Why We Fight
One Man’s Search for Meaning Inside the Ring
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $18.89
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Joe Knezevich
-
By:
-
Josh Rosenblatt
About this listen
Finally, we can talk about Fight Club! Or, 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 33 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 jiujitsu, and boxing, he decided, at age 40, 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.
©2019 Josh Rosenblatt (P)2019 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
-
American Midnight
- The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy’s Forgotten Crisis
- By: Adam Hochschild
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 15 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From legendary historian Adam Hochschild, a groundbreaking reassessment of the overlooked but startlingly resonant period between World War I and the Roaring Twenties, when the foundations of American democracy were threated by war, pandemic, and violence fueled by battles over race, immigration, and the rights of labor
-
-
Disturbing yet Reassuring
- By Sams95 on 11-18-22
By: Adam Hochschild
-
Rebel Talent
- Why It Pays to Break the Rules at Work and in Life
- By: Francesca Gino
- Narrated by: Tamara Marston
- Length: 7 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Francesca Gino has been studying rebels in life and in the workplace for more than 15 years. She has discovered that rebels - those who practice "positive deviance" at work - are harder to manage, but they are good for the bottom line: their passion, drive, curiosity, and creativity raise the entire organization to a new level. And she has found that at home, rebels are more engaged partners, parents, and friends. Packed with strategies for embracing rebellion at work and in life, Rebel Talent encourages all of us to rebel against what’s comfortable, so that we can thrive.
-
-
Empowering!
- By touristth on 10-05-19
By: Francesca Gino
-
The Power of One More
- The Ultimate Guide to Happiness and Success
- By: Ed Mylett
- Narrated by: Ed Mylett
- Length: 5 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In The Power of One More, renowned keynote speaker and performance expert Ed Mylett draws on thirty years of experience as an entrepreneur and coach to top athletes, entertainers, and business executives to reveal powerful strategies to help you live an extraordinary "one more" life.
-
-
If you love cliches....
- By John H on 08-30-22
By: Ed Mylett
-
The Fighter's Mind
- Inside the Mental Game
- By: Sam Sheridan
- Narrated by: Nicholas Techosky
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To uncover the secrets of mental strength and success, Sam Sheridan interviewed dozens of the world's most fascinating and dangerous men.
-
-
A Magnificient Perspective
- By Chase Chambers on 11-07-15
By: Sam Sheridan
-
Can't Hurt Me
- Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds
- By: David Goggins
- Narrated by: David Goggins, Adam Skolnick
- Length: 13 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For David Goggins, childhood was a nightmare--poverty, prejudice, and physical abuse colored his days and haunted his nights. But through self-discipline, mental toughness, and hard work, Goggins transformed himself from a depressed, overweight young man with no future into a US Armed Forces icon and one of the world's top endurance athletes. The only man in history to complete elite training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force tactical air controller, he went on to set records in numerous endurance events.
-
-
Opting for the book instead
- By S David on 12-24-18
By: David Goggins
-
When Violence Is the Answer
- Learning How to Do What It Takes When Your Life Is at Stake
- By: Tim Larkin
- Narrated by: Tim Larkin
- Length: 6 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this essential new book, self-protection expert and former military intelligence officer Tim Larkin changes the way we think about violence in order to save our lives. By deconstructing our assumptions about violence - its morality, its function in modern society, how it actually works - Larkin unlocks the shackles of our own taboos and arms us with what we need to know to prevent, prepare for, and survive the unthinkable event of life-or-death violence.
