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White Collar Boxing: One Man's Journey from the Office to the Ring
by John E. Oden
Product Group: Book
Publisher: Hatherleigh (2005-11-15)
ISBN: 1578262070
EAN: 9781578262076
Dewey Decimal #: 796.830973
Binding/Media: Hardcover - 288 pages
Release Date: 2005-10-06
SKU: 071121001
Condition: Used: Very Good
Comments: This First Printing is in excellent condition. No visible markings, underlining, highlights, tears. Tight text and spine. Clean Hard Cover. Dust Jacket has light to minimum shelf/edge wear. Remarkable copy, worth having at an affordable price. (L 33)
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Editorial Reviews
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Product Description
Fists, fury and the sweet science of white collar boxing.
From elite boarding schools to executive boardrooms, white collar boxing has never been more popular. With its roots in the English aristocracy, the "Sweet Science" is gaining fans among the alpha males (and females) of industry, banking, finance, and law.
Now white collar boxer John Oden traces the history of the sport from organized bouts at English boarding schools in the 19th Century to today's brawls between stockbrokers and bankers. Along the way he details his own transformation from a milquetoast investment banker to "The Pecos Kid," one of the most fearsome white collar boxers in New York.
Boxing legends Gerry Cooney and trainer Emanuel Steward, among others, have enthusiastically embraced white collar boxing. At the intersection of professional and amateur boxing, it has inspired men and women from many different walks of life to participate in the ancient sport.
Each month, bouts are scheduled in the glistening hubs of finance from London to New York—black-tie charity events where some of the world's most powerful businesspeople battle each other into submission. White Collar Boxing is a compelling look at one man's odyssey through this growing phenomenon. 8 page photo insert.
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Customer Reviews
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"Macho, Macho Man... He's Got to be...a Macho Man!"
Rating  (4)
Date: 2007-01-17
2 out of 3 customers found this reveiw helpful
Packs a punch. Hedge fund Wall Streeter John Oden pursues his Walter Mitty fantasy of lacing up the boxing gloves. Actually, he turns out to be very good at it and gives a passionate case for why the sport is a great avenue to fitness and self-knowledge. (A good riff and chapter on Bruce Lee as an inspiration!)
Two comments -- Oden says nothing about a wife and kids. The committment needed to be an effective boxer -- even a white collar boxer -- may be unrealistic for those with family responsibilities.
Second, Oden does have an occasional annoying habit to name-drop about the famous people he knows or the post fight limo rides to sumptuous NYC restaurants.
With all this, I still found it an absorbing read.....
Geezer jocks of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose ... except some flab or an occasional black eye!!
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A Remarkable Contender!!!
Rating  (5)
Date: 2006-07-18
1 out of 3 customers found this reveiw helpful
John Oden's 'White Collar Boxing' is an inspirational read. It speaks of one man's journey into the ring while providing a peek into the entire world and culture of White Collar Boxing.
This man's story both encourages and captivates the reader. Each chapter is complete, informative and educational. Oden writes with clarity and knowledge. It clearly shines through in his historical account of the "Sweet Science". This chapter is one of the best and most comprehensive I have read on the history of boxing.
Chapter 16, entitled "Emanuel and Me", truly epitomizes the special relationship between an athlete and coach. This entertaining chapter clearly demonstrates the author's self discipline and confirms that he is not only a competitor but a true professional, both in the ring and out of it (where he is money manager by day). John Oden proves that anything is possible and goals can be attained.
This book is a must for all boxing --correction, make that all sports-- fans and an essential addition to any library. My advice is to find a quiet place and prepare to read this one all the way through in one sitting. By the end, you may want to go back and reread every page, as I have. You won't be disappointed!
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More like One Man's Journey to Self-Obsession
Rating  (2)
Date: 2006-06-22
5 out of 6 customers found this reveiw helpful
The book starts off well enough with an interesting exploration of Oden's childhood. It also contains some interesting historical facts relating to boxing and gives some sense of what it's like to enter the world of white collar boxing.
Unfortunately, instead of letting the boxing emerge through Oden, Oden emerges through the boxing. This probably should have been a self-published work that he sent to his friends along with his boxing glove endorsed Christmas cards and other mementos of his boxing (yes, it's true, he really does send such self-promoting cards). The low point for me was when one of the greatest trainers in the world told him that Oden's 3 round bout ranked fifth (as I recall) in the trainer's list of greatest matches, somewhere just below Ali vs. Fraser. I mean, come on, get serious.
Anisi's book is much, much better (and his ego appears much, much smaller). I suspect Anisi could also pound Oden into the mat, but that's another story.
Should you buy this book? Probably if you're really into boxing. Better to borrow it if you can.
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A great personal and boxing success story
Rating (5)
Date: 2006-06-05
0 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
I should disclose that although I have not seen John Oden in years, many years ago we were close friends- we both lived in the same neighborhood in Manhattan and one summer shared a beach house in the Hamptons with 20 other New Yorkers. In addition to partying hard with John(we were both a lot younger),I was also involved in several business ventures in NY and Dallas with John. John is one of the most honest, hard working, generous, and reliable people I've ever met. He's the one friend we all would like to have. The thing I enjoyed most about the book is how inspirational it is, both from a boxing and personal career perspective. The author does a good job telling how he made his way from a very small town in Texas to becoming a partner in a major NY investment firm, and along the way helped put white collar boxing on the map. I can recall an incident years ago, when I was living in San Francisco-I was able to convince my girlfriend to let me attend one of John's famous weekend Mahattan parties. Before the party, we worked out at the New York Athletic Club, and just in passing, John said "I think I might sign up for some boxing lessons." I thought he was joking, but apparently he was not. The book is not written from the perspective of a professional boxer, but instead from the point of view of a guy, with a full-time professional job, who decides to jump into a totally unfamiliar area of life-boxing, and through shear drive and persistance, succeeds, and in a big way. The book includes a good amount of white collar boxing detail- its history, the boxers, the trainers, the Hollywood connection, the boxing gyms, training programs, fight night, the international boxing competitions, etc, but I think this book could be enjoyed by any regular guy or gal who has a dream to reach out and explore a totally new realm. A great book for anyone who has ever said, " I can't do that, I don't have the time, I don't have the talent, people will think I'm crazy."
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Hello, John!
Rating (5)
Date: 2006-05-05
0 out of 5 customers found this reveiw helpful
I will order this book immediately! I grew up with John Oden in Pecos, Texas, and I don't even have to read it to know it's a good one!!!
Suzanne Barker Massey
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