Mr Gildea, a talented sports journalist with a ready following among American readers, is nostalgic for the days when crowds of 125, 000 jammed into wooden stadiums to watch prizefights although not, of course, for the racism that then infected this and other sports.

ECONOMIST: The black white hope

Between smartphones, tablets and e-readers, we're becoming a society that's ready to kill even a few seconds of boredom with a tap on a touchscreen.

CNN: Have smartphones killed boredom (and is that good)?

Billionaire money manager and Forbes columnist Kenneth Fisher put his readers on notice in a recent column: "Get ready for this bull market's second leg, " he wrote.

FORBES: Magazine Article

But also French and Italian readers will be able shortly to read books in their languages, thanks to other agreements that are almost ready to be formalized.

ENGADGET: Acer's 6-inch LumiRead to offer Barnes and Noble ebooks, ISBN scanner