While the negative reviews here hold a certain amount of water, it must be understood that this is certainly not a "traditional" biography, if a biography at all. I came upon this book from the opposite direction as previous commentators, as an fan of literature with a passing interest in boxing. Tosches' entire ouevre reads much the same way as this text: pop cultural riffing, hyperbolic spiritual send-ups, flourishes of bizarrely germane quotes. But it all works.I can safely admit that this won't serve as an effective biography for anyone hoping for detailed accounts of Liston's fights, but it is a wonderfuly tempered, passionate work. In terms of boxing studies, if you care at all for the style of Oates' "On Boxing," this is certainly worth a paltry $0.19.