Looking for a recommendation? There are several good books that I have come across - some by referral and some by accident. Either way, there are some real gems in my collection and I don't mind at all referring you to some of them!
If you are a fellow student of Kenpo, then you are probably already familiar with Ed Parker and his series: Infinite Insights into Kenpo. He has several other books out as well but they are becoming increasingly harder to find. If you want solid Kenpo basics from the founder of American Kenpo, get these 5 books!
Another great Kenpo read is a book called The Journey. The cover boasts "The oral histories of 24 of the most proficient American Kenpoists of Today" and the book doesn't disappoint. Among the many great people featured in this book, the founders and Grand Masters of my school of Kenpo are featured - Chuck Sullivan and Vic LeRoux of the Karate Connection. If you are interested in the people that have helped to make Kenpo what it is today, you have got to read this book.
Looking for something more generalized? I have recently acquired and read a couple of books from an author named Tri Thong Dang called Toward the Unknown and Beyond the Known. Illustrating his point through stores featuring the relationship between master and student, these books are fantastic at bringing out the internal, more spiritual side of the martial arts and the lessons taken from these stories are useful in any discipline.
Another title that I can recommend to just about any serious martial artist is a book called Living the Martial Way by Forest E. Morgan. The cover describes this as sort of a handbook for today's martialist - and that much it is, and so much more. The author goes into great detail defining and describing the specific elements that forge the mind, body, and spirit of today's true martialists.
There are so many great books! Just look around and see what you think. I have tried to include my own personal reviews of the books in these pages but, truthfully, there are some that I just haven't yet read for any number of reasons. I will give my own personal review but in the mean time, follow the links to Amazon.com and see what other readers have to say.
~Bonzai~ |
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