Amazon.com
To watch Bruce Lee on film is an amazing experience. Those who have read Tao of Jeet Kune Do, however, know that Lee's prose can also be exhilarating. This praiseworthy and enduring bestseller (mainly written over six months when Lee was bedridden with back problems) compiles philisophical aphorisms, explanations on technique, and sketches by the master himself.Book Description
This is Bruce Lee's treatise on his martial art, jeet kune do. This international best seller includes the philosophy of jeet kune do, mental and physical training, martial qualities, attack, and strategy. BEST SELLER! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (160)

Bruce Lee....
I love Bruce Lee, but I couldnt get into this book! I cant honestly tell you to read it or not, because I havent! I bought it here at Amazon and gave it away a month later! Watch "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story", thats a classic!

The essence of an era called Bruce Lee...
I came into this world many years later since Lee had closed his eyes upon it. I can only imagine the loss it must have been to the world to Martial Arts. But, he never left in spirit. An essence of his philosophy and his approach to martial arts still lives through his followers and this book. I learnt Aikido for 5 years, but found it not very handy when it came to tackling an opponent in the street. That's when someone recommended Lee to me. JKD is much faster and more practical (make no mistake, I still worship Aikido from bottom of my heart...JKD is only a natural next step in the route I took for my education in Martial Arts) when it comes to handling a situation in the street. But this book is not a step-by-step guide to beat someone black and blue. It's Lee's philosophy, his approach to martial arts (which is called Jeet Kun Do) - a way of life, from Lee's perspective.

I am only qualified to speak so much, but definitely recommend this book for everyone who wishes to understand Lee's apparoach to Martial Arts and, in turn, benifit from it to develop his or her own perspective.

My opinion
this item was excellent, a good buy. it was exactly what i was looking for.

Tao of Jeet Kune Do

Excellent study guide into the mind of Master Bruce Lee! This book is for the true Martial Artist........Tao of Jeet Kune Do

book
This was puirchased for my youngest son,13, saw Bruce Lee's movie & became very interested in his practice of martial arts. ... Read more

Book Description

"Fighting is simple and total." --Bruce Lee

Customer Reviews (38)

Don't mess with Bruce!!
I am going to make this review very simple and straight forward to the best of my knowledge. Bruce Lee offers step-by-step illustrations of just about every move in this book. Asfor someone who hasn't been in martial arts(myself)for the past 10+ years I am very confident that I could execute most of these moves efficiently with practice. They are not hard but they are very effective. Speed becomes an issue with some of these moves. The book isn't about blocking your opponents blows in any form. This book is about quick counter-attacks. Bruce Lee obviously did not intend on waiting around for a chance to be hit.. He would attack at the same time his opponent would but SMARTER!! Good book! With confidence in yourself and practice you also will benefit from Bruce Lee. Once again, these are not flying kicks, acrobatics, or anything professional in nature. These moves are about using your brain quicker than your opponents. I hope you find this review helpful.

A martial arts book well worth owning!
Being the author of several books on the martial arts and fighting, I am always looking for books of exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a book in my library, it's definitely worth owning. One such book is Bruce Lee's and M. Uyehara's, "Bruce Lee's Fighting Method; Volume 1: Self-Defense Techniques."

As is stated in the introduction to this and the other three volumes in the series, Bruce Lee never intended for these books to be published. However, since his untimely passing, his wife Linda decided that she would allow them to be published. Something we should all be thankful for.

What I will attempt to do in this review is to give you a well-rounded grasp of what Bruce has written and demonstrated for you in this series of books. Although nothing can replace the value of a qualified and competent instructor, a well written book can still provide you with a wealth of knowledge if you know how to realize it and obtain it.

1. Defense Against a Surprise Attack:

a. The best defense against a surprise attack is not to be surprised by an attack.
b. Awareness is the key and should be practiced at all times.
c. Bruce demonstrates 4 different scenarios in which an attacker attempts to surprise him with an attack.

2. Defense Against An Unarmed Assailant:

a. Bruce stated that he felt you are wasting your time and energy by studying set patterns of forms (kata). On this particular point I have to agree and disagree at the same time. If you are studying the forms and practicing them for their intended purpose it is definitely not a waste of time. However, if you are studying them incorrectly, then yes I would have to agree that for the most part it would be a waste of time.
b. Bruce demonstrates 9 different scenarios for defending yourself against an unarmed attacker.

3. Defense Against Grabbing:

a. The best defense against being grabbed is not to let them grab you in the first place.
b. However, once you have been grabbed the most practical defense is to use your hands.
c. Bruce demonstrates 16 different scenarios from which to defend from. These include wrist grabs, arm grabs, belt or pants grabs, etc.

4. Defending Against Choke Holds and Hugs:

a. Once again, the best defense against a choke or a hug is not to let them grab a hold of you in the first place.
b. However, once you have been grabbed the best defense is the most simple and effective.
c. Remember, awareness of you and your surroundings is the key.
d. Bruce demonstrates 11 different scenarios from which to defend from. These include various chokes, bear hugs with and without your arms being pinned, etc.

5. Self-Defense Against An Armed Assailant:

a. "You are at a disadvantage against someone with a weapon, so keep away from him."
b. You must constantly practice in order to have a chance in this type of situation.
c. Demonstrated in this section are 9 different scenarios for defending yourself against an attacker armed with a stick or staff.
d. Demonstrated in this section are 4 different scenarios for defending yourself against an attacker armed with a knife.
e. Demonstrated in this section are 2 different scenarios for defending yourself against an attacker armed with a handgun.

6. Defense Against Multiple Assailants:

a. Defending yourself against more than one opponent at a time is always harder.
b. However, having said that, just because there is more than one attacker doesn't necessarily mean you are at a disadvantage. Sometimes there is a disadvantage in numbers.
c. Bruce demonstrates 8 different scenarios from which to defend from when fighting against more than one attacker at a time.

7. Defense from a Vulnerable Position:

a. Always remember, "Anything goes when defending yourself."
b. Bruce demonstrates 3 different scenarios from which to defend from when sitting in a chair.
c. Bruce demonstrates 4 different scenarios from which to defend from when lying down.

Like any well written book, as much as you can learn from this book by reading it, you can learn just as much if not more by reading between the lines. I particularly enjoyed the simplicity of what Bruce was trying to relay throughout this and pretty much all of his books. What may work well for one person, may not work at all for another. Therefore, you as an individual needs to research the techniques that are out there and find those that work best for you and use them. Remember, there are no superior martial arts, only superior martial artists.

Best fighting book ever.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Bruce Teaches you how to fight just like him in a hard cover book. It really is Bruce teaching you from 1966 when he made this book.After he died his wife released it .I learned so much from learning Bruce's self defense techniques.
This HArd Cover Book is truely amazing.

