Customer Reviews

Joy of Sumo

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm living in Japan and I became interested in sumo mainly because of my high school judo background. To get to know the sport I read all the English sumo books I could get my hands on, plus some Japanese books as well. Books written by total nerds, books that try to make sumo look cute and taffy, books that are info-packed but drier than the Sahara, books that give the wrong info, all kinds of books. And I tell you, the JOY OF SUMO is what you got to have to make you fall in love with the sport and the athletes in it. It glorifies the sport for what it is--a grand sport for everyone, and you don't have to go lick the toes of the rikishi in order to be a part of the wonderful world of sumo. It is the ideal book for anyone getting a little bit interested in sumo, or for "old" fans like me who read all the nerdy or syrupy books first and then wondered how these authors/experts could write in so boring and dry a manner about a sport that is bristling with life. To counter this, Benjamin and Holfeld put together a fun-filled, action-packed, thoroughly engaging book on sumo, and once you start reading you won't want to stop. The book puts sumo in a wonderfully new dimension--as a cool sport that is very much alive and very real and in touch with reality and full of athletes to get to know and like/dislike.

Sick of the sumo nerds? I am, and this book does absolute justice to sumo as a sport. Thinking of sumo as a mysterious cultural experience? Well, come live in Japan for some years and you'll soon get sick and tired of that point of view, so buy the JOY OF SUMO and learn about sumo in a way that you'll never ever get sick and tired.

Ok, so I don't know much about Sumo. But I like to think I do. I have seen a couple matches on Japanese TV, and have my favorites. But when I saw this book, I had to have it. It is the perfect book for the person that wants to know more about sumo, but does not want a technical manual. Sumo is supposed to be fun, and this book reflects it beutifully. Every page has great humor and is thoroughly informing. The author truly loves the sport for that sole reason, it is a sport, it is to be fun, and boy does the book reflect it. It forgoes all the useless vocabulary and the trifle things that trully don't matter to the essence of the sport and gets down to what it is. How it feels. Most of the know how to the game of Sumo that I know comes from this book. And if your wanting to know more or want a good sports read, I deeply recomend this. Written in 1991, it is getting a little dated, but still worth it.

Sumo is one of those sports that it is difficult to take seriously at first by gaijin. Unless you are into shinto, you will have great difficulty understading all of the symbolism etc. in a sumo tournament. You will probably turn to one of the authoritative guides to the Sport, a big mistake, because those authors take the sport much more seriously than you will be able to.

Turn instead to the Joy of Sumo. Written by an American journalist who lives in Japan, this book treats the sport from a fan's perspective. It makes Sumo fun to watch, and still will answer most of your questions.
What is that ref doing? Why is he yelling? Why don't they squash him?
Why do Sumo wrestlers throw matches?
What are the different winning moves?
Why are they so fa-at?

This book still makes me laugh after 10 years of reading it!

I'm only 12 years old, so I'm not really sure how to write a proper review, so just bear with me. I had to make some type of sport magazine for school, and dad was really interested in sumo and had a few books; The Joy of Sumo being one of them. So I decided to do a sumo magazine. One of the things we had to do for it was to write a book review on a book relating to that sport. I'd already read The Joy of Sumo and decided it was worth writng a review about it. We had to rate it, so,seriously, I gave it 5 stars because I like it so much. I think dad bought it from Amazon..... Oh well. Now to actually start writing: The best parts in the book I think are "the Grouping Urge" chapter and the description of the match between Chiyonofuji(is he not a legend! ) and Asahifuji in the 1990 Nagoya basho. It was very cleverly written. Well, I hope this is good enough, because I have to go now!

I've lost my copy of this book, so must add it my Amazon Wish List!

I've read Joy of Sumo, and favourite pieces from it dozens of times. It's not only valuable for clearly explaining a lot of the terms, but also for the passion and humour with which its written.

And the sketches are priceless :) !

Small enough to carry as a read on the bus, but we warned: you'll get funny looks as you laugh out loud, wiping away the tears ...

What a weird, wacky, terrific book this is. Yes, you'll enjoy it if you're curious about Sumo. But if you love sports in general, you'll be thoroughly drawn in by David Benjamin's musings on the strange, funny battlefield that is Sumo. A quick summary of the ground he covers -

- Sumo looks bizarre on the surface, but to know it is to love it! A weird lens on Japanese thinking, playing and being.
- The kooky crowd scene.
- The fun of christening the wrestlers ("rikishi") with a memorable, fitting nickname (the "Goldfish", the "Sweaty One")
- The four main "species" of rikishi ("Jocks", "Hippos", "Butterballs", "Cabdrivers")
- The tournament structure, including the backroom politics
- The ritualistic behaviors before combat - foot stomping, salt tossing, etc.
- Why rikishi sometimes throw a match, and why it's ok!
- The explosive moment of combat (at last)! The nifty parallels to a Western gunfight and football linemen.
- The ornamental, pajama-clad referees.
- The importance of concealing emotions - in victory or defeat!
- Career highs and lows of a rikishi.
- The lame use of statistics, and Benjamin's own creative ideas of how to invigorate Sumo with new stats.

Above all, if you're interested in Asian culture, and Japanese culture especially, I think you'll love this book. It's really like no other sports book I've read, in the best of ways.