Craig Davidson came out swinging last year with the short story collection Rust and Bone, which featured tales of dog fighting, boxers, porn stars and magicians. Can-lit it was not. Now, just a year later, Davidson has returned with The Fighter, a bloody, darkly funny novel about two young men trying to find their place in the world. Davidson gained national attention for the launch party of his novel, when he stepped inside the ring......

How’s that for a sports headline? Last night Toronto was witness to one of the most anticipated (and creative) book launches the city has seen in ages. What happened? Author Craig Davidson celebrated the release of his new novel, The Fighter, by getting in a fight, taken on poet Michael Knox in a three-round boxing match. Florida Jack’s Boxing Club was at capacity for the event, with media swarming around the ring and the many......

Or was that I went to a boxing match and a reading broke out? Or both? Torontoist thinks you should wander over to Florida Jack's Boxing Club (782 Yonge St) tonight (7:00) to find out which one. Penguin is launching Craig Davidson's new novel the Fighter, about the world of bare knuckle boxing. Have all those mid-Western nights softened up the baby-faced Craig Davidson. Will steel-town born poet Mike Knox show us how they fight......

Excuse me for the lateness of this week’s listing. I’m still on Nuit Blanche time. And yes, I made it until 7am. This is an absolutely fantastic week for word nerds. And check this – if one of your friends is more into sports, you can bring them to a literary event disguised as a boxing match. For a boxing fan like me, it doesn't get any better. Tomorrow at noon, there’s a special launch......

Put Up Your Dukes Before I get to this week’s listings, here’s an upcoming event that might interest some of you. First it was German director Uwe Boll challenging movie critics to fight him in Vancouver, now author Craig Davidson (author of last year’s criminally underrated collection, Rust and Bone) will fight willing pugilists at the Toronto launch of his forthcoming novel, The Fighter. The date of the bout is yet to be determined,......