Customer Reviews

The Ultimate Martial Arts Q&A Book : 750 Expert Answers to Your Essential Questions

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

 

 

This book is a good background guidebook to the martial arts. It has chapters on Bruce Lee, the martial arts in movies, and discusses karate, tae kwon do, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and others. "The Ultimate Martial Arts Q&A Book" is peppered with interesting facts and photos. For examples, photos of Elvis Presley's $500.00 karate gis are shown (in an era where $500.00 went really far). What this book will not do, however, is teach you techniques or katas, or how to win a fight. A good read for entertainment value.

A solid, direct, and affectionate work, "The Ultimate Martial Arts Q&A Book" will amuse martial art veterans and enlighten beginners. The authors are not afraid to dispel movie generated falsehoods, such as killing with chi powers from across the room, or catching the blade of a "live" sword with a bare hand. The writing reflects not only a love for the martial arts, but also the wisdom that comes from many hours of time devoted to the martial way.

The chapters start by covering by region as diverse a number of arts and schools as possible. The nature of the koryu , as well as the difference between budo and bujutsu are discussed in the chapter on the Japanese arts. When discussing Korean arts, Hwarang-do, Kumdo and Kuk Sool Won are not neglected or ignored, as happens in many other encyclopedia-like books.

The book also includes a very practical chapter on choosing the right martial art school for oneself, The chapter on Bruce Lee best represents this book; it attributes his great power and skill to nothing more mystical than constant training, and shows respect for the man while dispelling the myths. And what do authors Corcoran and Graden tell us was Bruce Lee's best quality?
His speed? His skill with nunchaku? The one-inch punch?
No, say the authors- it was his smile.

If you agree with that, "The Ultimate Martial Arts Q&A Book" should agree with you.

What I like about this book is that it is not style oriented or even traditionally oriented. It's a fun read on a wide variety of subjects. It avoids the narrow focus of most martial arts books. This is not biased towards or away from any style or system.

It's well worth the small investment.

It's not too bad to read. The section by Jim Harrison on fear was a let down. I'd say that the book is okay, but I wouldn't put it above three stars.

If a beginning martial artist asked me to recommend one book it would be this one. I've been involved with the martial arts for years, and I still use it as a resource. The topics range from chapters on martial arts myths to exotic martial arts. This is a must have for anyone who loves the martial arts.

This is a Very Good Book. It provides accurate historic information in an easy to use formate. You can open up to any page and read facts about the various styles of the martial arts. This book is a Great Learning Tool. RECOMMENDED!

The answers are highly oversimplified, and many totally untrue. The bias of the authors is evident, and I suspect they purposefully are passing missinformation. They did not dispel any myths and only propagate some old ones. They need to pull this book, do their homework (some of the people they write about are still alive) and re-write it with reliable information.