Each year, readers, writers, and critics alike anticipate Thomas Hauser's newest collection of articles about the contemporary boxing scene. Protect Yourself at All Times offers a behind-the-scenes look at Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor, dressing room reports from big fights, and compelling portraits of luminaries like Muhammad Ali.

Boxing fans know Hauser from his extraordinary biography Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times (1991) and from this annual series, which details the previous year in boxing and typically includes some always-meaty profiles. This year’s edition opens with a dual profile of two charismatic boxers of the 2000s, Jermain Taylor and Kelly Pavlik. Both held titles, and both succumbed to the pitfalls that often await successful young boxers: too much fame and money too soon, and a support team unable or unwilling to say no when things start veering out of control. This piece is Hauser in a nutshell: compassion, character, and context. He also includes some lighter reminiscences, such as a story about the time Ali awoke to an elephant in the yard of his Michigan home. There’s also a conversation Hauser had with Russian boxer Wladimir Klitschko in which they discussed Pythagoras and agreed it is probably a rare topic among boxers and the journalists who follow them. On the more reportorial front, he explores concussion-based CTE as it manifests itself in boxing and looks at the curious doings of state boxing commissions. As always, an annual delight." —Wes Lukowsky, Booklist, August 2018