Angry White Pyjamas

As a newly minted ShoDan in Shiho Karano Karate, I have to be skilled in knowledge as well as technique. To that end, I've been reading a number of books about the martial arts. One part of that genre are the autobiographical accounts of Budo practitioners. I want to gain deeper insight through what others have experienced, learned, and how they changed as a result of martial arts training. "Angry White Pyjamas" is one such tale, written by a Brit who studied Aikido in Japan during the 90s. Robert Twigger, a disaffected thirtysomething teaching English to Tokyo high school girls, decides that he is incomplete as a man without some sort of physical challenge. Martial arts training appears to fit the bill, so he and his two expiate roommates enroll in a local aikido dojo. While taking regular classes, Mr. Twigger is drawn to the dojo's toughest mode of aikido instruction: an intense yearlong course normally taken by Japanese Kidotai (riot police) as a job requirement. Despite his initial misgivings and warnings from others about the course's difficulty, he goes for it and resolves to finish no matter what. "Angry White Pyjamas" chronicles Mr. Twigger's struggle to prove himself by successfully completing the Kidotai Aikido course. Mr. Twigger makes many observations about his life and Japanese culture both in and out of the dojo, so there's lots of exposition compared to, say, "Moving Zen" by C.W. Nicol. Also unlike Sensei Nicol, Mr. Twigger is not wholeheartedly enraptured by Japanese culture. He has a more postmodern viewpoint, so his anecdotes are not filtered through rose-colored glasses. But humor leavens much of his story, and there's no disrespect or Western condescension. As one who was stationed in mainland Japan from '88 to '90, I enjoyed the reminders his recollections provoked (funky food, navigating the extensive train system, hanging out in Roppongi, etc.). Mr. Twigger also makes the other folks he encounters come alive through his writing; his slacker roommates Fat Frank and Chris are particularly priceless. But the most interesting aspect of "Angry White Pyjamas" is Mr. Twigger's search for validation as a male through overcoming adversity. He reminded me of an "Iron John" or "Wild at Heart" kind of guy, looking for affirmation of his masculinity via completion of the brutal riot police course. As a former Marine and current martial artist, I identified and sympathized with his quest. The course was a rite of passage for Mr. Twigger, and I rooted for him every step of the way. Many times he came close to quitting due to constant pain, injuries, fatigue, interpersonal conflicts, and his own perceived ineptitude with aikido. But despite these hardships he didn't give up, and for that I commend and respect him. I read "Angry White Pyjamas" in conjunction with "Iron and Silk" by Mark Salzman and "Moving Zen" by C.W. Nicol to get multiple perspectives on martial arts training. It's interesting to compare and c

I am a dedicated and even somewhat obsessive student of budo and especially aikido. Still, this irreverent book is one of my favourites. One of the reviewers here wrote that it's "oddly inspirational"; I couldn't agree more.Why "oddly" ? Well, it's a honest and a funny book. As you might have noticed from some of the angrier reviews, Twigger will not feed you the urban legends and "samurai-er than thou" stories which - unfortunately - many people with an interest in martial arts seem to relish. No miraculous stories about the wonders of ki here ! No Sensei worship ! I laughed my head off when I read about Twigger's and his friends' joy when the founder of their dojo dies during a period of particularly gruelling lessons (suwari-waza, ouch !) and their dojo has to close for a few days, giving them the necessary time to nurse their knees back to health. For the lay-person's benefit, in the martial arts world, this kind of attitude is the pinnacle of heresy and expresses a complete lack of "the right attitude". The portrayal of some of the people Twigger trains with isn't very flattering, but let's face it, we all know the martial arts world has its fair share of unadjusted people and nutcases. Twigger isn't particularly flattering about himself and his friends either, by the way.I also found Twigger's description of Japanese society and mores interesting. If you're worried by one of the other reviewers statement that Twigger is a racist and a homophobe, don't worry, it's just PC hysteria. What is inspirational about this book is that it shows what real training is like. It's hard work. It's frustrating. You quickly have to understand you're not Bruce Lee (well, I'm not, and Twigger isn't either), and it takes much energy to try to (slowly) become better instead of just giving up and finding a pursuit more adapted to your genius. You have to work with and even learn from other people whom you might not always totally like and respect. Basically, you have to accept that nothing is perfect in the real world, not you, not your partners, not even Sensei, and still strive for perfection. I think that message is much more valuable than any martial arts fairytale.