Best Beginner Series in Martial Arts
Who the hell is this who claims B.L. didn't write these books?
Go buy it, read it. Then judge for yourselves.
This is the best there is: The basics on Street Fighting and self defense.
Not the Basics as taught by traditional Chinese Boxing (KungFu)

Can't learn martial arts from a book, but...
Although you can't learn martial arts from a book, Lee's books are very good historical references from the late master.Lee was constantly changing and evolving his fighting arts and these books show a small slice in time of his fighting philosophy and techniques.The series is simple, yet interesting.Lee's Jeet Kune Do was to the 60s/70s what mixed martial arts is to modern times.These books certainly deserve a place on the shelf of any Bruce Lee fan. ... Read more

Book Description
Beyond his martial arts and acting abilities, Bruce Lee's physical appearance and strength were truly astounding.He achieved this through an intensive and ever-evolving conditioning regime that is being revealed for the first time in this book.Drawing on Lee's own notes, letters, diaries and training logs, bodybuilding expert John Little presents the full extent of Lee's unique training methods including nutrition, aerobics, isometrics, stretching and weight training. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (70)

The Art of Expreeing the Human Body
The first time I saw Bruce was at the now famous 1964 Long Beach International Karate Championships. Were at the at the invitation ofEd Parker, A good friend of mine, I witness an extraordinary human being.
At this tournament Bruce demonstrated 2 finger push ups, one inch punch and fighting skills.

The second time I saw Bruce was at the 1967 Long Beach International Karate Championships. The last time I saw Bruce in person was a gathering of martial artist at a school in LA were he stood in front of about 25 students and taught and showed of his skills. I've seen Bruce ability close up and I would not fight Bruce Lee if he spat in my face. He was that good. Ifyou fought Bruce lee he would probable overwhelm you with intense vigor trying to intentionally destroy you. This really doesn't matter unless you have the skill, he did. Now The Art of Expressing the Human Body is a compilation of Bruce lee's hand written work out routine from early sixties until his untimely death in 1973. This book is well organized and carefully compiled to preserve Bruce Lee's true intension. This covers all aspects of Bruce lees work out from nutrient to isometrics.

If you watch Bruce lee movies then you should know the lengths of Bruce lee's abilities. However there is a such thing as camera tricks that may make people want to dispute Bruce's unbelievable abilities .However this is not the case because if you look at him in demonstration on Honk Kong Television you will see some amazing feat of strength occurring. For example breaking 1 inch thick boards with a punch delivered from only a few cm's away. Or breaking 5 daggling 1 inch boards with a side kick. This, my friend, is very hard to do. This book shows you through Bruce's hand written work out routine how he accomplished it. Bruce lee started his martial arts training at the age of 13 first by his farther then by the now legendary Master Yip Man. This training lasted to the age of 18 when he moved to the United States. On his arrival in the states he drastically started looking into the development of the body for martial arts and not just the development of the skill for martial arts. His hungry for the knowledge of all things regarding to physical development lead him to amass a colossal library of over 3,500 (My listamania on books Bruce Lee read) . Over 140 of those books had to do with body building weight training, physiology and kinesiology ,wear he just absorb what he needed and dismissed what he did not. Over years of research Bruce had compiled from different resources a multitude of journals describing different exercises and workouts which increased his power, strength ,flexibility.Bruce lee was in tune with what exact muscle groups he wanted. and how he could do it. He soon realized that conventional exercise machine could not work all the muscle groups which he wanted to work. So he created several original designs of his own training equipment and had his friend George Lee build them to his specifications.

Get Bruce Lee's Body
Get inspired to get moving.Bruce Lee shares his workout secrets.Now you can have a Bruce Lee body too.

The Art of Expressing the Human Body
Very Very motivational.I have always wondered how bruce got his body and this shows how he did it.I really liked it.

Interesting, but could be writen better.
The information presented about the training schedule of Bruce Lee is very complete.The problem with this book is that there is a lot of repitition.It could have about one fourth the number of pages that it is.It lacks what I was really after-Bruce's philosophies.Overall, this is not worth the money, you can easily find the information from this book on the internet somewhere.

Bruce Lee: the art of expressing the human body
if you ever wanted to know how Bruce Lee got the body that he had, this is your book. very well written, and very easy to understand. lots of details and very in depth ... Read more

Book Description
"If you are going to train without the concept that this isthe real thing, you are short changing yourself." --BruceLee

Bruce Lee's Fighting Method: Basic Training reveals how theiconic warrior attained his legendary speed, power and footwork. Includedare practical, effective stretches for increasing flexibility, abdominalexercises that can be performed anywhere, and hard-hitting advice onrunning, biking, skipping rope and shadowboxing.

But Basic Training is more than just a fitness guide. Thismust-have manual also delves into the fundamental aspects of Bruce Lee'srevolutionary combat philosophy, jeet kune do, including how to strengthenyour firsts with iron-palm training, get the most out of your punches andkicks, camouflage your attacks, develop the footwork to evade almost anyblow, cover distance rapidly, escape from a tight corner, conserve energyfor countering, build muscles without sacrificing speed, fix flaws in yourstance and improve your peripheral vision, leverage and timing.

As the second volume in Bruce Lee's Fighting Method, Basic Trainingcontains detailed illustrations and vintage photos capturing Lee in hisprime. This essential series, compiled and organized by his close friend,Mito Uyehara, is the perfect companion to Bruce Lee's classic text, Tao ofJeet Kune Do. The Bruce Lee's Fighting Method series is an integral part ofthe Bruce Lee canon and a necessary addition for collectors and martialarts enthusiasts alike. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (32)

Very Interesting Read - Helpful Workout Tips & Hints
I'm not a martial artist. I don't know anything about Jeet Kune Do like most of these reviewers. I grew up only knowing the western style of fighting, boxing at it's simplest level. Put up your hands, jab with your left and punch with your right.

Bruce's style is totally different. Everything is predicated on speed. Strikes are used with the knuckles of the last 3 fingers (middle, ring, and pinky) instead of middle finger and forefinger. Instead of turning the wrist over to at the end of the punch the wrist is kept straight. He used southpaw stance because 80% of the work is done with the lead hand and foot (he was right handed). All these techniques run counter intuitive with western style of boxing.

I appreciate reading about Bruce's workout techniques. It's really the reason I bought this book. I wish there were more. He talked about riding his exercycle, jogging, skipping rope, and a few abdominal exercises. There are numerous other workout techniques that involve a wooden dummy, punching bags, speed bags, etc, however those do not concern me too much. I have already incorporated jump rope into my daily routine which includes situps. I plan to practice hitting an 8 X 11 piece of paper with my elbows to learn body control.

