Top ten boxing books

Markus Zusak's novels for younger readers have won numerous awards and one, The Book Thief, has become a worldwide bestseller. One of his books, Fighting Ruben Wolfe, which was originally published in 2001, has been reissued in the UK.

He named his ten favorite boxing books for the Guardian.

One title on the list:

Rope Burns by FX Toole

You can almost inhale the smelling salts in these short stories. FX Toole, a former corner man, serves as a perfect reminder to any writer to follow the write-what-you-know rule; you read one page and you know he's been there. Standout pieces here are "The Monkey Look", "Black Jew" and, of course, the devastatingly beautiful "Million Dollar Baby".

Read about another book on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue