Perfect Survey of the Martial Arts

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	• The Martial Arts Book Laura Scandiffio Annick Press, 2003 - 64 pages average customer review:based on 3 reviews view larger image
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The Martial Arts Inspiration!

The best thing about this book is that it doesn't talk down to children. The author is careful to point out when she is telling a popular story and when she is telling history, and for this reason I feel her writing simultainiously gives children an acurate and traditional understanding of the roots of the major Asian martial arts traditions.
Younger children will get much from the illistrations and will love to have it read to them. I teach Northern Shaolin (Kungfu)and this is the first book I've seen that makes the important connections between fighting, performing, Chinese Opera, and the Movies. It is sad that so many other books think they have to tell children that martial arts isn't about fighting. As if children would believe that anyway. Teaching children the true roots of Asian martial arts leaves plenty of room to communicate all the other important values we cherish, like appreciating great art, and reading good books.

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Really, really good!

I bought this book because I have students who love Kung Fu and other martial arts. Little did I know how much I'd learn from the book and how excited I would be to share it with my students. Beautifully and respectully written.

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Perfect Survey of the Martial Arts

This book is the best children's book on martial arts that I have seen, (and I work in a library and study martial arts, so I look at a lot of martial arts books!). The Martial Arts Book surveys the major styles of martial arts and their history, covering a lot of ground in a very short, but wonderful volume. The subject matter is so well treated that you get all the important facts about the major styles of martial arts in a very quick read.

Frequently martial arts books (especially those for children) have little information, are too sugar-coated, are too commercial, or are clearly biased towards one art over another. This book, however, presents all the different styles of martial arts in a fair and equal manner. The maps, pictures, and asides do an excellent job of untangling the often confusing history of martial arts. The authors do not make light of martial arts myths, either - they realize that martial arts history is as much legend as fact and that to ignore the legends is to ignore a rich history. The legends told in the book are some of the classic tales of martial arts.

Kids interested in martial arts will eat this book up. They will love seeing how how ninjas, monks, samurai, pirates and farmers gave rise to the martial arts of today. They will also love the colorful pictures and engaging layout. Parents will appreciate the emphasis on peace, compassion, and on growing internally as well as externally. Teachers will appreciate the accuracy of the information, the historical context it will give to their students, and the frank treatment of the "westernization" of martial arts.

I, personally, am impressed with how much information was packed into such a short volume in such an engaging manner.

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An unrivaled overview of the history and philosophy of martial arts.

Martial arts have become increasingly popular in North America over the past century. Yet few books for children present an overview of the history and philosophy of these ancient disciplines. The Martial Arts Book does just that.

Learn about the samurai who preferred to use strategy over violence and who were trained to pay attention to the sound of breathing or the movement of joints to tell if someone was asleep or just pretending. Meet the female ninjas known as Deadly Flowers, and the last ninja, Seiko Fujita (1899-1966), who stuck needles in his skin and ate rat poison, lizards, and even a brick to learn to withstand pain and poison. A concluding chapter will help in choosing the right style and school of martial arts for you.

Key Features: unique book on a popular subject a comprehensive overview of the martial arts from their origin and philosophy to the evolution of styles, the use of weapons, and martial arts today sidebars with interesting anecdotes color illustrations foreign names and terminology are followed by the phonetic pronunciation in parentheses

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