-
-
Excellent book on when violence is the only answer
- By GC on 09-20-17
By: Tim Larkin
-
American Midnight
- The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy’s Forgotten Crisis
- By: Adam Hochschild
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 15 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From legendary historian Adam Hochschild, a groundbreaking reassessment of the overlooked but startlingly resonant period between World War I and the Roaring Twenties, when the foundations of American democracy were threated by war, pandemic, and violence fueled by battles over race, immigration, and the rights of labor
-
-
Disturbing yet Reassuring
- By Sams95 on 11-18-22
By: Adam Hochschild
-
Rebel Talent
- Why It Pays to Break the Rules at Work and in Life
- By: Francesca Gino
- Narrated by: Tamara Marston
- Length: 7 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Francesca Gino has been studying rebels in life and in the workplace for more than 15 years. She has discovered that rebels - those who practice "positive deviance" at work - are harder to manage, but they are good for the bottom line: their passion, drive, curiosity, and creativity raise the entire organization to a new level. And she has found that at home, rebels are more engaged partners, parents, and friends. Packed with strategies for embracing rebellion at work and in life, Rebel Talent encourages all of us to rebel against what’s comfortable, so that we can thrive.
-
-
Empowering!
- By touristth on 10-05-19
By: Francesca Gino
-
The Power of One More
- The Ultimate Guide to Happiness and Success
- By: Ed Mylett
- Narrated by: Ed Mylett
- Length: 5 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In The Power of One More, renowned keynote speaker and performance expert Ed Mylett draws on thirty years of experience as an entrepreneur and coach to top athletes, entertainers, and business executives to reveal powerful strategies to help you live an extraordinary "one more" life.
-
-
If you love cliches....
- By John H on 08-30-22
By: Ed Mylett
-
The Fighter's Mind
- Inside the Mental Game
- By: Sam Sheridan
- Narrated by: Nicholas Techosky
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To uncover the secrets of mental strength and success, Sam Sheridan interviewed dozens of the world's most fascinating and dangerous men.
-
-
A Magnificient Perspective
- By Chase Chambers on 11-07-15
By: Sam Sheridan
-
Can't Hurt Me
- Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds
- By: David Goggins
- Narrated by: David Goggins, Adam Skolnick
- Length: 13 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For David Goggins, childhood was a nightmare--poverty, prejudice, and physical abuse colored his days and haunted his nights. But through self-discipline, mental toughness, and hard work, Goggins transformed himself from a depressed, overweight young man with no future into a US Armed Forces icon and one of the world's top endurance athletes. The only man in history to complete elite training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force tactical air controller, he went on to set records in numerous endurance events.
-
-
Opting for the book instead
- By S David on 12-24-18
By: David Goggins
-
When Violence Is the Answer
- Learning How to Do What It Takes When Your Life Is at Stake
- By: Tim Larkin
- Narrated by: Tim Larkin
- Length: 6 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this essential new book, self-protection expert and former military intelligence officer Tim Larkin changes the way we think about violence in order to save our lives. By deconstructing our assumptions about violence - its morality, its function in modern society, how it actually works - Larkin unlocks the shackles of our own taboos and arms us with what we need to know to prevent, prepare for, and survive the unthinkable event of life-or-death violence.
-
-
Excellent book on when violence is the only answer
- By GC on 09-20-17
By: Tim Larkin
-
Part Reptile
- UFC, MMA and Me
- By: Dan Hardy
- Narrated by: Dan Hardy, Simon Bubb
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dan Hardy's first book is much more than a straightforward MMA autobiography. Taking the key fights from his career, Hardy explores the sport with the unparalleled insight that has made him the best analyst working today, from training in China with Shaolin monks to how MMA helped him channel his rage, to psychedelics and the ceremony in Peru that changed his life, to tapping in to his 'reptilian brain' and the psychological warfare of UFC, to his epic title fight with Georges St-Pierre.
-
-
Worst Bio I’ve listen to
- By Ferraro38 on 05-13-23
By: Dan Hardy
-
What Doesn't Kill Us
- How Freezing Water, Extreme Altitude and Environmental Conditioning Will Renew Our Lost Evolutionary Strength
- By: Scott Carney
- Narrated by: Scott Carney
- Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Our ancestors crossed deserts, mountains, and oceans without even a whisper of what anyone today might consider modern technology. Those feats of endurance now seem impossible in an age where we take comfort for granted. But what if we could regain some of our lost evolutionary strength by simulating the environmental conditions of our forbears? Investigative journalist and anthropologist Scott Carney takes up the challenge to find out: Can we hack our bodies and use the environment to stimulate our inner biology?