Thanks to Bruce, I now feel like I will have an opportunity to really improve my fitness and coordination but only time will tell as to the results I will achieve.

I give this book 4 stars because it contains information that I can actually use in real life. I docked it one star because it contained too much information on stances (the on-guard stance in particular) which was incredibly boring and not at all what I needed.

A good martial arts book that everyone should own!
Being the author of several books on the martial arts and fighting, I am always looking for books of exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a book in my library, it's definitely worth owning. One such book is Bruce Lee's and M. Uyehara's, "Bruce Lee's Fighting Method; Volume 2: Basic Training."

As is stated in the introduction to this and the other three volumes in the series, Bruce Lee never intended for these books to be published. However, since his untimely passing, his wife Linda decided that she would allow them to be published. Something we should all be thankful for.

What I will attempt to do in this review is to give you a well-rounded grasp of what Bruce has written and demonstrated for you in this series of books. Although nothing can replace the value of a qualified and competent instructor, a well written book can still provide you with a wealth of knowledge if you know how to realize it and obtain it.

1. The Fighting Man Exercises:

a. The importance of aerobic conditioning and exercises to increase your aerobic capacity such as; running, bike riding, jumping rope, etc.
b. Most martial artists neglect their actual physical workouts, thinking that practicing their particular martial art of and by itself is all you need to get into and stay in shape. This is not true! One must supplement their martial arts training with various muscle building and flexibility exercises.
c. You must constantly push yourself to become better than what you already are. If it comes easy, it generally isn't worth it.
d. How to warm-up properly in order to prepare your body for harder workouts without risking the chance of unnecessary injury due to the use of a well designed and executed warm-up routine.
e. Various flexibility exercises are shown using the trampoline and various body stretches.
f. Several different abdominal exercises are demonstrated as Bruce always felt that the abdomens were the major source of power in the martial arts.

2. The On-Guard Position:

a. Bruce goes really in-depth on a good fighting stance.
b. Looks at the disadvantages of more traditional or formal stances.
c. Bruce also talks a good deal about balance and how important it is to being effective with your techniques.

3. Footwork:

a. The basic principles behind your footwork are discussed.
b. Demonstrated and explained are the Forward and Backward Shuffle.
c. Demonstrated and explained are the Quick Advance and Retreat.
d. Demonstrated and explained is the Burst Forward.
e. Demonstrated and explained is Sidestepping.

4. Power Training; Punching Power:

a. How to correctly make a fist for punching.
b. Various training exercises utilizing the heavy bag, punching mitts, force shields, etc.
c. The use of canvas bags filled with everything from sand to steel filings in order to toughen the hands for impact.
d. The use of hand weights when practicing your punches.
e. The use of a staff across your shoulders to improve your body's ability to work in unison when punching.
f. Talks about using KI when punching and how to punch through your target, not at it.
g. Also discussed is "Pulling Power" and how to develop it with hand and forearm exercises.

Power in Kicking:

a. Flicky point style kicks are useless in self-defense.
b. How to develop striking power in your Side Kick.
c. The use of the heavy bag to develop power in your kicks.
d. The use of the kicking shield to develop power in your kicks.
e. How to add more power to your Front Kick by utilizing your hips correctly.

5. Speed Training:

a. Basic principles involved in training for speed in your techniques.
b. Developing punching speed.
c. Developing whipping speed for your Back Fist.
d. Developing speed in your Finger Jab by using a piece of paper.
e. Developing speed in your Lead Straight Punch.
f. Using equipment such as the double-end bag, punching mitts, and heavy bag to develop speed.
g. Developing a non-telegraphic punch.
h. Using concepts from fencing to enhance your speed and punching skills.
i. A very interesting use of a children's game to develop speed.

Speed in Kicking:

a. Principles and techniques of the Side Kick and Roundhouse Kick, which I find very interesting that Bruce calls the Roundhouse Kick a Hook Kick.
b. Various methods of developing speed in your kicks.
c. Awareness of your body and what it is doing when you are kicking.

Like any well written book, as much as you can learn from this book by reading it, you can learn just as much if not more by reading between the lines. I particularly enjoyed the simplicity of what Bruce was trying to relay throughout this and pretty much all of his books. What may work well for one person, may not work at all for another. Therefore, you as an individual needs to research the techniques that are out there and find those that work best for you and use them. Remember, there are no superior martial arts, only superior martial artists.

For martial artists it's worth reading.
Bruce Lee's Fighting Method: Basic Training Vol. 2

Chapter 1 is sort of an overview of a number of exercises and the benefits of each exercise in conditioning the body to be a fighter.There is not much in this chapter, which you cannot find in other exercise or workout books.Furthermore, the practice of receiving blows from a medicine ball or moderately controlled punches to the abdomen is no longer recommended because we now know that receiving even moderate, controlled blows over time can cause damage to internal tissues and organs.Never the less, I am not going to say that there is nothing worth reading in this book.It's just that this book was written before the fitness craze gained momentum to the extent of becoming a cultural practice in the United States.Many people back then were out of shape and did not know how to exercise for better health and physical performance.Some still don't.To beginners, this chapter can serve as an introduction of the types of exercise for a fighter.

Chapter 2 explains in detail and illustrates Bruce Lee's unique right lead Jeet Kune Do guard stance, posture and benefits.Then, there are a series of photos of Dan Inosanto, Bruce Lee's famous student, posing in various classical guard positions, some of which look more like illustrations of moves in kata or forms. The book persuasively criticizes the various weaknesses of the classical guard stances.In defense of some classical positions criticized, however, some martial artists argue persuasively that these classical positions found in katas and forms are symbolic representations of effective fighting techniques being executed and do not represent stationary guard positions.
(See books by Rick Clark, Guy Trimble III, Ashley Croft and George Dillman for more on better interpretations of kata's symbolic representation of effective fighting techniques."

The Chapter on footwork is very basic and simple.It is almost boring.However, the important point to take note of is that moving quickly and effectiveness in fighting begins with being quick on the feet.Bruce lee's books are unique in that they emphasize elements such as distance, timing, speed, creating openings in the opponent's guard and observing the opponent's reactions and habits rather than reliance on techniques for this or that situation.So, it begins with footwork to move into range quickly to strike, to move out of range or side-to-side to avoid being struck and being ready to counter when an opening does appear.The later volumes build on ideas that require good footwork.So, it does start with this book to create a foundation of good footwork.After all, good technique and power is wasted if you can't deliver your strikes or kicks due to lack of speed or improper timing or distance.

