Wrestling Memoirs

By age seven, Rebecca Quin, now known in the ring as Becky Lynch, was already defying what the world expected of her. Raised in Dublin, Ireland in a devoutly Catholic family, Rebecca constantly invented new ways to make her mother worry - roughhousing with the neighbourhood kids, getting older and hosting secret parties while her parents were away, enrolling in a warehouse wrestling school, nearly breaking her neck and almost kneecapping a WWE star before her own wrestling career even began - and she was always in search of a thrilling escape from the ordinary.

In Tod is God—so named for a chant the ECW fans created to honor the founder—Gordon chronicles each step of the company's meteoric rise to prominence, as well as the elements that led to his removing himself from the company before its demise. Gordon's former partnership with ECW booker Paul Heyman made for magical TV and in-ring moments. The friendship between Gordon and Heyman, both a blessing and curse, was the once-in-a-lifetime bond responsible for so many of history's greatest teams, bands, and partners.

Even in his heyday in wrestling, Jacobs was inspired to pursue politics by popular libertarian figures such as former Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, Republican Senator Rand Paul, Fox News' Judge Andrew Napolitano and others, and that led him to fulfill his own political ambitions. The wrestler-turned-politician hasn't hung up his wrestling boots yet. Politics is a contact sport and Jacobs is using his wrestling skills in that arena. Jacobs supports President Trump and his agenda, and is implementing conservative policies in Tennessee.

Coach Shegog, as we still call him today, is one of the oldest living people with HIV. He received his diagnosis in 1986, five years before Magic Johnson. Treatment and outcomes during this time were so poor that contracting the virus was a death sentence. Coach Shegog lost numerous loved ones to the virus and he suffered multiple bouts with the often fatal opportunistic pneumonias. ˃˃˃ Yet he persisted. Driven by his passion for wrestling, he needed to make sure his students were on track with their classes, able to graduate high school, and ready to continue their postgraduate pursuits...

William "Haystacks" Calhoun is an instantly recognizable name to any wrestling fan. A legend in his own time, Haystacks popularized the country-bumpkin wrestler shtick and used his personality to win big both at the box-office and in the hearts of fans. Behind the overalls though, was a man who as a child had an enormous appetite and few prospects until he discovered the sport that would change his life - professional wrestling.

Exploring the steroid-fueled world of professional wrestling, this riveting chronicle lays bare the devastating events that led to the 2007 murder-suicide of Chris Benoit, his wife Nancy, and their seven-year-old son, Daniel.

International pro wrestling star Jeff Bearden has gone by many names: Butch Masters, Giant Warrior, Big Tiger Steele, and Colossus the Gladiator. Under these guises, he became part of wrestling history. Enter the wild, bloody life of pro wrestling during its Golden Age, from the viewpoint of one of its “biggest” stars. At seven feet tall, Jeff Bearden towered over his competition from the time he premiered in territory wrestling in 1987, through the crazed and dangerous wrestling scenes, infamy, and championships.

Virtually every big name in wrestling in the second half of the 20th Century crossed paths with "Ms. Christine," as she was known to most. If they followed her rules, Christine "Teeny" Jarrett probably taught them a thing or two about staying out of trouble and saving money for a rainy day. If they got out of line, they likely faced The Grip. Over the course of her 50-year career in wrestling, Teeny worked her way from selling tickets in the back of a Nashville, Tennessee shoe store to running a network of towns for Nick Gulas and Roy Welch...

Dedicated to the memory of two wrestling coaches and two writer friends, The Imaginary Girlfriend is John Irving's candid memoir of his twin careers in writing and wrestling. The award-winning author of best-selling novels from The World According to Garp to In One Person, Irving began writing when he was 14, the same age at which he began to wrestle at Exeter. He competed as a wrestler for 20 years, was certified as a referee at 24, and coached the sport until he was 47.

