I can't say that I had particularly high hopes for this when I bought it. I thought wrestling was 1970s World of Sport, or WWF/WWE. I realise now that I was so out of touch. This is a highly personal journey about charting the cultural importance of wrestling via an exploration of grappling stlyes in India, Mongolia, Brazil etc and putting it into some kind of context within todays society. Its written in a very engaging style and I really couldn't put it down- wrestling is so totally misunderstood- I'm a convert into finding out more. Very good, very recommended, both funny and touching at times.
I'd also recommend Mark Laws 'The Pyjama Game' about judo- a good companion piece
Fantastic travelogue-cum-sports book (Rating 5 of 5)
» Hywel
Evocative and interesting throughout, this book suprised me in that I am a fan of certain aspects of its content but by no means an afficionado of the areas covered. I expected to flick through the chapters to find the bits I was interested in, but found the journey Trower undertakes to be as interesting as the people he meets and the sights and sounds he recounts.
Its not every day you find a book that takes in Mongolia, India, Australia, Brazil and Nigeria throughout the course of its pages, but this fantastic volume encompasses all of these and more. Just as interesting is Trower's own personal journey against an unknown and debilitating illness.
Highly recommended
Unique, funny and about a lot more than wrestling (Rating 5 of 5)
» D Eccles
Wrestling is not one of my favourite sports and at first glance I didn't think that The Last Wrestlers would be my kind of book. From the opening sentences, however, my interest was captured. I found the author's dogged singlemindedness, his tenacity and his determination to prove that wrestling and the cultural life of a country were closely linked, remarkable. Throughout, Trower involves his reader in the sights, sounds and characters of the countries he visits and in the frustrations he feels. His dry sense of humour and excellent style of writing place this book well above the average. There has never been a book about wrestling remotely like this before, and it is doubtful if there will ever be another. It is unique
In search of a lost sport (Rating 5 of 5)
» T. Bently
"The Last Wrestlers" is one man's highly personal account of sporting obsession. Marcus Trower, rather like the characters in "Fight Club", despised his office job and lives for submssion wrestling. When a bout of ill health forces him to give up this physical outlet he embarks on a world tour to investigate the place of wrestling in other cultures where it is more highly valued than in Britain, where it's very much a minority pursuit.
Trower's interest and expertise in wrestling acts as a kind of visa enabling him to connect with people from a variety of different countries. In India, Mongolia, Brazil, Nigeria and Portsmouth pier, the author is able to gain access to people whose experience of life is very different to our own. I particularly enjoyed his skirmishes with interpreters, from an extrovert Nigerian academic to a former beauty queen who is possibly the worst person to choose to gain access to the celebrities which wrestlers are in Mongolian society.
I love Trower's turn of phrase. Modern gyms are, "a cross between an office, a show kitchen and a nightclub where everyone dances alone", in contrast to the feeling of fraternity he encounters in wrestling clubs.
There is also a kind of haplessness as he faces a bizarre range of replies to a Time Out ad for training partners, is forced to bathe in the Ganges out of an English sense of politeness and has to decide how many bottles of vodka to give as bribes to his interviewees.
At times the book is so detailed it may fail to hold the interest of non-wrestlers. But I found it immensely enjoyable and unexpectedly touching. Trower is a good writer and his mission is so obviously heartfelt that I was genuinely sad when it came to an end
At last, an inteligent book about a much misunderstood sport (Rating 5 of 5)
» A. Shaylor
Just finished reading this wonderful book. Its much more than a book about the ancient craft of wrestling. Its funny, its sad and it is beautifully crafted. This is a very honest book, that is clearly a very personal journey for Mr Trower. You get a real feel for the people and places that he travels to, and at no point do you get the sense that he has missed an opportunity to get to the bottom of his quest. The images that he provides in the countries he travels to are so vivid, I felt I was there with him, and indeed, I wish I had been. I have read a number of books in the last year. This is the best
(Rating 5 of 5)
