Wrighty's Reads

I was fortunate enough to meet Zeke Wilson in person. I stop by the local Dunkin' Donut shop to use the high speed internet connection and often run into the same people. I exchanged pleasantries with Zeke and his family several times before we actually introduced ourselves. They are friendly, kind and always happy to chat with everyone around them. Eventually he mentioned that he had written a book and I mentioned that I had a blog. He shared highlights of his fascinating story and offered me a copy to review.I'm not really a fan of boxing so I wasn't sure if I would be that interested, but this isn't your typical fight story. Divided into eight different "rounds", each one details parts of Zeke's life. He was raised by his hard working, single mother. As the youngest of seven children, he was taught to persevere and never give up, lessons that would serve him well over the years. While serving in the Marine Corp. in the 70s he began an extremely successful boxing career. At the age of 23 he fought for the first time as a pro. After amassing an amazing winning record, Zeke decided to become a businessman. He began to train other fighters and promote their matches. In 1996, after an event was suddenly canceled by the state boxing commission, it became obvious that he was facing same race discrimination.Zeke, his wife Connie and his young daughter Flo then began a five year battle against government officials who had misused their power. In this powerful autobiography, Wilson writes an eloquent account of his journey and how he battled and won without representation or a college education. Despite threats to his own bi-racial family and financial hardship, Zeke soldiered on and can now add author to his long list of accomplishments. Not only is his story captivating but his use of clippings from newspaper articles, family photos and promotional artwork makes it even more interesting. My favorite added feature is the inspirational quotes listed at the end of each chapter. Congratulations on a job well done Mr. Wilson!Thank you to the Wilson family for providing me with a review copy of this book.