-
-
correlation is not causation
- By Jason R. Craft on 02-18-17
By: Scott Carney
-
The Art of Learning
- An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance
- By: Josh Waitzkin
- Narrated by: Josh Waitzkin
- Length: 7 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Art of Learning takes listeners through Waitzkin's unique journey to excellence. He explains in clear detail how a well-thought-out, principled approach to learning is what separates success from failure. Waitzkin believes that achievement, even at the championship level, is a function of a lifestyle that fuels a creative, resilient growth process.
-
-
Good overview with interesting backdrop
- By James on 06-15-14
By: Josh Waitzkin
-
Essence of the Upanishads
- A Key to Indian Spirituality
- By: Eknath Easwaran
- Narrated by: Paul Bazely
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Easwaran's classic manual is a unique source of practical spiritual support for new and experienced meditators, and gives all the instruction needed to establish a vibrant meditation practice and keep it going. In passage meditation, you focus attention on passages, or texts, drawn from all the world's sacred traditions. You choose the passages that appeal to you, so this universal method stays fresh and inspiring, prompting you to live out your highest ideals.
-
-
Not a Summary
- By Max on 03-26-18
By: Eknath Easwaran
-
Mastery
- The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment
- By: George Leonard
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
- Length: 3 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Drawing on Zen philosophy and his expertise in the martial art of aikido, best-selling author George Leonard shows how the process of mastery can help us attain a higher level of excellence and a deeper sense of satisfaction and fulfillment in our daily lives. Whether you're seeking to improve your career or your intimate relationships, increase self-esteem or create harmony within yourself, this inspiring prescriptive guide will help you master anything you choose and achieve success in all areas of your life.
-
-
thank you.
- By cjkliemann on 03-24-19
By: George Leonard
-
Acid Test
- LSD, Ecstasy, and the Power to Heal
- By: Tom Shroder
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 14 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A fascinating, transformative look at the therapeutic powers of psychedelic drugs, particularly in the treatment of PTSD, and the past fifty years of scientific, political, and legal controversy they have ignited, by award-winning journalist Tom Shroder.
-
-
Inspiring, Upsetting, Grounded and Useful
- By Dane on 09-24-15
By: Tom Shroder
-
Taking My Life Back
- My Story of Faith, Determination, and Surviving the Boston Marathon Bombing
- By: Rebekah Gregory, Anthony Flacco - contributor
- Narrated by: Rebekah Gregory
- Length: 5 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On April 15, 2013, Rebekah Gregory and her five-year-old son waited at the finish line of the Boston Marathon to support a friend who was running. When the blasts of terrorists' homemade bombs packed with nails and screws went off three feet away, Rebekah's legs took the brunt of the blast, protecting her son from certain death. Eighteen surgeries and 65 procedures later, her left leg was amputated.
-
-
A book that just makes you stop and think
- By Dolly Vinluan on 07-08-17
By: Rebekah Gregory, and others
-
What Makes Olga Run?
- The Mystery of the 90-Something Track Star and What She Can Teach Us about Living Longer, Happier Lives
- By: Bruce Grierson
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In What Makes Olga Run? Bruce Grierson explores what the wild success of a 94-year-old track star can tell us about how our bodies and minds age. Olga Kotelko is not your average 94-year-old. She not only looks and acts like a much younger woman, she holds over 23 world records in track and field, 17 in her current 90 to 95 category. Convinced that this remarkable woman could help unlock many of the mysteries of aging, Grierson set out to uncover what it is that's driving Olga.
