The Way of a Warrior: A Journey into Secret Worlds of Martial Arts [Paperback]

John Gilbey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 14, 1993

This book is the sequel to the underground classic Secret Fighting Arts of the World, and chronicles the further adventures of the Indiana Jones of exotic martial arts, John F. Gilbey. His fistic and foot festivities take him in and out of dojos and gyms in the United States: to Iceland, Brazil, Iraq, and even an outer Tahitian island. Investigating claims of seemingly supernatural powers, Gilbey gives a strong nod to developed and carefully school inner disciplines, but has strong words for the fast buck artists who degrade serious martial arts like karate, kung fu, and jujutsu.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Here we have, bard and betrayed, all the secret fighting techniques of the choicest fighters—an ungodly throng including the Thuggees, with the niceties of strangulation, the lightning-like destruction inflicted by a Peoria bookworm, the unfeeling fingertips of an obscure Mexican… and a lot more besides..."
- South China Morning Post, Hong Kong

"Fascinating reading—some of the things which Gilbey witnessed are downright incredible and will give the serious student of these arts deep cause for reflection."
- The Journal for the Association for Physical and Mental Rehabilitation

About the Author

Heir to a textile fortune, John F. Gilbey is a 7 dan in judo and a 5 dan in karate.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: North Atlantic Books; 2 Sub edition (January 14, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1556431260
• ISBN-13: 978-1556431265
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.4 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,121,966 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "John Gilbey" writes a second satire!, January 8, 2006

By 

Michael Wong - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Way of a Warrior: A Journey into Secret Worlds of Martial Arts (Paperback)

What I said about John Gilbey's first book, "Secret Fighting Arts of the World," applies just as much to this book. The real author, Robert W. Smith, intended this book as a satire!

Years after this book was published, Robert Smith came out and explained exactly how back in the early `60's he and a group of friends (all senior martial artists including Don Draeger who were Westerners trained in Japan and China) got the idea of writing a spoof about the martial arts. They made up the name, "John F. Gilbey," and invented a personal history for the name that combined their actual martial arts credentials. The first book, "Secret Fighting Arts of the World," turned out to be a great success, but not as they had planned. Unfortunately for them, so many people believed that "John F. Gilbey" was a real person and the book a completely true book, that it took on a life of it's own and only added to the wild tales about martial arts that became popularized in the West. This happened because Smith was so skilled at interweaving fact with fiction that he unwittingly produced a satire that many found believable as complete "fact." Robert Smith later wrote this second book, "The Way of the Warrior," as an even more wild sequel thinking this would finally enlighten people, but once again, he was wrong. Finally, he just came out in the martial arts magazine, "Journal Of Asian Martial Arts," and told the true story. He later repeated it in his book, "Martial Musings," which I highly recommend. "Martial Musings" is fact and includes actual photos rather than drawings. It also names many people, places, and events that can be confirmed via other sources, and many of which are famous in the martial arts.

For a more complete explanation of this, check out my Amazon review of "Secret Fighting Arts of the World" at: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007ISZY8/qid=1136766252/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/103-4476568-9636606?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

I'll conclude by saying exactly what I said about the other book. This book is a fun read for entertainment, cut-to-the-core insight, and deadpan satire. Smith has a sense of amused perspective on oneself, history, and the fighting arts. The writing style is great, and I highly recommend it. Just remember that the author intended this as a spoof!

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Gilbey" does it again!, September 27, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Way of a Warrior: A Journey into Secret Worlds of Martial Arts (Paperback)

This book is the sequel to the underground classic "Secret Fighting Arts of the World", and chronicles the further adventures of the Indiana Jones of exotic martial arts. Similar in theme and style to SFAotW, "Way of a Warrior" is also more soulful and in-depth: the fireworks are still there, but we also get a glimpse of the ethical and, yes, spiritual implications of a life-long pursuit of martial esoterica. I'll say it again, this guy is the best writer in the field, bar none: buy this book!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Yarn!, December 28, 2003

By 

Ryan (San Antonio , TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Way of a Warrior: A Journey into Secret Worlds of Martial Arts (Paperback)

To those who dont know yet, read MARTIAL MUSINGS or one of Smiths interviews in JOURNAL OF ASIAN MARTIAL ARTS. He has basically stated that the two books he wrote as Gilbey were fiction. In fact theres a whole secion in MUSINGS about how some of the pictures and stories were created.
There is some truth nestled in here such as the history behind Savate. Its an enjoyable, ENTERTAINING read.