So it may not be the most accurate description of the Japanese culture, so what? Angry White Pyjamas is an excellent account of one person's somewhat extreme experience of Japan.The author of the book, Robert Twigger, an awarded poet from England goes to Japan as means of escaping the boring corporate reality. In Japan he hopes to find that his life means something. He begins his experience as an Engish teacher in Japan. Shortly afterwards, his job is reduced to a part-time, one day per week position. Poor and disilusioned, living in a cheap apartment with a couple of other random gajins, he finally decides to discover the value of self by signing up for a course in martial arts.Once a member of a dojo, he realizes that he wants to push himself to the extreme limit of his mental and physical ability. As a result, he signs up for the super-ultra-tough course, usually taken by candidates for the Tokyo riot police.Insanity ensues as he learns martial arts every day for almost 11 months amongst pain, sweat, complaining of fellow students, and constant cultural faux pas.Personally, I'm not sure how accurate is Twigger's descriptionon of the fighting, the food, and the cultural differences, but one must admit that whatever he writes, it is written in the most excellent style. Twigger keeps an eye out for details in the Japanese lifestyles and describes them from the point of view of an overly enthusiastic yet naive foreigner.The account of the training keeps the reader constantly wondering whether Twigger will be able to finish the course. After all, the pain, the unfriendliness, and seemintly little payback seem overwhelming. This book is not only for martial arts fans nor fans of the Japanese culture. I am only slightly interested in these topics, however, I found the book very engaging. It may not be accurate, but it is an excellent piece of literature, clever, and highly entertaining.

Mr. Twigger's account regarding his time spent in Japan, and with the Kidotai, is both hilarious and enlightening.The life of a foreigner in Japan must be unusual to say the least, but being a foreigner participating in the Riot Police aikido course must have been downright bizarre! His anecdotes and humour made this a book I just could not put down!As others have noted in their reviews, "Angry White Pyjamas" is a similar story to Mark Salzman's "Iron & Silk", with the central figure being a stranger in a strange land... But I feel this is where the similarities end. Mr. Twigger writes with more wit and self-discovery with less emphasis on the martial arts than Mr. Salzman, who wrote in a more "gee-whiz" style (for lack of a better term) with more emphasis on China's people and wushu. Please don't misunderstand, I love "Iron & Silk" (I highly recommend it), but Pyjamas is a *different* kind of book.His story almost seems too funny to be real, at times I suspect that he may have embellished certain parts, but I'm just being nit-picky... Also the fact that I used to train under the "famous aikido teacher from Toronto" reminded me that this book is based in reality; having a connection (even an indirect one) to the writer really changed my perception of Pyjamas.The only negative thing (if you can call it that) about this book is a somewhat haphazard regard to time, in some instances we skip a number of months from one chapter to another... But in this regard, I'm being VERY picky.This has become one of my favourite books in my limited collection of prose, "good face" Mr. Twigger! :)

Having lived in Japan for nearly a decade and trained in modern and ancient Japanese martial arts I have to say Angry White Pyjamas is one of the most authentic accounts ever published of what it feels like to train in a serious dojo in Japan. The Yoshinkan has a fierce reputation among martial arts insiders - along with the JKA and the Kodokan it is a candidate for the toughest school in Japan. Twigger brilliantly illustrates the daily pain and struggle with the desire to give up which is so close to my own experience. What some may not like is the fly on the wall view he gives of his dojo - insiders in Japan do not in general reveal the secrets of their institutions and most traditional Japanese dojo prefer to keep a low profile....but I came away from this book admiring (most) of the teachers and wanting to train in Yoshinkan aikido. Although I am biased towards Japan I felt it was equal to Iron & Silk, or even had the edge.Simply one of the tiny number of real accounts about martial arts to add to Draeger; Dave Lowry and Nichol's Moving Zen.