-
-
I can't stop talking about this book
- By David Shear on 05-27-14
By: Bruce Grierson
-
The Greatest
- Muhammad Ali
- By: Walter Dean Myers
- Narrated by: J. D. Jackson
- Length: 3 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Rising from poverty-stricken Louisville in the 1950s, Ali became one of the world's greatest athletes. Beginning life as Cassius Clay, Ali would struggle against opponents both in and out of the ring. Segregation and racism stood as obstacles in his path, but as he climbed the boxing ranks, his social conscience grew. He refused to be pigeonholed as a stereotypical black athlete in the 1960s and changed his name to Muhammad Ali after converting to Islam.
-
-
Knock out life!
- By Matt Gerchow on 07-13-15
-
Hell on Two Wheels
- By: Amy Snyder
- Narrated by: Sheila Stasack
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Three-time Ironman finisher Amy Snyder takes the wraps off the best kept secret in the sports world, the Race Across America (RAAM), a bicycle race like no other. Unlike its famous cousin the Tour de France, RAAM is much crazier, more gothic, and even savage: Once the gun goes off the clock doesn't stop, and the first rider to complete the prescribed 3,000-mile route is the victor. In Hell on Two Wheels, Snyder follows a group of athletes before, during, and after the 2009 RAAM.
-
-
A documentary of the toughest bike race
- By James on 12-19-13
By: Amy Snyder
-
Fierce Medicine
- Breakthrough Practices to Heal the Body and Ignite the Spirit
- By: Ana T. Forrest
- Narrated by: Ana T. Forrest
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As the creator of Forrest Yoga, Ana T. Forrest has been transforming people's lives throughout the world for more than thirty-five years. Her unique blend of physical practice, Eastern wisdom, and profound Native American ceremony takes her teachings literally off the mat and into daily life - to heal everything from addictive behaviors and eating disorders to chronic pain and injury.
-
-
Autobiography of an Ego
- By Jay on 10-19-14
By: Ana T. Forrest
-
The Big Fight
- My Life In and Out of the Ring
- By: Sugar Ray Leonard, Michael Arkush
- Narrated by: Sugar Ray Leonard
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this unflinching and inspiring autobiography, the boxing legend faces his single greatest competitor: himself. Sugar Ray Leonard's brutally honest and uplifting memoir reveals in intimate detail for the first time the complex man behind the boxer. The Olympic hero, multichampionship winner, and beloved athlete waged his own personal battle with depression, rage, addiction, and greed.
-
-
Sugar Ray
- By KDeSantis on 11-09-18
By: Sugar Ray Leonard, and others
Related to this topic
-
The Professor in the Cage
- Why Men Fight and Why We like to Watch
- By: Jonathan Gottschall
- Narrated by: Quincy Dunn-Baker
- Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When a mixed martial arts (MMA) gym moves in across the street from his office, Jonathan Gottschall sees a challenge and an opportunity. Pushing 40, out of shape, and disenchanted with his job as an adjunct English professor, part of him yearns to cross the street and join up. The other part is terrified.
-
-
Not what I was expecting
- By Nathan Kemp on 03-07-17
-
Running & Being
- The Total Experience
- By: George Sheehan, Kenny Moore
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Written by the late, beloved Dr. George Sheehan, Running and Being tells of the author's midlife return to the world of exercise, play, and competition, in which he found "a world beyond sweat" that proved to be a source of great revelation and personal growth. But Running and Being focuses more on life than it does, specifically, on running. It provides an outline for a lifetime program of fitness and joy, showing how the body helps determine our mental and spiritual energies.
-
-
Great book of introspection
- By Charles West on 07-03-18
By: George Sheehan, and others
-
14 Minutes
- A Running Legend's Life and Death and Life
- By: Alberto Salazar, John Brant
- Narrated by: Danny Pardo
- Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
14 Minutes is the memoir of Alberto Salazar, the most accomplished, charismatic, and controversial marathoner in history. The narrative follows Alberto's boyhood in New England, his rise to stardom at the University of Oregon, his dramatic victories in the New York City and Boston Marathons, his long malaise due to injuries, which resulted in a near-suicidal depression; his resurgence due to intense spiritual experiences and discipline; his close alliance with Phil Knight and the Nike corporation; and describes his numerous near-death experiences.
