There are supposed, empirical works on Karate and self defence that are simply not in the same league as this work

To say this book is a collection of selected articles written by John over a number of years is to do it an injustice. There are supposed, empirical works on Karate and self defence that are simply not in the same league as this work and most certainly not as thought provoking; this is no small offering either. Running to over 150 pages it is both comprehensive, very well structured and especially well written and in a style that holds one’s attention. Whilst it is a book that one can dip into at any point it benefits from treating it like any book and working from front to back, with each article essentially a chapter, flowing naturally from one subject to the next and with a history of the particular article at the end of each one. The thought provoking thread running through the book is John’s endeavour, over more than two decades of training and researching, to square how an Eastern martial art such as Karate serves the purpose of working against what he terms ‘habitual acts of violence (HAOV) and how he has adapted the key principles of a traditional karate system to the imperatives of this western ‘curse.’ This is a book after my own heart and I thoroughly commend it to anyone who questions what their current karate training is geared towards, but also to those who don’t need convincing about the efficacy of their karate in dealing with real life violence but need a plan to affect change. This book will answer both question and need.