The Art of War / Book of Five Rings

The art of war is a classic there is no doubt, the lessons it teaches are timeless and whilst somewhat overly specific at times give great insight into numerous areas of life. As for the book of five rings, it promises much but delivers very little. I have experience reading zen and Buddhist texts and so I mean this in the best possible way but it declares that studying the sword should not be the primary focus, then dedicates most of the book to it, then has one chapter regarding discovery of the true essence which doesn't really say anything. Hence I would have to recommend buying the Art of War as a standalone edition.

Liked reading this book

This book is just the Art of War and Book of Five Rings without any commentary or preface.The book itself is fine, I have standalone copies of both books that have way more commentary and background information on the respective works. The only issue I have is that the translation is also pretty barebones and simple. I'm not sure what translation Book of Five Rings is (it's says translated by D.W.) . The translation for Art of War is Lionel Giles. I would recommend this if you just wanted both texts.I bought the book used and other than a few spots on the edges of the pages it was in good condition.All in all I gave 4 stars just because of the translation (more like 4.25 to be exact).Edit 10/22/22 : There are a few spelling errors in the book, as well as errors with text spacing. Some sections of the Book of Five Rings have random breaks between words as well as not spacing between some words in the text. Also there is a section in the Book of Water detailing a technique called the Continuous Cut that is missing. There is a huge blank spot two pages before where that section should be that seems to match the length of that section.My review changes from 4.25 to 3.75 as I noticed these errors while reading the book. I'll still say it's fine if you wanted both texts together but like another reviewer mentioned you can get both as their own books and with higher quality (and context) rather than this copy.

I finally got to read these famous books that you always here from people that get super serious about success and strategy. What's funny is that often I find those people have not likely read these books because they tended to contradict what they blather. So now I get to say things like "Actually, Sun Tzu didn't say that," and "Musashi actually believed in familiarizing yourself with all weapons rather than mastering one." It blows there minds that someone within earshot actually read the books. I always encourage them to read them because they're rather short and enjoyable. Some of the things they talk about sound really obvious but can still surprise you. If I could rename them, I would call them "Practical Solutions for the Super Serious Warrior," because that's basically what they are. These are worth reading for the cultural value alone.

I've long been a fan of both writings, this is the first time I have a consolidated set. My only concern was that it would be poor translations or some kind of shortened version. Both concerns were quelled upon arrival. I'm considering ordering a second, just to keep at the gym where I coach.