A Brief History of the Martial Arts
East Asian Fighting Styles, from Kung Fu to Ninjutsu
$37.25
- Paperback
304 pages
- Release Date
13 December 2016
Summary
Folk tales of the Shaolin Temple depict warrior monks with superhuman abilities. Today, dozens of East Asian fighting styles trace their roots back to the Buddhist brawlers of Shaolin, although any quest for the true story soon wanders into a labyrinth of forgeries, secret texts and modern retellings.
This new study approaches the martial arts from their origins in military exercises and callisthenics. It examines a rich folklore from old wuxia tales of crime-fighting heroes to modern…
Book Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781472136466 |
|---|---|
| ISBN-10: | 1472136462 |
| Author: | Jonathan Clements |
| Publisher: | Little, Brown Book Group |
| Imprint: | Robinson |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Number of Pages: | 304 |
| Release Date: | 13 December 2016 |
| Weight: | 380g |
| Dimensions: | 234mm x 152mm x 30mm |
| Series: | Brief Histories |
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What They're Saying
Critics Review
I defy anyone to come away from this book without a deeper knowledge of all martial arts.–
A detailed study of the interaction between folklore, nationalism, religion and politics in the east Asian martial arts … refreshingly frank. - NEO magazine
I defy anyone to come away from this book without a deeper knowledge of all martial arts. - [Clements’] final conclusions surprise … leaving the reader satisfied as well as educated. - MyM magazineAbout The Author
Jonathan Clements
Jonathan Clements is the author of many books on East Asian history, including biographies of Empress Wu, Admiral Togo, the statesman Prince Saionji and Coxinga, the Japanese-born ‘pirate king’. He divides his time between London, England and Jyvaskyla, Finland.
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