of Muhammad Ali stands above its competition. It is not always pretty and parts of it leave the legend of Ali somewhat bloodied. In doing so, it rings closer to the truth than the sanitized tale today’s public has accepted as real. This text is an in depth and studied look at a man, a sport, a nation and a history. In his contemplation of all of these, Ishmael Reed paints a canvas that is simultaneously darkened with shadows and brightened with hope; defined by history that is certain to be riven with a fair amount of controversy. Muhammad Ali became and remains much bigger than the man who bears that name. Ishmael Reed’s biography of Ali is similar in its breadth and scope." —Ron Jacobs for CounterPunch. The Complete Muhammad Ali. Including material and photographs not included in most of the 100 other books about the champion, Ishmael Reed's The Complete Muhammad Ali is more than just a biography—it is a fascinating portrait of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st. An honest, balanced portrayal of Ali, the book includes voices that have been omitted from other books. It charts Ali's evolution from Black Nationalism to a universalism, but does not discount the Nation of Islam and Black Nationalism's important influence on his intellectual development. Filipino American author Emil Guillermo speaks about how "The Thrilla' In Manila" brought the Philippines into the 20th century. Fans of Muhammad Ali, boxing fans, and those interested in modern African American history and the Nation of Islam will be fascinated by this biography by an accomplished American author. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY AUG 10, 2015. Despite its title, this book is neither a biography nor complete. Instead, it's Ali as seen through the eyes of diverse people, many of whom have not been included in other books on Ali. Reed, a novelist, playwright, poet and academic, writes that he treats Ali "not only as a boxer but as a phenomenon, a human mirror for the sixties, as a cautionary tale for the seventies." But as Reed, who too often turns the spotlight on himself, showcases his knowledge of African-American culture, the book goes on unorganized, maddening tangents about the Nation of Islam, Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X and the Black Panthers, only sometimes relating back to Ali, and even then it might be about Ali's shady business associations or politics, not his boxing. There's little pattern to the subjects interviewed over more than a decade Ali's second wife, jazz musicians, a mysterious "Informant X;" by the end, the reader feels buried in scattered detail. If readers are looking for boxing, the book is a big swing and a miss, but if they are seeking enlightenment about Ali in the fabric of history, then it's at least a body blow but one better suited for academia than for fans. The Complete Muhammad Ali. More than a biography and ‘bigger than boxing’, The Complete Muhammad Ali is a fascinating portrait of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first. Ishmael Reed calls it The Complete Muhammad Ali because most of the hundred odd books about the Champion are “either too adoring or make excessively negative assertions.” They also omit many voices that deserve to be heard. Ishmael Reed charts Muhammad Ali’s evolution from Black Nationalism to universalism, but gives due credit to the Nation’s of Islam’s and Black Nationalism’s important influence on Ali’s intellectual development. People who led these organizations are given a chance to speak up. Sam X, who introduced Ali to the Nation of Islam, said that without his mentor Elijah Muhammad, nobody would ever have heard of Ali. That remark cannot be ignored. Reed, an accomplished poet, novelist, essayist and playwright, casts his inquisitive eye on a man who came to represent the aspirations of so many people worldwide and so many causes. He also brings to bear his own experience as an African American public figure, born in the South in the same period, as well as an encyclopaedic grasp of American history. People interviewed include Marvin X, Harry Belafonte, Hugh Masakela, Jack Newfield, Ed Hughes, Emmanuel Steward, Amiri Baraka, Agieb Bilal, Emil Guillermo, Khalilah Ali, Quincy Troupe, Rahaman Ali, Melvin Van Peebles, Ray Robinson, Jr., Ed Hughes, Jesse Jackson, Martin Wyatt, Bennett Johnson, Stanley Crouch, Bobby Seale, and many more. Reed also places the Muhammad Ali phenomenon in the history of boxing and boxers from before the times of Jack Johnson, through Joe Louis and Archie Moore to Floyd Mayweather. He also includes Canadian fights and fighters like Tommy Burns, George Chuvalo and Yvon Durelle. “The Heavyweight Championship of the World,” wrote Reed in a 1976 Village Voice headline article shortly after third Ali-Norton fight, “is a sex show, a fashion show, scene of intrigue between different religions, politics, classes; a gathering of stars, ex-stars, their hangers-on, and hangers-on assistants.” The author of the much cited Writin’ is Fightin’ has now produced what will likely be known not only as The Complete Muhammad Ali but also “the definitive Muhammad Ali.” PUBLISHERS WEEKLY AUG 10, 2015. Despite its title, this book is neither a biography nor complete. Instead, it's Ali as seen through the eyes of diverse people, many of whom have not been included in other books on Ali. Reed, a novelist, playwright, poet and academic, writes that he treats Ali "not only as a boxer but as a phenomenon, a human mirror for the sixties, as a cautionary tale for the seventies." But as Reed, who too often turns the spotlight on himself, showcases his knowledge of African-American culture, the book goes on unorganized, maddening tangents about the Nation of Islam, Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X and the Black Panthers, only sometimes relating back to Ali, and even then it might be about Ali's shady business associations or politics, not his boxing. There's little pattern to the subjects interviewed over more than a decade Ali's second wife, jazz musicians, a mysterious "Informant X;" by the end, the reader feels buried in scattered detail. If readers are looking for boxing, the book is a big swing and a miss, but if they are seeking enlightenment about Ali in the fabric of history, then it's at least a body blow but one better suited for academia than for fans. Book Review: The Complete Muhammad Ali. Publication Date: Jul 16, 2015 List Price: $22.95 Format: Paperback, 448 pages Classification: Nonfiction ISBN13: 9781771860406 Imprint: Baraka Books Publisher: Baraka Books Parent Company: Baraka Books Borrow from Library. Read a Description of The Complete Muhammad Ali. Book Reviewed by Tony Lindsay. Ishmael Reed’s The Complete Muhammad Ali is much more than a standard biography. The work provides specific details on numerous facets that surrounded Ali’s life, and the reader acquires knowledge about Ali which previously went undiscussed. Ali’s relationship with Elijah Muhammad is analyzed, and the champion’s politics are linked to his ideology and his beliefs. The conflicts in Muhammad Ali’s volatile and controversial marriages are also examined. Reed’s depiction of Ali’s and Elijah Muhammad’s relationship is that of a tutor and a student with the tutor offering strong parental guidance. Initially, Elijah thought of Ali’s boxing as being subservient to white America. He thought Black boxers were offering entertainment to the white oppressors. He felt the same about professional singers and actors; he believed Black people should not be entertainers for whites. Elijah’s consistent message to Ali was to be independent of white America, and this independence included military service. Elijah believed that Black Americans should not fight in white America’s wars. Elijah refused to go war himself, and he served time in prison for his stance. Muhammad Ali followed Elijah’s example and his directive by refusing to serve in Vietnam. Reed offers two arguments about the effect of the decision: one, it put Ali in America’s consciousness and brought him world attention, and two, the imprisonment harmed his career by locking him at his physical prime. Whichever effect presided; Reed makes it clear that Ali’s decision was prompted by Elijah’s directive. Elijah’s parental role influenced Ali’s choice of his first wife, and the parental role surfaced in Elijah providing management for Ali’s boxing career, and it appeared when Elijah secured Nation of Islam protection for Ali against mafia involvement in his boxing promotions.