Warrior Wisdom: The Heart and Soul of Bushido, is the second book in the Warrior Wisdom series by Bohdi Sanders. I have read through both of the current volumes several times, and treasure the collected wisdom contained herein.

What never ceases to amaze me regarding this series, is that Dr. Sanders has gone so far above and beyond simply collecting a book of quotations. Often, the most useful interpretation of a quote is not immediately obvious, but Sanders spells it out for the reader in plain terms in his discussions about each quote.

As a lifelong martial artist, I am well versed in many of the quotes one would expect to find in a book of this nature, but that is another strength of this book - many of the quotes are ones most readers will have never heard before (myself included). The result is a really meaningful title that has the potential to make a lasting impact on the lives of anyone who reads the series and takes the advice found within to heart.

I simply can't recommend this book enough. Buy this, and buy the first book in the series while you are at it.

I have now read four of the ten basic Achieving Kicking Excellence books by Shawn Kovacich (1, 2, 4, and now 5). This entry into the series, the Reverse Crescent Kick, is, in my opinion, the most useful thus far. The primary reason for this is the fact that the kick itself is extremely useful and versatile.

As is the norm for this series, Kovacich goes to great lengths to provide every piece of information you could ever want (plus some more on top of that) regarding this kick. From appropriate stretching to the dynamics of the human body when correctly performing the kick, Kovacich covers all the bases in this outstanding book.

The provided variations on the primary kick are all useful and provide a solid jumping off point for the potential student to explore other possibilities and uses for the kick.

The reality is that no book can replace a competent teacher of the martial arts, but this book is probably as close as it gets. Even better, if you are currently studying martial arts in a formal setting, this book will help your progress by leaps and bounds compared to classroom study alone.

(See my review for the fourth volume in the series, Crescent Kick, here.)

Warrior Wisdom: Ageless Wisdom for the Modern Warrior, is an exceptional book. Author Bohdi Sanders has compiled a phenomenal resource of quotes from important warrior-thinkers throughout history and from all around the world. Unique amongst the Warrior Living books I have read, this book provides not just page after page of timeless wisdom, but also a modern context for each saying. This is a truly remarkable work in this regard.

This is a book you could read a page at a time, or one you could open randomly during a difficult time of your life to find inspiration. There's really nothing negative I can say here. It is really an outstanding collection of wisdom, which would have been a worthy purchase on its own...the additional commentary and discussion put this book over the top.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone seeking self-improvement, warrior and non-warrior alike.

This is the first in a series of product reviews which I originally posted only to Amazon.com. I'm reposting them here so it is easier to reference and link to them in the future. Some small changes to make their meanings clear are included, but nothing that changes the message of the review.

Baguazhang: Theory and Applications, by Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming and Master Liang, Shou-Yu, is an excellent book. As a practitioner of Baguazhang for the past several years (Yin Style Baguazhang, vs the Emei Style presented in the text), I found this book extremely informative and insightful.

Of the most worth to me were the collected translations of Chinese texts on the Bagua and Baguazhang, but the practical applications and exercises were laid out in a very informative manner.

I feel like if I were a complete novice to Baguazhang, I could use this book to learn some of the basics. That said, there are some very basic, foundational exercises, which I am surprised to NOT find in this book. For example, I didn't feel that the circle-walking techniques were emphasized enough, given the fact that they are the very foundation upon which the rest of the techniques in Baguazhang are built. Again, though, I study a different style of Baguazhang, and so these might just be stylistic differences.

The individual techniques and partner exercises are laid out in an easy to use format, though some pictures felt a tad out of order just in terms of their layouts on the page. While my own style's techniques vary in differing degrees from the ones presented in this book, this clearly looks and feels like Baguazhang, if perhaps a little foreign, but this, again, probably comes down to stylistic differences.

I simply can't emphasize enough how valuable I consider this book. The translated Chinese texts and modern-day rewordings are an absolute treasure to any Baguazhang practitioner who wants to gain a deeper understanding of his or her art.

I recommend this book wholeheartedly to everyone with even a passing interest in Baguazhang, and also to other internal stylists who would like access to some fascinating commentary on Bagua QiGong. You'd be hard-pressed to find a 500+ page work on ANY martial art that is as information-heavy as this one. Buy and enjoy.