Customer Reviews

Tulku: A Novel of Modern Ninja

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

 

 

Stephen K. Hayes has done what so many other authors and screen writers have failed to do -- he's managed to tell a compelling story about the ninja without raising them to the level of mythic beings or dropping them to the level of incompetent street thugs.

It's really too bad that this book went out of publication, especially since Ninjamania rubbish, like the movie "9 Death of the Ninja," is still in circulation. I'm not saying that this is the best book I've every read, but compared to Sho Kosugi's completely inaccurate portrayals of the ninja, this book is a masterpiece.

If you can find this book ANYWHERE, you truly need to purchase it, new or used or in a file folder on loose-leaf paper. It took me about 6 months to find, and I'm extremely satisfied with the purchase.

The storyline flows very well, and Mr. Hayes offers a unique perspective of the traditional views of good and evil, antagonist and protagonist.

The only weakness I can see in this book, which may in part account for its lack of current publication, is that any reader without some cursory knowledge of ninjutsu and its terminology may be easily confused. At times, especially in the combat scenes, the reader really needs to have a grasp on what the significance of each strike is.

Otherwise, this is the kind of book the ninja community needs more of, now that we've had time to recover from the Ninjamania of the 80's. Great job, Mr. Hayes!! Gambatte!

This book may be a fiction book, however Hayes gives a vivid portrait of ninjutsu through the use of a novel. He weaves historical information throughout the novel. You are able to see ninjutsu in a different light, allowing you to see the inner essence through the story of a modern ninja family. this interplay is great because it gives a depth that you can not readily notice through his technical manuals. A great book, I read it once a month and it inspires me to continue with my training in Budotaijutsu.

I would have given the book 5-stars, however, Mr. Hayes' prose is a bit dense in the early portions of the book and bereft of much dialogue. Other than Tulku, and Kwon (protagonist and antagonist) there is not much characterization created through dialogue. That task is left to the wonderful descriptions of characters.

The story pits modern day ninja, part of a family-run Japanese corporation, against wouldbe terrorists. The 1985 story amazingly still sounds topical today with references to the politics of Kashmir, China, North Korea, and Japan. The book shows a surprising degree of sophistication regarding business dealings, political machinations, electronics technology, tactics, etc. It is as if Mr. Hayes has worked for the CIA himself as a frontline operative.

The best parts of the story for me, as a practitioner of To Shin Do (Mr. Hayes' martial art), were the descriptions of the awareness and kuji kiri abilities cultivated by practitioners of ninjutsu. It was great to hear how he feels intention and great to hear about the potentials remaining to be unlocked within each of us.

As of the writing of this review, Tulku is out of print. Definitely try and find a used copy of this book, especially if you are a practitioner of To Shin Do, Bujinkan, etcetera. Highly recommended.

Jason Voss

First, a word of caution - this book does get graphic and is not recommended for those under 18 or those easily upset by detailed descriptions of various acts of violence. If this were made into a movie (that's true to the book), it would be rated R, possibly NC-17.

As the previous reviewers have already noted, this book is well worth the purchase if you like fiction (espionage, action or thriller).

I think two things make this book great:

1. The depth of knowledge Mr. Hayes possesses about little known aspects of the ninja and of Tibetan Buddhism. He is known mostly for spreading ninpo taijutsu in the West, but also served as the body guard for 14th Dalai Lama and is an ordained Buddhist priest.

2. During many points in the book, I had "Aha!" moments regarding both spirituality and the feelings associated with certain actions (though they're always intertwined). It won't teach you how to be a ninja, but it's an instructional disguised as a work of fiction.

this is one of a the very few pieces of media on the subject of ninjutsu that is written by an authority on the subject. I was fascinated to find that Stephen K. Hayes is such an excellent writer in fiction as well as non fiction.
All of the characters had depth, the plot was excellent & the writing style was captivating also. This is a book that can be enjoyed by anyone that likes thriller or action novels.

I purchased a copy of this book from the good people at Nagoya Antiques. It arrived very quickly vis USPS Priority Mail, even though I only paid for Media Mail. It was very well packaged in bubble wrap and arrived in a box. Upon opening and examining the book I discovered it was in Excellent condition even though it was listed as only Good. This book is very high quality. It made for a terrific read and has a permanent place in my book collection. I would highly recommend you to purchase a copy of this book!