''King of the World'' is a 1998 biography of

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...

written by David Remnick with a special focus on the period in Ali's life from his victory in the Olympics to his second fight with

Sonny Liston Charles L. "Sonny" Liston ( 1930 – December 30, 1970) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1953 to 1970. A dominant contender of his era, he became the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson i ...

. It has been described as "a book about a boxer, not a book about boxing." During this time, the two prominent boxing contemporaries of Ali were Floyd Patterson and Sonny Liston. Patterson had the reputation of being a "Good Negro" and Liston that of a "Bad Negro." Ultimately Ali would transcend both stereotypes. In an interview with the author, Ali stated: "I had to prove you could be a new kind of black man. I had to show that to the world." According to a review of the book in '' The New York Times'',

References

Books about Muhammad Ali Biographies about African-American people 1998 non-fiction books Random House books {{AfricanAmerican-bio-book-stub