Book Review: Blood and Fire: The Unbelievable Real-Life Story of Wrestling's Original Sheik by Brian R. Solomon (2022)

Synopsis: To those closest to him, he was Eddie Farhat, a son of Arab immigrants, a World War II veteran and a card-carrying member of the United Auto Workers union. To the rest of the world, Farhat would become known as The Sheik, a professional wrestler who didn't speak English and a history of goring his opponents with pencils and other foreign objects. This non-fiction book covers his wrestling career, including overseeing one of the most successful wrestling promotions in American history.

Review: I don't think I've ever been anything more than a casual professional wrestling fan and, other than putting it on for background noise when there's nothing else on, rarely even watch it today. However, as someone who loves history, I do have an appreciation for the earlier years of the industry, especially the people who both helped it grow into what it is today and went to great lengths to hide the fact it was a scripted sport. So, when I came across Blood and Fire at the library, I decided to give it a read.

Farhat/The Sheik was a bit before my time as far as wrestling goes, with him being past his peak before I was born and wrestling his last matches when I was in kindergarten. However, I had heard of him and the Michigan-based Big Time Wrestling promotion he ran for many years. After reading this book, I gained a whole new appreciation for both the man and the character he portrayed.

I found this book was worth reading for a couple different reasons. One, Farhart's life was an interesting one. I especially loved how he was born and raised in the Detroit area but still managed to convince people he was a foreign heel. This included the choice to live his life as The Sheik even when he wasn't in the ring and keeping even some of his own family members in the dark about professional wrestling's secrets. I also thought the part about him choosing to crown a Black champion in support of the Civil Rights Movement was pretty cool.

The author does a good job of finding the balance between showing the reader he is a fan of the person he's writing about but still not shying away from talking about Farhat's ultimate decline, mistakes and misfortunes. This included a discussion about how, had certain circumstances gone differently, Big Time Wrestling might have been as successful as the present-day World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) instead of folding like most of the other smaller promotions that used to dominate the industry.

The other thing I liked about the book is it gives quite a bit of insight into the territory years of professional wrestling, explaining the advantages and disadvantages of being part of the National Wrestling Alliance and demonstrating the cutthroat nature of the industry, especially when rogue promotions tried to force their way into another promotion's region. 

If all you've ever known is the modern, national version of professional wrestling, this is a good book to get a detailed history lesson from, both for the industry itself and learning about one of the people who helped shape it.

Final Opinion: This is an entertaining and informative book I'd recommend reading even if you aren't a professional wrestling fan. There is a lot of information I didn't know, and it is told in a way that really grabs your attention throughout.

My Grade: A

______________________________________________________

Book Review: Job Man by Chris Multerer with Larry Widen (2019)

Book Review: Brothers in Arms by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anthony Walton (2004)

Book Review: Women in White Coats by Olivia Campbell (2021)

Book Review: Sgt. Reckless: America's War Horse by Robin Hutton (2014)