The Champion

by Carman Licciardello

Former cruiserweight champion of the world, Orlando Leone, Jr., must come out of retirement to redeem an impossible situation. In his night job as head of security, Orlando must subdue the current champion at a party. Cameras flash, and within minutes, Orlando's life is changed forever. Leone is dragged into the fight of his life.

The champ wants revenge, his manager wants to reap the financial reward, and Leone must come out of retirement, against his will. The Champion will let you witness one of the most brutal fistic battles the ring has ever seen. A clash against love and greed, light and darkness, hope and fear, you can be the judge...

Genres: Fiction

220 pages, Paperback

First published November 15, 2000

About the author

Born January 19, 1956 in Trenton, New Jersey to Domenic and Nancy Licciardello. When he was 20 years old he moved to Las Vegas to pursue a music career. Soon after his move to Las Vegas he attended an Andrae Crouch concert where he embraced Evangelical Christianity. From then on he has only sang for the Glory of God. He has since relocated to Tulsa, Oklahoma. He has recieved 15 gold and platinum albums and videos and has sold over 10 million records. Carman holds the record for the largest solo Contemporary Christian concerts in history. 80,000 attendees in at a Charlotte, NC show. 71,132 at Texas Stadium. Also the largest ticketed solo Christian concert with 50,000 people in Johannesburg, South Africa. He continues to be the only stadium act in Christian music history. Not only is he a singer, but he is an actor, evangelist, author, rapper, and television show host for TBN's Praise the Lord. He has written 2 novels, The Champion, based on his film, Carman: The Champion and Undefeated in Love and War which is loosely based on The Champion as well. Carman has released 25 studio albums. GMA Dove Award winner. Grammy Nominated. He has hosted his own variety series called Time 2 on TBN. He has appeared in 4 films. He currently has started a new ministry called For Real, For Now. He still performs to this day. He is a cultural phenomenon in Contemporary Christian Music. And he does it for Jesus Christ.

Reviews

[Nadine Keels · Rating 2 out of 5]

After his last fight turned him away from the world of professional boxing, Orlando took his cruiserweight title and retired to run a youth mission. But when a hotel incident leaves the world's current heavyweight champion in want of revenge against Orlando, an old legal agreement forces the retiree back into the ring in The Champion by author Carman Licciardello.

While Christian pop culture (especially from the '90s) knew Carman as a music artist and evangelist, I was curious when I found out he authored this 2001 novel that a movie by the same name is based upon. Though I wasn't a fan of the movie when I saw it years ago, my longtime ChristFic-loving self wanted to see how the book would compare.

Although the writing is grammatically correct, much about the novel's style is like that of a beginner. There are far more dialogue tags than necessary, and the characters say each other's names over and over while they talk to each other. The story is full of clichés, from the preaching/evangelizing to the characterizations, and there's no subtlety as the narrator offers commentary about the characters, especially as the story keeps patting the hero on the back for his range of virtues and accomplishments.

The love story is poorly developed and reads like another accomplishment for Orlando: "God had meant for them to be together... She was His gift for a job well done." And a joke from the hero about his need for sex serves as the lead-in to his marriage proposal to the beautiful woman God is rewarding him with for living a good life.

Plot wise, I found the read to be slow. But I stuck with it because it isn't a long novel and the ramping-up of the boxing side of the plot got me interested enough at the halfway point to keep reading through to the end.

This author wrote another boxing novel before his passing. Although it's unlikely that I'll check that one out, I'm glad I gave this earlier one a look as I continue my journey through ChristFic old and new.

[Alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is definitely better than the movie. I think it's because books have more detail than the movie does. This book is a must read!! You'll laugh, cry! And I have to say the ending made me cry! I was literally in tears!! Great book!! Good job Carman!!

[Belinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. I read the book and watched the movie. I liked the book lots better. Carman shows his fans that he has a variety of talents. I was laughing and crying while reading this book. It was great.

[Jessica Lambert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book! Even better than the movie. Characters very well written, and the story pacing is perfect. Fight scenes are well written. There is a large religious component to the book that might not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is well done.

[Kristy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was better than the movie. I've heard some people compare this to Rocky...um, NO, it could never compare to that. But overall, it was a good story.