MAA Title

Amazon.com, Customer Reviews
Dustin Laurence (laurence@alice.caltech.edu) from California, USA
August 17, 1999 5 out of 5 stars

The Emperor's New Clothes
This book is not the best book on my shelf – it would be if it were ever on my shelf, but I loan it out every chance I get.
 
I particularly appreciated Bob's willingness to state the "obvious" (in hindsight) in print without regard to who will take exception.  Like the boy in "The Emperor's New Clothes," he has the rare wisdom of being willing to look foolish by asking the obvious, forbidden, necessary questions.  The discussion of punching and blocking in Karate and similar arts is only the most obvious example.

Instead of telling you what is in the book, let me tell what it has done for me as someone of no great skill who has trained in several arts and been satisfied with none of them.  (A lot of us, unfortunately, fall in this category.) More than anything else I have ever seen or read, this book helped me to:

(1) Analyze and understand what I do and do not want from a martial art, and who might offer it.  Anyone who has studied several arts here and there, as I have, knows the frustration of not being able to be an "intelligent consumer." This alone is worth far more than the cost of the book (probably less than half the cost of a month of lessons anywhere).  I agree with another reviewer; if you are thinking of taking lessons but don't know exactly what you want already, BUY THIS BOOK NOW.  It takes time and experience to discover the right art and teacher.  It is a great help to borrow some of Bob's time and experience before you start spending your own.

(2) Maintain motivation to train. You can't wait to train until you find the ideal art.  I find it encouraging to know that even if my best local opportunity to train is not what I would prefer, there are other things out there if I have patience. Perspective is a valuable thing, particularly if it helps you take advantage of the opportunities you have rather than waiting for ones that you don't.

(3) Appreciate arts that are not necessarily for me.  Once you know what you want personally, you can stop trying to make other arts something they are not but instead enjoy what they are.  As well as being a generally humane attitude, this also helps with point (2).  And, after all, I may discover I like them more than I thought.

I have minor criticisms, but what they are does not matter. What does matter is that you read it for yourself and find your own. That's ultimately the point of the book; rational inquiry and debate in the best Western tradition.  Bob asks "why?" and "can you prove it?" constantly and encourages us to do the same. It is a shame that we need the encouragement so much.

 
Our emphasis is on the practical.
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E-mail: Ron@OrlandoKuntao.com
Last update:  Aug. 6, 2016
by Bob Orlando
Web Site of Bob Orlando: Instructor in Kuntao-Silat (Chinese kuntao and Dutch-Indonesian pukulan pentjak silat), author of two popular martial art books: "Indonesian Fighting Fundamentals" and "Martial Arts America: A Western Approach to Eastern Arts"; and producer of four martial art videos: Fighting Arts of Indonesia, Reflex Action, Fighting Footwork of Kuntao and Silat, Fighting Forms of Kuntao-Silat. Offering practical martial arts instruction to adults living in and throughout the Denver metropolitan area including, Lakewood, Littleton, Morrison, and Golden Colorado.