-
-
Terrible and Distracting Narration
- By Mark on 06-04-14
By: Alberto Salazar, and others
-
Iron War
- Dave Scott, Mark Allen, and the Greatest Race Ever Run
- By: Matt Fitzgerald
- Narrated by: Seth Michael Donsky
- Length: 13 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The 1989 Ironman World Championship was the greatest race ever in endurance sports. In a spectacular duel that became known as the Iron War, the world's two strongest athletes raced side by side at world-record pace for a grueling 139 miles. Driven by one of the fiercest rivalries in triathlon, Dave Scott and Mark Allen raced shoulder to shoulder through Ironman’s 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race, and 26.2-mile marathon. After 8 punishing hours, both men would demolish the previous record - and cross the finish line a mere 58 seconds apart.
-
-
Fine Story....But the Narration!!!!
- By Gabriel on 01-15-14
By: Matt Fitzgerald
-
The Fighter's Mind
- Inside the Mental Game
- By: Sam Sheridan
- Narrated by: Nicholas Techosky
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To uncover the secrets of mental strength and success, Sam Sheridan interviewed dozens of the world's most fascinating and dangerous men.
-
-
A Magnificient Perspective
- By Chase Chambers on 11-07-15
By: Sam Sheridan
-
The Boxing Kings
- When American Heavyweights Ruled the Ring
- By: Paul Beston
- Narrated by: Alexander Cendese
- Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Boxing Kings tells the story of the heavyweight title in the days when it was a defining institution in the United States. Author Paul Beston places special emphasis on those champions who held a central place in American culture beyond just in the boxing ring, including John L. Sullivan, who made the title a commercial property; Jack Johnson, who in 1908 became the first black man to claim the title; Joe Louis, whose contributions to racial tolerance and social progress transcended even his greatness in the ring; and many more.
-
-
An outstanding book on heavyweight champions
- By LSmith on 02-01-18
By: Paul Beston
-
The Professor in the Cage
- Why Men Fight and Why We like to Watch
- By: Jonathan Gottschall
- Narrated by: Quincy Dunn-Baker
- Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When a mixed martial arts (MMA) gym moves in across the street from his office, Jonathan Gottschall sees a challenge and an opportunity. Pushing 40, out of shape, and disenchanted with his job as an adjunct English professor, part of him yearns to cross the street and join up. The other part is terrified.
-
-
Not what I was expecting
- By Nathan Kemp on 03-07-17
-
Running & Being
- The Total Experience
- By: George Sheehan, Kenny Moore
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Written by the late, beloved Dr. George Sheehan, Running and Being tells of the author's midlife return to the world of exercise, play, and competition, in which he found "a world beyond sweat" that proved to be a source of great revelation and personal growth. But Running and Being focuses more on life than it does, specifically, on running. It provides an outline for a lifetime program of fitness and joy, showing how the body helps determine our mental and spiritual energies.
-
-
Great book of introspection
- By Charles West on 07-03-18
By: George Sheehan, and others
-
14 Minutes
- A Running Legend's Life and Death and Life
- By: Alberto Salazar, John Brant
- Narrated by: Danny Pardo
- Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
14 Minutes is the memoir of Alberto Salazar, the most accomplished, charismatic, and controversial marathoner in history. The narrative follows Alberto's boyhood in New England, his rise to stardom at the University of Oregon, his dramatic victories in the New York City and Boston Marathons, his long malaise due to injuries, which resulted in a near-suicidal depression; his resurgence due to intense spiritual experiences and discipline; his close alliance with Phil Knight and the Nike corporation; and describes his numerous near-death experiences.
