J R

J R is a novel by William Gaddis published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1975. It was the author's second published book, twenty years after his first, and it won the annual U.S. National Book Award for Fiction.

Plot synopsis

J R tells the story of the eponymous J R Vansant, an 11-year-old schoolboy who obscures his identity through payphone calls and postal money orders in order to parlay penny stock holdings into a fortune on paper. The novel broadly satirizes what Gaddis called "the American dream turned inside out". One critic called it "the greatest satirical novel in American literature." Novelist Louis Auchincloss thought it "worthy of Swift."

Literary analysis

The writing style of J R is intended to mimic Gaddis' view of contemporary society: "a chaos of disconnections, a blizzard of noise" The novel is told almost entirely in dialogue, and there is sometimes little indication (other than conversational context) of which character is speaking. (Gaddis later said he did this in order to make the reader a collaborator in the process of creating the characters.) There are also no chapters, with transitions between scenes occurring by way of shifts in focalization: for example, a character who is in a meeting may leave the meeting, get in his car, and drive off, passing, as he does so, another character, who becomes the subject of the next scene without any break in the continuity of the narration (though the novel is written in a discontinuous or fragmentary tone). The novel is thus broken only into French scenes (or perhaps "French chapters"). Gaddis later advised the reader not to put too much effort into figuring out each word but to read the novel at a normal talking speed; "it was the flow that I wanted," he said, "for the readers to read and be swept along -- to participate. And enjoy it. And occasionally chuckle, laugh along the way."

Kell Brook

Ezekiel Brinsly Reid Brook (born 3 May 1986), best known as Kell Brook, is a British professional boxer and the current IBF welterweight champion. At this time he is the highest-ranked welterweight in the world, according to The Ring magazine.BoxRec currently ranks Brook as the second best welterweight in the world and the seventh best, pound for pound.

Professional career

Brook's first fight as a professional took place in September 2004 with a 6 round points victory over experienced journeyman Peter Buckley at the Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield. He would fight again four more times that year to end 2004 with a record of 5-0 in just four months. Brook went about learning his trade against a host of journeymen before getting the opportunity in June 2008 to fight for the British title having compiled a winning record of 16-0.

British Champion

The championship fight at London's York Hall saw Kell Brook take on Welshman Barrie Jones for the vacant crown. The fight was not without controversy however as the previous incumbent, Kevin McIntyre, had been stripped of the title after he sustained an injury and had to pull out of his scheduled defence against the Yorkshireman. Brook ended up winning the vacant belt with a 7th round stoppage of Jones who had come in at relatively short notice.

Errol Spence

Errol Spence, Jr. (born March 3, 1990) is an undefeated American professional boxer in the Welterweight division. Spence was the number one rated amateur boxer at Welterweight and represented the U.S. at the 2012 London Olympics.

Amateur career

Spence won the 2011 U.S. National Champion at Welterweight at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which he had won in 2009 and 2010.

On August 3, 2012 Errol won his fight against Vikas Krishan after the original result was overturned and made it to the quarterfinals of the London Olympics Games.

Professional career

In May 2013, Spence beat Brandon Hoskins at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas, Nevada.

On December 13, 2014, Spence beat Javier Castro by TKO in the 5th round at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada marking one of his best performances to date.

On April 11, 2015 Spence defeated Samuel Vargas by TKO in Round 4 of 10 in a Premier Boxing Champions fight card at Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York, bringing his record to 16-0-0.