Customer Reviews

The Overlook Martial Arts Reader

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A strong sampling of some of the best martial arts books around really speak to the reader. There are 4 sections, titled:

Part 1: Culture and Conflict: The Histories
Part 2: Master and Students: The Philosophy
Part 3: Training and Discipline: The Way
Part 4: Other Aspects

Each section includes some of the finest writing on the martial arts I've ever read. I own many of the books that are exerpted here and was introduced to others in these pages.

Authors include E.J. Harrison, C.W. Nicol, Eugen Herrigel, Herman Kauz, Maxine Hong Kingston, Dave Lowry, Terry Dobson, T.T. Liang, and Linda Atkinson.

This book provides portions (usually a chapter) from the writings of martial artists. Some of the authors are founders of systems, such as Jigoro Kano and Gichin Funakoshi. I found many of the writings to be very insightful and they seemed to have more depth than many of the martial arts writings that you see today.

This book is a collection of some of the finest martial arts writings, skillfully compiled into 4 sections. The sections explain the history, practice, philosophy, and influence, of the martial arts. The authors include Confucius, Miyamoto Musashi, T. T. Liang, and more. This is the most informative book on the martial arts that I have ever read. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in martial arts in any way!