-
-
Terrible and Distracting Narration
- By Mark on 06-04-14
By: Alberto Salazar, and others
-
Iron War
- Dave Scott, Mark Allen, and the Greatest Race Ever Run
- By: Matt Fitzgerald
- Narrated by: Seth Michael Donsky
- Length: 13 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The 1989 Ironman World Championship was the greatest race ever in endurance sports. In a spectacular duel that became known as the Iron War, the world's two strongest athletes raced side by side at world-record pace for a grueling 139 miles. Driven by one of the fiercest rivalries in triathlon, Dave Scott and Mark Allen raced shoulder to shoulder through Ironman’s 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race, and 26.2-mile marathon. After 8 punishing hours, both men would demolish the previous record - and cross the finish line a mere 58 seconds apart.
-
-
Fine Story....But the Narration!!!!
- By Gabriel on 01-15-14
By: Matt Fitzgerald
-
The Fighter's Mind
- Inside the Mental Game
- By: Sam Sheridan
- Narrated by: Nicholas Techosky
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To uncover the secrets of mental strength and success, Sam Sheridan interviewed dozens of the world's most fascinating and dangerous men.
-
-
A Magnificient Perspective
- By Chase Chambers on 11-07-15
By: Sam Sheridan
-
The Boxing Kings
- When American Heavyweights Ruled the Ring
- By: Paul Beston
- Narrated by: Alexander Cendese
- Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Boxing Kings tells the story of the heavyweight title in the days when it was a defining institution in the United States. Author Paul Beston places special emphasis on those champions who held a central place in American culture beyond just in the boxing ring, including John L. Sullivan, who made the title a commercial property; Jack Johnson, who in 1908 became the first black man to claim the title; Joe Louis, whose contributions to racial tolerance and social progress transcended even his greatness in the ring; and many more.
-
-
An outstanding book on heavyweight champions
- By LSmith on 02-01-18
By: Paul Beston
-
Course Correction
- A Story of Rowing and Resilience in the Wake of Title IX
- By: Ginny Gilder
- Narrated by: Janis Ian
- Length: 10 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From her first strokes as a novice, Ginny Gilder found herself in a new world, training with Olympic rowers and participating in the famous Title IX naked protest, which helped define the movement for equality in college sports. Short, asthmatic, and stubborn, Gilder made the team against all odds and for the next 10 years devoted herself to answering a seemingly simple question: how badly do you want to go fast?
-
-
Every young woman should read this book
- By BCE on 11-13-17
By: Ginny Gilder
-
Blood in the Cage
- Mixed Martial Arts, Pat Miletich, and the Furious Rise of the UFC
- By: L. Jon Wertheim
- Narrated by: Phil Gigante
- Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Based on unlimited access to the Ultimate Fighting Championship and its rival leagues, Blood in the Cage peers through the chain-link Octagon into the frighteningly seductive world of mixed martial arts, which is exploding in popularity despite resistance from every corner. Wertheim focuses on Pat Miletich, a mixed-martial-arts pioneer and six-time UFC champion, who currently runs the most famous MMA training school in the world.
-
-
MMA Bible
- By Bret on 01-27-09
By: L. Jon Wertheim
-
Cinderella Man
- James J. Braddock, Max Baer and the Greatest Upset in Boxing History
- By: Jeremy Schaap
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 8 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Lost in the annals of boxing is the sport's true Cinderella story. James J. Braddock, dubbed "Cinderella Man" by Damon Runyon, was a once promising light heavyweight for whom a string of losses in the ring and a broken right hand happened to coincide with the Great Crash of 1929.
-
-
Excellent
- By MA on 06-05-05
By: Jeremy Schaap
-
Hell on Two Wheels
- By: Amy Snyder
- Narrated by: Sheila Stasack
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Three-time Ironman finisher Amy Snyder takes the wraps off the best kept secret in the sports world, the Race Across America (RAAM), a bicycle race like no other. Unlike its famous cousin the Tour de France, RAAM is much crazier, more gothic, and even savage: Once the gun goes off the clock doesn't stop, and the first rider to complete the prescribed 3,000-mile route is the victor. In Hell on Two Wheels, Snyder follows a group of athletes before, during, and after the 2009 RAAM.