One of the key professional wrestling or "sports entertainment" writers, Vince Russo helped pen modern wrestling's most electric storylines. Revealing the true, behind-the-scenes stories from some of wrestling's most famous moments, including Bret Hart's lost championship and the rise to superstardom of Stone Cold Steve Austin, Mick Foley, and The Rock, this autobiography is the one that every wrestling fan has been waiting for.

While most of Postl's adult life has been spent in the wild world of the wrestling industry, his is more than a story of a little person's journey through a world of giants; it's a memoir of elation and anguish, triumph and disappointment, and of how an endlessly positive outlook combined with the unwavering support of family and friends helped a long shot become a success in his industry and a loving, responsible father.

A groundbreaking book about the modern presidency, The Clinton Tapes invites readers into private dialogue with a gifted, tormented, resilient President of the United States. Here is what President Clinton thought and felt but could not say in public. This book rests upon a secret project, initiated by Clinton, to preserve for future historians an unfiltered record of presidential experience.

Born without arms or legs below his elbows and knees, Kyle Maynard excels as a champion athlete, inspirational speaker, college student, and male model. No Excuses is his inspirational autobiography that shows how a positive, can-do attitude gives someone we might see as disadvantaged the advantage over life.

At the age of eight, Michael Bisping began his training in martial arts. By the time he was 15, he was fighting in his first no holds barred competition. When he turned professional and joined the UFC he was sure about one thing: only a world championship title would do. A British underdog in the greatest fighting championship on earth, he spent the next decade winning some of the championship’s most sensational contests to achieve his dream, becoming the first ever British UFC world champion in 2016.

For 21 years, Dan Russell trained for four to six hours a day, six days a week in pursuit of winning an Olympic Gold medal in the sport of wrestling. He pushed his body to the limits, enduring brutal weight loss regimens, shattering injuries, personal tragedy, and constant inner battles with the voices from his past telling him that he wasn't good enough.

As one of the NHL's most polarizing players, Sean Avery turned the rules of professional hockey on their head. For 13 seasons, he played for some of the most storied franchises in the league, including the Detroit Red Wings, the Los Angeles Kings, and the New York Rangers, making his mark in each city as a player who was sometimes loved, sometimes despised, and always controversial. In Offside, Avery displays his trademark candor about the world of pro hockey and does for it what Jim Bouton's game-changing Ball Four did for baseball.

From the moment she burst onto the UFC scene, Ronda Rousey was unbeatable. She repeatedly strung together back-to-back flawless victories, racking up a collection of records and forever changing the face of sports as the UFC’s first female champion. A superstar in her sport, she transcended athletics, appearing in blockbuster films and becoming a role model for women everywhere. Then, on November 15, 2015, it all came crashing down. Rousey explores the greatest challenge of her life and, ultimately, how she rebuilt her career into something better in the aftermath, including dominating WWE.

In 1984, John Hanrahan was featured in Interview magazine's iconic Olympic Issue as one of America's top athletes vying for a spot on the US Olympic Team. He had come within a point of defeating the mighty Soviet world medalist and had defeated other prominent world competitors. He was within reach of a lifetime dream, but then abandoned the Final Trials. He was nowhere to be found. He hadn't exactly fallen off the face of the earth, but he'd become a full-blown drug addict, unable to face his competition, and unwilling to confront the truth of his situation.

Great insight into Dan Gable's life and what made him a Champion of Champions. Dan Gable won all of his high school and college wrestling matches except the last one, and then went on to win an Olympic wrestling title wtthout giving up a point. He later became coach at the University of Iowa and led Hawkeye wrestlers to NCAA and Olympic titles.

Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of Foxcatcher by Mark Schultz, read by Stephen Mendel. On 22 January 1996, Dave Schultz, Olympic gold medalist and wrestling's golden boy, was shot in the back by John E. du Pont at the famed Foxcatcher estate in Pennsylvania. That started a two-day siege at the ranch before the du Pont family heir was finally captured.