Jonathan Snowden: 4 books

Since the beginning of time, men have engaged in hand-to-hand combat. In Ancient Greece, they called it Pankration, a no-holds-barred battle. Over time, one complete combat system was replaced by a variety of limited ones like karate, boxing, and wrestling. In the modern age this created an eternal...

“Did you see the big fight this weekend?” The question used to be about boxing matches when the giants of the fight world were Mike Tyson and Roy Jones. Now fans are leaving the sweet science in droves for the combat sport of the future: mixed martial arts (MMA). MMA has drawn millions on cable...

The secret history of the real fighters in pro wrestling Shooters recounts the stories of athletes like Brock Lesnar and Gene LeBell, men who have lived their lives on the border between &ldquo:works” and “shoots,” between the routines of the professional wrestling circuit and the...

The urgent demand for housing after World War I fueled a boom in residential construction that led to historic peaks in home ownership. Foreclosures at the time were rare, and when they did happen, lenders could quickly recoup their losses by selling into a strong market. But no mortgage system is...