What were the five most influential martial arts books in your life?

Question

For me, the five most influential martial arts books were:

1. THE WAY OF KARATE (1963) by George E. Mattson

2. KARATE'S HISTORY AND TRADITIONS (1968) by Bruce A. Haines

3. THE 1968 BLACK BELT MAGAZINE YEARBOOK

[Though not a book, this particular magazine edition hit me hard.]

4. ZEN FLESH, ZEN BONES (1957) by Paul Reps

5. 'BUSHIDO: The Soul of Japan' (1900) by Inazo Nitobe

These were the initial readings which reinforced and colored my youthful martial arts obsession..

Answer 1

1.) Black Belt Magazine (not a book, but very influential in my early career)

2.) The Tao of Jeet Kune Do (Bruce Lee)

3.) Shaolin Fighting: Theories and Concepts (Douglas Wong)

4.) Chuck Norris Biography (before Walker) (Don't remember Author)

5.) Competitive Tae Kwon Do - Yong Sup Kil

Honorable Mention:

Bruce Lee's Fighting Method Volumes 1-4

Ninjitsu - Stephen K. Hayes

Answer 2

I'm afraid I don't have five books to list, but I have two that have heavily influenced me.

The first one was the Tao of Jeet Kune Do by Bruce Lee. I read it when I was in high school. Absorb what is useful, disgard what is not. I apply the concepts of Jeet Kune Do in my martial arts walk even today, and it's helped me to keep an open mind.

Another book that has helped me is Sun Tzu's Art of War. I have used parts of it to know myself and to avoid violence when possible.

Answer 3

1.tao of jeet kune do  2.the art of war  3.a book of five rings  4.real fighting  5. fillipino martial culture.

Answer 4

1. THE WAY OF KARATE (1963) by George E. Mattson

2. KARATE'S HISTORY AND TRADITIONS (1968) by Bruce A. Haines

3. THE 1968 BLACK BELT MAGAZINE YEARBOOK

[Though not a book, this particular magazine edition hit me hard.]

4. ZEN FLESH, ZEN BONES (1957) by Paul Reps

5. 'BUSHIDO: The Soul of Japan' (1900) by Inazo Nitobe

Answer 5

Ninjutsu: History and Tradition ~ Masaaki Hatsumi

Ninjutsu: The Art Of The Invisible Warrior ~ Stephen K Hayes

Wisdom From The Ninja Village Of The Cold Moon ~ Stephen K Hayes

Ninja magazine ~ various contributors

Shodan no Maki ~ Richard Van Donk

Answer 6

KARATE HIDETAKA  NISHIYAMA  1960

THIS IS KARATE MAS OYAMA 1962

ZEN COMBAT JAY GLUCK 1962

THE WAY OF KATA L.A. KANE  2007

THE BUBISHI  translated by PAT MACCARTHY KIYOSHI 2007 and an earlier version  1980

There have been many others between 1960 and today those are the ones that helped the most.

Other arts

AIKIDO AND THE DYNAMIC SPHERE

SECRETS OF THE SAMURAI  DON DRAEGER a must have book no matter your style.

THE BIBLE OF KANO JUJUTSU(judo)very old book

JUJUTSU  KLINGERSDORF  very old book

A BOOK OF FIVE RINGS  MUSASHI  MIYAMOTO