-
-
A documentary of the toughest bike race
- By James on 12-19-13
By: Amy Snyder
-
What Makes Olga Run?
- The Mystery of the 90-Something Track Star and What She Can Teach Us about Living Longer, Happier Lives
- By: Bruce Grierson
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In What Makes Olga Run? Bruce Grierson explores what the wild success of a 94-year-old track star can tell us about how our bodies and minds age. Olga Kotelko is not your average 94-year-old. She not only looks and acts like a much younger woman, she holds over 23 world records in track and field, 17 in her current 90 to 95 category. Convinced that this remarkable woman could help unlock many of the mysteries of aging, Grierson set out to uncover what it is that's driving Olga.
-
-
I can't stop talking about this book
- By David Shear on 05-27-14
By: Bruce Grierson
-
Going Om
- Real Life Stories On and Off the Yoga Mat
- By: Melissa Carroll - editor
- Narrated by: Eva Kaminsky, Luke Daniels, Allyson Johnson, and others
- Length: 5 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With candid, witty, and compelling experiences of yoga from renowned memoirists, including Cheryl Strayed (author of the number one New York Times best-seller Wild), Claire Dederer (author of national best-seller Poser: My Life in 23 Yoga Poses), Dinty W. Moore (author of The Accidental Buddhist), Neal Pollack (author of Stretch: The Making of a Yoga Dude) and many others, Going Om shares a range of observations about this popular practice.
-
-
a couple of good stories, but overall just eh
- By Melissa on 05-31-16
-
Running Like a Girl
- Notes on Learning to Run
- By: Alexandra Heminsley
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Sastre
- Length: 6 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Until five years ago, Alexandra Heminsley was decidedly not a runner. Nor was she athletic in any sense of the word. She was an ordinary, curvy woman who was convinced that sports of any kind, especially running, were beyond her. But she's made running part of her life, and gets to reap the rewards: not just the obvious things, like a touch of weight loss, health and glowing skin, but self-belief, and immeasurable daily pleasure.
-
-
Meh... not what I thought...
- By Maria on 12-03-14
-
Surviving Survival
- By: Laurence Gonzales
- Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The shark attacked while she was snorkeling, tearing through Micki Glenn’s breast and shredding her right arm. Her husband, a surgeon, saved her life on the spot, but when she was safely home she couldn’t just go on with her life. She had entered an even more profound survival journey: the aftermath. The survival experience changes everything because it invalidates all your previous adaptations, and the old rules don’t apply. In some cases survivors suffer more in the aftermath than they did during the actual crisis. In all cases, they have to work hard to reinvent themselves.
-
-
Well written, compelling and honest to the end
- By Mark on 07-21-14
-
The Fear Project
- What Our Most Primal Emotion Taught Me About Survival, Success, Surfing...and Love
- By: Jaimal Yogis
- Narrated by: Jaimal Yogis
- Length: 5 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An epic adventure full of incredible characters, death-defying athletic achievement, and bleeding edge science, The Fear Project began with one question: how can we overcome our fears to reach our full potential? Who among us has not been paralyzed by fear? In The Fear Project, award-winning journalist and surfer Jaimal Yogis sets out to better understand fear - why does it so often dominate our lives, what makes it tick, and is there even a way to use it to our advantage?
-
-
Pretty great subject and writing, bad narration
- By Marcos on 03-16-14
By: Jaimal Yogis
-
A Life Without Limits
- A World Champion's Journey
- By: Chrissie Wellington, Lance Armstrong - foreward
- Narrated by: Polly Lee, Chrissie Wellington
- Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 2007, Chrissie Wellington shocked the triathlon world by winning the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii. As a newcomer to the sport and a complete unknown to the press, Chrissie's win shook up the sport. A LIFE WITHOUT LIMITS is the story of her rise to the top, a journey that has taken her around the world, from a childhood in England, to the mountains of Nepal, to the oceans of New Zealand, and the trails of Argentina, and first across the finish line.