The beginning martial artist reading this book might get the quickest results from this book in studying the chapters on power training and speed training.Anyone who understands how to combine the elements such as closing to a proper distance to be able to punch through the target, using harmonious movement of the body while keeping the muscles relaxed until the instant your strike makes contact will discover an alternative, more effective way to deliver a powerful strike rather than using the strength of the arm and upper body alone.

The last chapter on speed training offers 7 different ways to train for developing speed.Most of these training methods require a partner.The reader has to look for these in the context of the writing. There is also an interesting technique suggested for psychologically developing a better sense of timing and quickness of reaction near the end of the last chapter.

Beginners and young martial artist might not fully understand the value of the information in the series of books on Bruce Lee's Fighting Method and in his Tao of Jeet Kune Do.

There is also a video adaptation of this book available on VHS or DVD which features Richard Bustillo and Ted Wong, one of Bruce Lee's students, who also is seen in the photographs of the books.

VHS:

Bruce Lee's Fighting Method

Bruce Lee's Fighting Method

DVD:

Bruce Lee's Fighting Method - by Ted Wong and Richard Bustillo

Fantastic often overlooked principles of training
Bruce Lee covers the basics and foundations of training.

All too often martial artists focus their energies on techniques without developing or preparing the body for such techniques.

This volume covers:

1) Aerobic Conditioning - running vs jumping rope
2) Stretching
3) Core muscle strengthening almost always overlooked. Namely abdominal toning
4) Proper stance and movement
5) Footwork
6) Developing power in your strikes
7) Increasing your speed

The Fighting Method Series Captures Bruce Lee
Mito Uyehara was the founder and publisher of Black Belt magazine. Mito actually took privates from Bruce in his office according to staff legend. Mito also gave Bruce plenty of exposure in Black Belt, but the books in this series, Bruce Lee's Fighting Methods, are the true legacy of that relationship. Mito was very protective of Bruce's image and his admiration for him is as clear as the many photographs in these books.

Of course, Bruce Lee was always changing his methods and ideas about training. To what degree he would have stood behind this material some 40-years later has been the subject of much debate. The closest thing to a modern version of this series is How to Master Bruce Lee's Fighting Style by Lee student Joe Lewis, who credits much of his success to principles he learned while working with Bruce Lee.

But, "never take your eyes off the finger, or you will miss a great book for any Bruce Lee fan." ... Read more

Book Description
Lee teaches how to develop skills in body movement, hand techniques, kicking, parrying, striking vital target points, and sparring. Fully illustrated. BEST SELLER! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

A good martial arts book that everyone should own!
Being the author of several books on the martial arts and fighting, I am always looking for books of exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a book in my library, it's definitely worth owning. One such book is Bruce Lee's and M. Uyehara's, "Bruce Lee's Fighting Method; Volume 3: Skill in Techniques." This book is a direct continuation of the previous volume and will continue where that one left off.

As is stated in the introduction to this and the other three volumes in the series, Bruce Lee never intended for these books to be published. However, since his untimely passing, his wife Linda decided that she would allow them to be published. Something we should all be thankful for.

What I will attempt to do in this review is to give you a well-rounded grasp of what Bruce has written and demonstrated for you in this series of books. Although nothing can replace the value of a qualified and competent instructor, a well written book can still provide you with a wealth of knowledge if you know how to realize it and obtain it.

6. Skill in Movement:

a. Basic principles involved in obtaining and keeping your preferred distance away from your opponent.
b. The 3 fighting distances and what the preferred techniques are for each one.
c. Footwork and how to use it to maintain your preferred distance from your attacker.
d. Don't telegraph your intentions or your movements to your opponent.
e. How to Side-step your attacker.
f. How to effectively duck in order to avoid a blow.

7. Skill in Hand Techniques:

a. How to use your entire body correctly when punching.
b. How to utilize strategy when punching.
c. How to effectively utilize countering techniques.
d. Avoiding bad habits such as; opening your mouth, dropping your hands, etc.

8. Skill in Kicking:

a. The basic principles behind kicking are discussed.
b. How to utilize the Lead leg Side Kick.
c. How to utilize the Slide Forward Side Kick.
d. How to utilize the Roundhouse (Hook) Kick.
e. How to utilize the Turning Back (Spin) Kick.
f. How to utilize the Turning Wheel or Hook (Sweep) Kick.

9. Parrying:

a. Parrying a blow is preferable to blocking a blow.
b. Basic principles involved with parrying.
c. Several various types of parries are demonstrated.
d. Utilizing parrying and counters against punches.
e. Utilizing parrying and counters against kicking.

10. Targets:

a. Discusses the two primary targets you should try and strike during a fight.
b. Fighting is not a sport.
c. A martial art that is primarily sport oriented is weaker than a traditional martial art.
d. A description of various other targets that you can strike as well as the two primary ones.
e. It is better to strike the correct vulnerable spot once, than the incorrect one many times.

11. Sparring:

a. Contact sparring is preferable to non-contact sparring.
b. Various techniques to use when sparring with protective gear.
c. How to use feints, fakes, counters, slipping, and bobbing & weaving.

Like any well written book, as much as you can learn from this book by reading it, you can learn just as much if not more by reading between the lines. I particularly enjoyed the simplicity of what Bruce was trying to relay throughout this and pretty much all of his books. What may work well for one person, may not work at all for another. Therefore, you as an individual needs to research the techniques that are out there and find those that work best for you and use them. Remember, there are no superior martial arts, only superior martial artists.

Bruce Lee's Fighting Method, Vol. 3: Skill in Techniques (Bruce Lee's Fighting Method)
Thought the book was well thought out with it's diagramming of the various technical skills.Also the explanation of the skills were very simple but precise.

This volume gives structure to the content of this series of volumes.
The Chapters are numbered from VI to XI.

After reading Chapter VI, the reader should begin to understand how the intensity and mode of a fight can change when fighters vary their distance thru the 3 ranges of long range, medium range, close range.The reader should begin to understand how fighters can test each other's behavior responses, habits and perhaps level of skill by attempting to provoke and manipulate each other thru the use of footwork to vary distance and use of feints and drawing techniques.

Chapter VII covers the attributes, advantages and form ofstrikes and defensive guard used in Jeet Kune Do.8 bad habits are listed to bring to the attention ofthe reader habits to avoid or correct one's self from doing or to take advantage of when done by the opponent.

Chapter VIII is about kicks.

