The Fighter

“Fans of Palahniuk and Irvine Welsh will relish the graphic fight sequences and gritty social commentary.”—*Rocky Mountain News*

“How to Allocate Your Free Time This Month[:] Devouring Craig Davidson’s gruesome debut novel, *The Fighter*.”—*Esquire*

“This is more than a stunning debut. It reminds me how vacuous, banal and insipid most highly-touted fiction is. Craig Davidson asks—and answers—some big, uncomfortable questions about the nature of our humanity. *The Fighter* is an essential novel, destined for cult status at the very least.”—Irvine Welsh

“While the novel’s brutal fights will entice readers of other virile allegories like Chuck Palahniuk’s *Fight Club*, Davidson’s story takes a more nuanced, realistic approach.”—*Kirkus Reviews*

Everything has been handed to Paul Harris, the son of a wealthy southern Ontario businessman. But after a vicious beating shakes his world, he descends into the realm of hardcore bodybuilders and boxing gyms, seeking to become a real man, reveling in suffering.

Rob Tully, a working-class teenager from upstate New York, is a born boxer. He trains with his father and uncle, who believe a gift like his can change their lives, but he struggles under the weight of their expectations. Inevitably, these two young men’s paths will cross.

**Craig Davidson** was born in Toronto and now lives in Calgary, Alberta. He is the author of the acclaimed short story collection *Rust and Bone*, which was published by W.W. Norton in the United States, Penguin in Canada, Albin Michel in France, and Picador in the United Kingdom.

*From the Trade Paperback edition.*