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Review Published In Inside Kung Fu Magazine by Emil Farkas, noted martial arts author and reviewer
"Having been a practitioner of traditional martial arts for many years, I tend to lean toward the classical styles. But to be good at anything, I've found, the secret is to be open minded and not to make premature judgements before giving something a chance. I picked up Dan Anderson's American Freestyle Karate reluctantly, but upon reading only a few pages I knew I had found a book that was not only different but had something significant to teach. Coming from a man as proficient in karate as he is, Anderson knows what he teaches, judging from his book he also knows how to teach it.
RRP £19.99 (now out of print)
The book's main focus is on freestyle or kumite (the more traditional name for sparring). Few books tend to focus on this aspect of karate, and those that do are mostly pictorial with little insight to the instructor's mind. This is certainly not the case in Anderson's book.
He offers his knowledge liberally and covers sparring from a uniquely non-traditional approach. He borrows from anyone he respects and presents a training manual jammed packed with superb information.
He opens his book with stances, body movements, kick and punches. Even in these opening pages one can see his break with tradition. His stances are more like a boxer's than a karate man's, and his body movements incorporate straight, circular and angular moves. His kicks, though basically the same found in many styles, have the added element of a slide, hop or skip.
Where the book gets really good is when Anderson gets into "theory." Not only is he good at it, he knows how project these concepts and how they apply to karate.
Mobility, entry, straight rhythm, line and angle fighting, retreat, monitoring, offensinve and defensive approaches, combinations, indirect attack, trapping and so on, are concepts that are explained in detail and are mostly illustrated by photographs, and where necessary, by line drawings.
Many of his theories, after careful reading, make a great deal of sense regardless of style one studies - since Anderson's approach is take what you can do and learn how to do it better, not just physically but "mentally" as well.
American Freestyle Karate is a terrific teaching aid for anyone who wants to gain more knowledge about fighting in general. You will find more than your monies worth in American Freestyle Karate. Buy it, read it, you'll learn something new."
OUR PRICE £4.49
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