Boxing News Boxing News
Promethean Press today announced the launch of its new classic boxing book series. The series makes available many classic boxing texts from the late 19th to early 20th century that were long out of print and exceedingly hard to find.
According to R. T. Van Pelt, assistant editor at Promethean Press, each re-released book is a deluxe edition with additional material including new introductions, added photographs, and archival news reports, among other items.
“A considerable amount of historical research went into the production of these new editions,” said Van Pelt. “We at Promethean Press felt strongly that the additional material was warranted for each release – not just for the added value, but also to provide historical context for the importance of these books, their subject matter, and their authors.”
Currently available titles in the classic boxing book series include “The Art of Boxing and Manual of Training” by William Edwards, “Scientific Boxing” by James Corbett, and the Jim Driscoll books “The Text Book of Boxing”, “Out-Fighting, or Long Range Boxing”, “The Straight Left and How to Cultivate It”, and “Ringcraft”.
A dozen more titles are planned for release by Promethean Press over the next two years, including books by Robert Fitzsimmons, John L. Sullivan, and Tommy Burns, Van Pelt noted. “We are currently evaluating which titles will have the strongest demand and planning our publishing schedule accordingly.”
Van Pelt believes that boxing books published before the advent of filmed fights are particularly important for preservation, as they are the sole record of that era of pugilism. “These books are the only connection to those old champions,” he says. “They are the lasting testament to those past fighters, and it behooves us to preserve their books and their memories.”
Van Pelt hopes the Promethean Press series will reach new and old boxing fans. “The deluxe re-issues are a wonderful way for new boxing enthusiasts to get a copy of these hard-to-find books,” said Van Pelt. “But for collectors who already have original copies of these books in their collections, the deluxe editions from Promethean Press provide the added value of additional historical material not found in the originals.”
The books are available now through normal sales channels and directly via the Promethean Press website: http://www.promethean-press.com/boxing.htm