Chapter IX defines and describes the use of parrying in Jeet Kune Do.The message to fighters is to fine tune their defense to save energy and effort in defensive action by not making wasteful, exaggerated moves.Elements of timing, distance, evasive footwork and awareness of the opponent's intent is covered here.
The cleverness ofBruce Lee's use of the lead handto strike while the rear hand parrys or grabs becomes understandable as the photos show that the opponent's hand is allowed to extend more fully when parried by the rear guard hand thus opening the opponent's defense for a counter strike with the lead guard hand.
In this chapter, Lee's parries are constantly compared favorably and persuasively to traditional, classical methods of blocking.

Chapter X"Targets" is about the weak, vulnerable areas of the body.There are no secret vital pressure points and no mumble jumbo about imaginary vessels and meridians in this book.All weak spots covered in this chapter are known to every one: the ribs, solar plexus, groin, shins, etc, etc.
In this chapter, Bruce Lee reminds the reader that well chosen targets can bring a fight to a quick, efficient end.Part of the purpose of this chapter is to have the reader keep these weak areas and the moves that expose them in mind when planning defense and attack techniques to use, that is, to have the fighter thinking about defending and attacking weakness as an essential component of a fighter's skills.

Chapter XIis about sparring and mentions the degenerative, decaying effect competitive sports, safety rules, regulations, and safety equipment have on martial arts and combative systems.
Covered subjects include combinations, drawing the opponents reactions, feints, timing and self confidence.The parts ofthis chapter that explain about evasive means ofdefense instead ofparries and blocks and more about bad habits is especially valuable and very much worth reading.

Hector Echavarria's 3 Volume DVD video series on KickBoxingis very similar and compatible to this series ofbooks on Bruce Lee's Fighting Method.

Required reading
IN MEMORY OF MARIO PONTILLO
Since the late 1970's, I have studied Mr. Lee's "Way of the Intercepting fist." I have the 1st editions of all the "best" books on Bruce's work.
This book will walk you through the physical aspect of his methods. I recommend you get all the volumes from this series. You will need to start from the beginning; and you do that by emptying your cup so Bruce may fill it.

My favorite quote: "Knowing is not enough, you must apply; willing is not enough, you must do." -Bruce Lee

Please do not hesitate to check out my Poetry book that I published while in the U.S. Navy in 2003; "Under the Rose: Poetry of Tragedy, Essence, and Romance"

How to clean up sloppy punching.
This is one of the better books out there devoted to actually being able to use your body's weapons with skill.The book starts off on body movements, stuff like footwork and distancing.It then goes into attacking with the hands, and then attacking with the feet.Parrying is also covered, and then targets and stances.This book is devoted to eliminating bad habbits, and has a lot of comparisons of JKD vs. classical martial arts.As I mentioned in my other reviews of "Bruce Lee's Fighting Method", this book works much better when taken with the series, as well as a couple of other early JKD books.However, it is useful to the average martial artist when it comes to making fighting movements more efficient, and more crisp. ... Read more

Book Description
During his lifetime, legendary martial artist Bruce Lee formulated a complex personal philosophy--a synthesis of Eastern and Western ideals--that extolled the virtues of knowledge and total mastery of one's self. However, most of his philosophical writings could be found only within the personal library of the Bruce Lee estate--until now. The Warrior Within is the most comprehensive volume of these teachings, meant to help you apply Lee's philosophies to your own life. This unique guide reveals such life-affirming secrets as:

• Seeing the totality of life and putting things into perspective
• Understanding the concept of Yin and Yang
• Defeating adversity by adapting to circumstances
• Tapping into inner spiritual forces to help shape the future

Customer Reviews (14)

RARE INSIGHT INTO ONE OF THIS GENERATIONS GREATEST ARTISTS!
One of the best books I have ever read. Buy it, read it & understand. But thats up to you. Walk on......

Inproved my way of thinking.
This is a must own. I have never read anything on Bruce Lee but this book has changed my thinking. It describes his life and what he has learned from Gung fu. His signposts are most important part of this book. In the words of the master himself "Be like water my friend".

I gave it 3 stars because it's Bruce Lee
This book as far as it being a good read is kind of boring. Aside from the boredom it gives you a lesson in comparative studies, "the west sucks and the east has a natural flow of things". However, having said that, don't think that this book do not have any revelance. According to John Little, Bruce Lee's whole philosophy revolves around martial arts and that is the basis for all of his metaphors. I do not have a problem with that (as I liked martial arts and as a child I took karate for a whole day)!Bruce said, "all knowledge is self knowledge". As simple as that may be that is a profound statement. I have never thought of it like that before, but, I suppose he is right. Such things like that make the book worth the read. Is it a self help book per se? No, but, it can help you become someone spiritual, especially for those who are into martial arts, or, maybe you just like to read and develop metaphors like myself.

Warning: If you are a devout christian then you may be offended that Bruce did not believe in GOD.

At the end of the day, I reccommend the book simply because Bruce encourages anyone to follow their own way.


"I am the greatest teacher and I am also the greatest student, so, therefore I will not fail in any obstacles". -Mike Madison

Hey that is what works for me. You must find what works for you.

Dr.Phil ain't got nothingon Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee was always some one that I always Looked up to. He truly had a strong Vibe about Himself&the way he worded things&Put things into Perspective is still very Uplifiting to Me.He was a Very Intelligent Man&a strong Philosopher. this Book truly is Great for self-Esteem&Finding Inner Peace. a Must read.

Timeless
I would like to thank the authors for presenting such useful information. A few things that really impacted me were: 1. Bruce Lee felt that to strike back to people who are aggressive shows weakness. 2. He really worked his stomach.I have worked out for years and once I read about his stomach work I felt the affects immediately. 3. I love his thoughts on stress managemnt.I always kind of knew when I ate junk food that it was somehow related to stress.Now that I practice stress reducing excercises, I eat less junk food and I have no desire to eat it. 4. I appreciate his philosophy on total health. Like I said, what I read has totally changed my ideas on a lot of things. Thank you for an awesome book! ... Read more

Book Description
Now available in paperback, Striking Thoughts: Bruce Lee's Wisdom for Daily Living is an unparalleled volume of Lee's own writings on the wisdom that he used to shape his extraordinary life. Editor John Little, in the tradition of Tuttle's other Bruce Lee Library titles, uses his unprecedented access to Lee's writings to cull the words of the legendary martial artist, actor, and philosopher into this soulful, personal collection.Striking Thoughts is a diverse record of the thoughts and observations that Bruce Lee put on paper in his lifelong quest for self knowledge. A voracious reader, Lee's personal thoughts on life are a unique blend of traditional eastern traditions and modern western ideals. John Little distills the essence of Lee's writings on all aspects of life, including Existence, Achievement, Art, and Personal Liberation. Consider some of Lee's elegant thoughts. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (24)

Dragon!
I love Bruce Lee, but I couldnt get into this book! I cant honestly tell you to read it or not, because I havent! I bought it here at Amazon and gave it away a month later! Watch "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story", thats a classic!

