I picked up this book for Million Dollar Baby and see how the story matches the film version. (In fact, the movie is faithful to the original story. But because the story is short fiction, the film obviously had to add storylines while expanding on others.) But I was greatly surprised - and happily so - at all boxing stories in this collection. They are gritty, raw, and wonderfully well-written. F.X. Toole (real name Jerry Boyd) spent his career in boxing and is authority on the topic. But his skill at writing fiction is phenomenal.

Being released at the Boston Bookcrossing Meetup, Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA