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Product Description
Observer
'Funny, tragic, and full to the brim with outrageous arse-whupping, The Wrestling does its subject proud.'
Book Description
The hilarious, absurd and tragic story of British wrestling, told by one of the most talented non-fiction writers around.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A very British "sport"......,
By RJ Grove (London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Wrestling (Paperback)
Whilst wrestling thrives in the rest of the world its British cousin seems in terminal decline. This is the background against which Simon Garfield stirs the meomories of the "glory days" of wrestling in Britain. He tells the tale through the words of others and has produced not a definitive history but an entertaining parable of egotistical "characters" and rivalries that last to the present day. The book is never completely open about the realities of a professional wrestling match but instead allows the reader to feel like an outsider hearing careless wispers from behind the curtain. The vow of silence these men took seems to remain with most of them today. This is to some extent misguided, as anyone who is a fan of America's WWF knows. There the big names to not "insult" the fans intelligence by insisting it is real at all costs. In interviews and books outside the WWF's world (and sometimes in it) they make no secret of the way things are. And that is why so many people find it a form of entertainment that appeals to them. The wrestlers for the most part make up history to suit there own ends and thus presented together on the page form a hilarious patchwork of stories. Sometimes all the contributers are pulling in the same direction and a heart warming (or horrifying) story presents itself. Other times it desends into funny or meloncoly slanging matches about who "f***ed it all up". This is a slightly frustrating book if you already are aware of some of the behind the scenes bust ups and stories but to others it will delight at every turn. The last 2 chapters are the most depressing with two young(ish) talents from the current scene are quietly wallowing in the poverty of British wrestling as they compete with insulting rip-offs of WWF characters (usually the ones they ripped off were rubbish in their first incarnation). The underground scene has picked up slightly since the book was written with talented foreigners visiting occasionally and some "new-age" talent popping through. However the only thing that drives these youngsters on is getting out to America or Japan. At the base end of the market promoters are still presenting the outdated style of many mentioned in the book and the product is slowly dying. This book leaves us with lovely memories of a very British "sport".......one which is gone, best forgotten.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tragi-Comedy,
By david.bennison@artesiaservices.be (Brussels) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Wrestling (Paperback)
When I think of the (few!) books I've read in the past 5 years, this one keeps coming back to me. Simon Garfields style of quotation over narration (as per his Radio One book - almost as great as this) works well here with an obviously (inadvertantly in some cases) hillarious cast of heros, daredevils and madmen who loved the sport and reaped very few benefits. It's a sad story of the decline of a great 'spectacle' I loved in my youth on World Of Sport. Listening to the stories of being paid 15 quid a fight and squashing the puss out of pig-bitten fingers pre-fight only makes you love this era more and wonder quite where it all went wrong with American Wrestling! Gloriously entertaining stuff.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Wrestling has never been told with such love,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Wrestling (Paperback)
What can I say about this book it is truly an outstanding piece of literature on the beloved spectacle that is known as Wrestling, it will make you laugh and cry and share the emotions of the giants of the ring. Find out more about the real workings of an industry which in the Uk is dying but yey so vibrant throughout the world. If being a wrestling fan is an embarrassment then you're in good company with the likes of the Royal Family former PMS and Paul Mc Cartney to name a few. If there is one book you must read on the greatest spectacle on earth read The Wrestling.
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