Striking Thoughts
ANYthing about Bruce Lee is something I'm interested in. The title is superb and right on target. Master Lee's wisdom is truly "striking" in this compilation of work. He was a philosophy major at the University of Washington. His personal insights must have impressed his teachers there! I know they have always impressed me. His zeal for life and enthusiasm at living it are characteristics to be admired and sought by anyone in any situation. This book demonstrates Bruce as more than a fitness expert, more than a physical perfectionist, more than an incredible martial artist, more than an actor. Bruce as a deep thinker, an emotional man, a caring and loving person... these are things NOT to be overlooked in the true Master of the Modern Age... Bruce Lee... a Master of Life.

Excellent Insight
For anyone with an open and flexible mind, its a good book to glance at for daily insight or general thought expansion. I highly recomend it.

Just like a fortune cookie
Somewhat confusing, and very much like a fortune cookie. Would have been better if it came wrapped in a giant cookie. Would reccommend passing on this even if you like Bruce Lee.

Eye opening.
I have owned this book for several years now, and still flip through it from time to time. More then anything else, this is a collection of Bruce's random thoughts and observations compiled into one book. A majority of the thoughts are Zen/Taoist/Buddhist in nature, and when I first read them they really opened up my eyes and broke me out of my boring existence I once lived in. People that don't appreciate the martial arts and/or Buddhist philosophy might find some of his thoughts a little out there and useless to them. All in all, for the price, you can't beat this book. ... Read more

Book Description
An exact facsimile edition of Bruce Lee's original book, this rare collector's item (first published in 1963) includes stances, training, and techniques against single and multiple attackers. Fully illustrated. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

A few comments
Compared to the books out now on kung fu this book probably wouldn't rate much of a mention if it weren't for the fact that it's Lee's first published work, at least in the west. It gives a basic overview of kung fu, including some philosophy, exercises, basic style info, and a number of techniques. As far as technical knowledge goes, probably the most interesting thing there is the photo sequences showing Lee defending against multiple assailants, which are good.

But at just under 100 pages, it's small although the overall quality for the time was probably pretty decent considering this was probably one of the few books in English on kung fu at the time. But by current standards it's more than a bit on the light side. Even so no doubt Bruce Lee fans will want to acquire the book to have a complete collection of his works, since he only wrote six or seven books.

Probably the most interesting thing about it is Lee says the material and techniques in the book derive from the period before he started studying Wing Chun. In that sense the book is more important for its historical value in showing an earlier phase of Lee's kung fu development. Danny Inosanto also said Lee had studied northern long fist and learned all the empty-handed forms there (of which there are about a dozen), so this material could have been drawn from that.

Many of the photos are a little dark and lacking in contrast but they're still viewable and not bad. You can still see what's going on. But they're not up to the quality of more recent books.

One thing Lee says that still resonates today is his statement that a good martial artist will take all the knowledge that he's acquired and simplify it to get the true, distilled essence of the art. At the most advanced levels, the principles and techniques then become "simple" after being "complicated." Of course, it takes a very advanced and knowledgeable martial artist to be able to see and accomplish that, and perhaps most of us will never get to that point, but Bruce Lee did, which is why he was and still is one of the greats.

By the way, many people aren't aware that Lee combined both karate and kung fu techniques (not to mention Indonesian Pentjak Silat, which most people in this country have still never heard of, although there are at least 300 different styles), so his style is truly synthetic and eclectic. However, because of that many traditional and classical kung fu masters don't consider Lee a true kung fu practitioner. Whether that is true or not I leave up to the reader to decide, although Lee himself once stated that, "There is nothing traditional in my kung fu."

So overall, not a bad book for its time although at this point it looks sort of old-fashioned and dated and will probably be mostly of interest to amateur martial arts historians like myself or serious Bruce Lee fans.

Kung Fu in a nutshell! Bravo!
To the dude who said it was not good for the beginner in martial arts, I totally disagree. In fact, as a new student of Choy Li Fut gung fu and not the wing chun that bruce leepracticed this book has greatly enhanced my training and knowledge. I have the Choy Li Fut kung fu book by Doc Fai Wong and it lacks many details on footwork and punches. Bruce Lee covered the basics which are essential for mastering any style of martial art or fighting for that matter. Yes, it is not 100% complete on wing chun and martial arts like for example it never mentions chau sau (sticky hands) or weapons training but it is great way to learn how to do the correct footwork, stances and core basics. A must for Bruce Lee fans and martial artists. Get this and the Tao of Jeet Kune Do for a wonderful training aid.

Historical rather than authoritative
This book should not be considered as a complete or even accurate portrayal of the chinese martial arts. Originally published in 1963, it must have been one of the few books in print on "gung-fu" and novel at the time (if it ever sold significant copies). Witness the introduction written by James Y Lee (Lee's good friend) in which Lee is described as "one of the highest authorities in the Chinese Art of Gung Fu in the United States today." Compared with what is available today, this book is rather basic and idiosyncratic. There is some Chinese philosophy, a listing of styles, some waist and leg exercises. A larger part of the book consists of photographs of Lee demonstrating responses to various attacks by opponents - the usual fare of martial arts books. The book ends with a some apparently "filler" photos of Lee's visit to a karate studio. The book has a homemade, hodge-podge feel to it and would appeal to Bruce Lee fans.

Book is short for its price
This is basically a step by step series of attack/defenses. It acts as a sort of overview of kung fu in about 50 pages or so.. so it misses a lot and is not in depth. The text is short so there is not much for the advanced student but it is not aimed at the beginner either. Spend [a little] more and get some book on Jeet kune do or a different kung fu book.

Not a book for a beginner
If you collect Martial Arts books or books on Bruce Lee, buy it and put it on your shelf. It does show what Bruce thought in his early career of martial arts. And it has good diagrams. The book is short for its price. This book is not really an introduction and it would prove non-beneficial to a beginner. I would suggest that if you are new to martial arts, put this book down and chose any other. ... Read more

Book Description
A rare, never-before-seen collection of Lee's private letters and writing, offering insight into the many facets of his life, including his poetry, life philosophies, and his thoughts on martial arts, love, fatherhood, friendship. A fascinating look at the man behind the myth. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (22)

Bruce Lee Artist of Life
Bruce lee Artist of life

Bruce lee Artist of Life is probable the bestbook I have everread for several reasons. For oneit is written by probably the best know and most talented Martial Artist of the twentieth century. This book consist of personal journal entries made by Bruce Lee. It contains topics such as Gung fu, Philosophy, Psychology, Poetry, Jeet Kune Do, Acting, Self-Knowledge then it ends with personal letter written by Bruce Lee.