-
-
Chrissie winning, on repeat
- By Mona on 03-13-13
By: Chrissie Wellington, and others
-
Capture
- Unraveling the Mystery of Mental Suffering
- By: David A. Kessler MD
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Why do we think, feel, and act in ways we wish we did not? For decades, New York Times best-selling author Dr. David A. Kessler has studied this question with regard to tobacco, food, and drugs. Over the course of these investigations, he identified one underlying mechanism common to a broad range of human suffering. This phenomenon - capture - is the process by which our attention is hijacked and our brains commandeered by forces outside our control.
-
-
Confused
- By TS on 05-17-16
-
To Be a Runner
- How Racing Up Mountains, Running with the Bulls, or Just Taking On a 5-K Makes You a Better Person (and the World a Better Place)
- By: Martin Dugard
- Narrated by: Bernard Setaro Clark
- Length: 5 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With an exuberant mix of passion, insight, instruction, and humor, best-selling author - and lifelong runner - Martin Dugard takes a journey through the world of running to illustrate how the sport helps us fulfill that universal desire to be the best possible version of ourselves each and every time we lace up our shoes. To Be a Runner represents a new way to write about running by bridging the chasm between the two categories of running books: how-to and personal narrative.
-
-
Feels like a great run does
- By Aleksandar on 05-11-15
By: Martin Dugard
What listeners say about Why We Fight
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 02-17-19
To write a book?
An in depth look at one person's experience in Mixed Martial Arts...and one fight. Some interesting information on boxing and MMA, but maybe takes itself a little too seriously.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- SP
- 08-12-19
Was good until
The author had to bring his political views into it, which has nothing to do with his story. I didn’t even finish after that.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- John
- 03-19-19
Self-obsessed and delusional
The book is mostly a mediocre story about a bored 40 year old man who decides he wants to know what it feels like to get punched in the face. He decides to train for an MMA fight and shares his experiences of that training. That part of the story is mildly interesting.
But, about 70% into the book, he writes a chapter called The Gathering Darkness which is so vile, so delusional, so insane that he completely undercuts his story. Early in the book, the author frequently mentions his Jewish heritage and his fantasies of fighting Nazis. This reader took that to mean a reasonable fantasy of being strong and defending his people had he lived in Nazi Germany.
But, in the chapter called The Gathering Darkness, he links that fantasy to the present by implying that Trump supporters are Nazis. He writes about the election of Trump as William Shirer wrote about the rise of Hitler. He describes an America as overtly racist, anti-Semitic, and anti-immigrant. He imagines that the crowd at his upcoming fight might turn violent when they hear his last name. He describes many of his fellow fighters as violent and blood-thirsty Trump supporters who don't appreciate the art in martial arts. He imagines himself as the Mohammad Ali of MMA, braving an anti-Semitic crowd and fighting for his people. Yes, he actually tried to compare his story to Mohammad Ali.
We also learn in that disgusting chapter that, despite all of his dedication to training for his first MMA fight, he still drinks alcohol, smokes weed, and has time to go door to door to implore people not to vote for Trump. Most readers will feel betrayed at this point. The author pissed away any root-for-the-underdog goodwill that might have existed. Instead, we are left thinking that the author is a hateful, shallow, self-obsessed fool who needed a new gimmick to write about to help pay the rent.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Chandler Hickman
- 07-13-23
A book of self victimization disguised as the story of a fighter
This book has highs and lows, as the author is good at philosophizing the primitive urge to fight that many of us who would read/ listen to this book can relate to. My negative review stems from the fact that the entirety of this story is pockmarked with comments of the authors racist tendencies to judge others based on ethnicity, while disguising it as an honest reaction to his ancestral past that he isn’t in control of. He also tends to throw in politics whenever it seems convenient. Very off putting considering the supposed aim of the book. This is a book on a man trying to overcome his victim mentality, while somehow being blissfully unaware of it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!