Overview

War in the Ring presents a riveting nonfiction book for kids about a boxing match that represented the growing tensions between the United States and Nazi Germany in the lead up to World War II. Joe Louis was born on an Alabama cotton patch and raised in a Detroit ghetto. Max Schmeling grew up in poverty in Hamburg, Germany. For both boys, boxing was a path out and a ladder up. Little did they know that they would one day face each other in a pair of matches that would capture the world's attention. Joe grew into a symbol of inspiration to a nation of Black Americans hoping to carve a slice of the 'American Dream' in a racially fractured country. Max, on the other hand, became a Nazi symbol for the superiority of the Aryan race. The battles waged between Joe and Max still resonate, and the cultural implications of the international sensation continue to reverberate far past the ring.

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9781250791924

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Reviews

Thoroughly sourced, Florio and Shapiro's book celebrating Louis' life is a knockout. --Booklist Florio and Shapiro bring considerable skill to their lively telling of this multilayered slice of history...an honest account of the racism and anti-Semitism intertwined throughout and realistically portraying the complexities of Joe Louis and Max Schmeling]. --Kirkus Reviews Florio and Shapiro (One Nation Under Baseball) vividly recount the politically and racially charged rivalry between African-American boxing champion Joe Louis and white German boxer Max Schmeling --Publishers Weekly

Author Information

John Florio and Ouisie Shapiro are the authors of One Nation Under Baseball: How the 1960s Collided with the National Pastime, and One Punch from the Promised Land: Leon Spinks, Michael Spinks, and the Myth of the Heavyweight Title. Together, they've written about sports for The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, VICE Sports, and Sports Illustrated. They are married and live in Brooklyn. War in the Ring is their first book for young readers.

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