Gung Fu section lee begins the article by saying ,"Gung Fu is a special kind of skill, a fine art rather than just a physical exercise or defense." Couldn'tagree more as a participate in the fine art of martial arts. Really if your some what intrigue by Bruce lees philosophy you should read this book. In the Gung fu chapter of this book ,taken from handwritten notes by Bruce lee, he cover such topics as The center of the Oriental arts were he goes into deep discussion about such things as philosophies of Taoism, Cha'an (Zen),Meanings of gung fu, and what they mean to him. Other articles deal with his personal reflections on how he views and interrupts Gung fu and it's teachings. The chapter goes on with other essays he's written such as
Reflections on Gung Fu - Deep views on the stages of a "Gun Fu Man"
Teach yourself self-defense -Tips on self defense, for example "expect to get hurt", "Ignore the pain, instead of giving up use it as a spur to counterattack and victory"
Psychology in defense and attack -Explain how to overcome the mental aspects of a fight and the advantages and disadvantages of size.
How to choose a martial arts instructor -"Believe half of what you see and definitely nothing that you here" Before choosing an instructor you must see if he has what it takes to back his statements.
The unity of Gentleness/firmness -What's necessary for combat in terms of gentleness to firmness ratio.
My (Bruce Lee's) views on Gung Fu -Essay on how he views Gung Fu.
The next chapter consist ofessays regarding philosophy. Lee's philosophy are more refined than those of lets say Socrates. He tends to deal with more humanizingissues dealing with matters pertaining to the inner self ofhumans being. For example human understanding, then he gets into really advanced philosophy which ,you really must be quite intelligent to decipherthe meaning. Some examples of that are his essay on "Living in the oneness of things" , The unity of firmness and softness, Taoism, Yin - Yang, Wu-Hsin(No-Mindedness),Wu We(non-action),The letting go(must read essay). He also goes into his opinion on Plato, Plato's "Gorgias" and Socrates. After that in this chapter there's a essay entitled The nature of human beings in which he is truly inspiring. To me Bruce Lee is much more than a martial arts superstar he's probable one of the most genius thinker of the 20th Century .After that he writes about meditation and what it means to him (how he applies it to his life). Part 3 is the psychology section which is as genius as the philosophy section with topics such as The Relationship of the Organism to its Environment. Not only is Bruce lee a brilliant thinker he's an excellent poet. Here's an example of one such poem :

The Dying Sun
The dying sun lies sadly in the far horizon
The autumn wind blows mercilessly.
The yellow leaves fall.

From the mountain peak,
Two streams parted unwillingly

One to the West, one to the East
The sun will rise again in the morning
The leaves will be green again in spring.
But must we be like the mountain stream,
Never to meet again?
-Bruce Lee

His poems alone could have made him an incredible voice in the world of literature. However, Lees writing ability surpasses the creative mind to which poets need to write. Lee's genius transcends that of an average human being into the realm of a religious figure. Which is probable why he is worshiped in some tribes in the forest of Asian (True!).Part 5 is entitles Jeet Kune Do - The Liberation. It includes essays on the meaning of Jeet Kune Do: The way of the intercepting fist. It also contain multiply drafts of his essay entitled Toward Personal Liberation (Jeet Kune Do).Part 7 is on Acting. This is a list of essays in whichLee philosophies about the meanings, job, self-actualizing, self-made actualization, and the Art of Acting. Part 7Self-Knowledge. It contains eight different draft oflee's personal essay entitled In My Own Process. The book ends with Part 8,Letters. There are six letter in this chapter written to

-Pearl Tso A friend of the lee familywritten in September 1962
-Taky Kimura An assistant instructor for Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do.
-2 to Jhoon Goo Rhee the farther of Tae Kwon Do in North America
-Larry Hartsell a student of Bruce Lee's Los Angeles Chinatown school.

If any of these topics interest you ,you should order this book right now. I was amazed at howphilosophicallee was. The amount of detail and time it would of taken him to write all these essays on all of these topics to better understand himself. This is a man who truly wanted to get the deep meanings of his self ,Martial Arts, and the things in theenvironment around him. I have read this book 3 times straight through and I often pick it up to read certain essays which pertain to what I'm looking for. If you do decide to give this book a try I would suggestthat you really take a thorough approach to reading this book. As in explore the meanings and how they apply to you and your life as an individual. Good bye until we meet again.

.

The most revitalizing book that has ever came my way!
This book is seriously a very influential masterpiece brought to you mostly by Bruce Lee's essays, poems, quotes, and personal experiences throughout his existence with us. This all came together with the help of John Little too though, so some regards should be left to him as well.But as far as a compeling book goes this one should leap off the shelves into your arms!Don't miss this opportunity to read into who Bruce really was and not just another book on martial arts and how to become a so called, "Master!" This is one to read and fully grasp for sure!

Get into his mind...
This is just my 2 cents. I've always been interested in what else Bruce had to say, besides things of just in the martial way. This book is a great addition to anyone's library. You get to see what is going on in one of the Legends of our time. I thank you that the information was shared with us. It can bring positivity, inspiration and creativity. Thank you for your time.

Almost flawless
This book is absolutely incredible. Contained in it are philosophical writings, letters, poems, and much more. This book shows an even "deeper," more intimate, if you will, look at Bruce Lee the man. When one picks up this book, there is little chance that one will put it down without having read through it entirely.

Note: I say this book is "almost flawless" because there are some spelling, grammar, and editing mistakes in it. Though such things are extremely disconcerting to me, the content of this book is nevertheless outstanding.

Amazing Book
Read this book recently and was amazed at the wealth of information available in it. Bruce Lee was a well rounded personality who was striving to be a complete human being and this book definitely helps in educating how far evolved he was not only as a martial artist but also as a person. As pointed out by other reviewers, some of the information in this book is already present in some previous publications of John Little, but this book is probably the most comprehensive collection of Bruce Lee's hand written poems, articles, letters and philosophy, some of his own and some of other philosophers like Hesse, Krishnamurthy, etc. I intend to read and re-read this book many times as I have found it truly inspiring and educational. ... Read more

Book Description
This book presents the advanced techniques. Chapters include hand techniques, attacks with kicks, counters, tactics. Fully illustrated BEST SELLER! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (16)

A good martial arts book that everyone should own!
Being the author of several books on the martial arts and fighting, I am always looking for books of exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a book in my library, it's definitely worth owning. One such book is Bruce Lee's and M. Uyehara's, "Bruce Lee's Fighting Method; Volume 4: Advanced Techniques." This book is a direct continuation of the previous volume and will continue where that one left off.

