The Ultimate Book of Martial Arts

A very nice looking book with some great pictures and layout. Could definately be useful to the beginning martial artist looking to choose a style. At an affordable price too. I was, however, somewhat vexed not to see my styles (hapkido and kuk sool won) even mentioned in the book. Japanese and Chinese arts are given the most attention here. So I would not call it "ultimate", but still worth your while.

It's great if you want to practice a martial art, but don't know which one. I am a 1st Dan black belt in Tae Kwon Do, and I found this book very informative, althought the section on TKD wasn't as accurate as it could've been. I also considered taking another martial art, so I wanted this book. It's a must read if you're looking to take a martial art but don't know which one.

This large-sized book contains exactly what novices and prospective students are looking for. It contains brief histories, philosophies, and explanations of various martial arts forms. It's an excellent source for someone trying to decide which art to pursue. The book summarizes 13 separate martial arts forms. Using bright color photos (and masters from each art), the book summarizes how each art is practiced, equipment used, grading, clothing, and levels of advancement. Using the book, I was able to select the art I wanted to pursue; without traveling to numerous schools. This book also allowed me to "test" the presentations given by prospective instructors. It's an excellent book!

Ms. Goodman's book was something the world of martial arts has needed for a while: A suberbly illustrated guide to the martial arts that is well written and not too mystical. Ms Goodman explains to the lay-person what the varying martial styles are about, the required equipment, rank, basic movements, and most importantly the various benefits of each style. Many people don't understand the martial arts, to most what they know has been gleaned from TV and film. Ms Goddman has done a great thing for the person that needs to make an informed decision on wether or not to study a martial art, and if so, what style.I highly recommend this book.

This book is an excellent resource for those of you who aren't sure what to take up in the martial arts world. It has full-colour photos and gives you a basic outline of 13 different martial arts. It gives you a brief history, and it reveals what the practitioners wear, use as training tools, weapons and basic techniques. The Shinto-Ryu section is esspecially interesting. That's my two bits.