As is stated in the introduction to this and the other three volumes in the series, Bruce Lee never intended for these books to be published. However, since his untimely passing, his wife Linda decided that she would allow them to be published. Something we should all be thankful for.

What I will attempt to do in this review is to give you a well-rounded grasp of what Bruce has written and demonstrated for you in this series of books. Although nothing can replace the value of a qualified and competent instructor, a well written book can still provide you with a wealth of knowledge if you know how to realize it and obtain it.

12. Hand Techniques for Offense; Part One:

a. Set-up your primary attacks first.
b. Your primary attacks should be indirect attacks rather than direct attacks.
c. Basic principles involved in utilizing hand techniques effectively.
d. You should always be studying your opponent.
e. How to effectively utilize the Leading Finger Jab.
f. How to effectively utilize the Leading Straight Right.
g. How to effectively utilize the Leading Punch to the Body.
h. How to effectively utilize the Leading Straight Left Punch.

13. Hand Techniques for Offense; Part Two:

a. How to effectively utilize the Straight Left to the Body.
b. How to effectively utilize the Lead Jab.
c. How to effectively utilize the Backfist.
d. How to effectively utilize the Hook Punch.
e. How to effectively utilize the Uppercut.

14. Attacks with Kicks:

a. How to effectively utilize the Side Kick to the lead shin and/or knee.
b. How to effectively utilize the Leading Side Kick.
c. How to effectively utilize the Roundhouse (Hook) Kick.
d. How to effectively utilize the Turning Back (Spin) Kick.
e. How to effectively utilize the Turning Wheel or Hook (Sweep) Kick.

15. Defense and Counter:

a. How to effectively counterattack utilizing the Lead Finger Jab.
b. How to effectively counterattack utilizing the Leading Side Kick to the shin or knee.
c. How to effectively counterattack utilizing the Roundhouse (Hook) Kick.
d. How to effectively counterattack utilizing the Turning Back (Spin) Kick.
e. How to effectively counterattack utilizing the Leading Right.

16. Attributes and Tactics:

a. Discusses the importance of speed, attitude and tactics.

Like any well written book, as much as you can learn from this book by reading it, you can learn just as much if not more by reading between the lines. I particularly enjoyed the simplicity of what Bruce was trying to relay throughout this and pretty much all of his books. What may work well for one person, may not work at all for another. Therefore, you as an individual needs to research the techniques that are out there and find those that work best for you and use them. Remember, there are no superior martial arts, only superior martial artists.

Bruce Lee
If you like martial arts , than it's a great book and you can better unerstand Bruce Lee.

Straightforward discussion of good and bad habits....
This is not a cure all book of splendor that will make your street sojourns safe as can be.What it happens to be is a terse condensing of terms and applications.However, this can be a blessing in disguise if you've ever really fought someone for whatever petty reasons.But as is usual, petty fights can't be won by might alone.Moreover, a brief self-defense type situation not asked for nor expected in the least, will never ever count on you being able to muster Earnie Shavers-esque punches via hours and hours of your prior chopping of wood and winding up and hitting a hanging truck tire with sledge hammer in hand.But such is the world of Archie Moore.Anywho, Bruce Lee's Vol. 4 "Advanced Techniques" will give you insights into not so much what works, but what will keep you in the fight for the long haul.Pointers I took to liking and appreciating were:
Side kick from a distance.Hook kicks aimed roughly a foot in front of an advancing target for maximum impact (a late straight or hook kick results in you being taken down or knocked stiff; watch muay thai to appreciate).Straight kicks to the groin when in close (the power comes from the bending and straightening of the knee as when kicking a soccerball).For punching, what I found illustrative were comments on when to throw body punches and how to punch in disengagements.Many fights end after an attacker relaxes to early, stays too close, and then abruptly tastes a big hook or wild uppercut when flatfooted.Hook when countering, uppercut when the hook gets suffocated, throw high, low, high, low and so on when putting together combinations.Be careful though when body punching a big strong opponent - you open your face all to easily to both compact and loose hooks.Lastly, if you are facing someone who is in the reverse stance (opposite lead hand forward), be very cautious of straight punching both upstairs and down.Of course, if your opponent doesn't do this, you should be able to no problem as it is your first and best option (you beat a lefty by evading the straight left, but to do so, you'll have to square up on occassion and unleash your own straight right).Lastly, speed and defensive measure can be vastly overrated - you might quickly escape backward only to be launched further (watch UFC competitors who smell knockouts!it isn't one punch, two punch, three........it is a literal assault coming straight at you with a fierceness you'll have to somehow disrupt).Use your speed only for direct attack or blocking, however, try not to feint hyperactively as this will leave you wide open eventually!Learn to block, roll the punch, sharply turn, and lastly, if you can, duck and parry a straight punch and follow naturally with a leaning blow to the opponents already commited waistline.
The book is lacking in elbow and knee offensives.Knees are really only good from the clinch, while elbows are good against someone who comes in uppercutting or letting loose lowline hooks with both hands.It also does not teach you any grappling, takedowns, shoots, or chokeholds.Learn those elsewhere - I prefer Ken Shamrock's 'Beyond the Lions Den' with its emphasis on submission wrestling and manuevers that translate to the street if need be.
Other aspects covered that should be paid attention to are: keeping initial combinations (opponent not dazed nor hurt) to 2 to 3 blows; keeping hands projected further outward when feeling stuck (rear hand can almost touch lead shoulder to make for new angles and lessening of muscle tension); lead jab thrown with knuckles in the verticle and rear heal almost leap frogging toward lead heal to make a power-V for torque in rotation); also relying less on bobbing and weaving against a stronger opponent (as is thought to be so fruitful) and looking more to the stop-hit and cover-counter-cover-counter approach (bob and weaving works somewhat at a distance, and can help to avoid becoming frozen in action).Lastly, I'll give a few hints from my own minor scrapes, mostly on what to avoid from the opponent:
1) Learn to stop or get away from rear shots.These include overhands, straights, thrusts, etc.Either jump straight back (chin down hands high), move to a side (again hands high), or jump forward at an angle (duck!).It is very easy to get overconfident with straight punches.The good news is, you opponent begins to open himself to his own weapon of choice - the rear straight!Once you start countering straight for straight, be preparred to duck and then uppercut in anticipation of the opponents tendancy to start trading straights.If you can collapse the gap, short hooks and body punching can become overwhelming to a once strident attacker.
2) Do not lunge in to far, called reaching, to land a straight body punch or blow to the head because if your opponent is well seasoned, you will get tagged repeatedly by hooks arriving in all directions.Thus, if your opponent starts getting desperate and throws long overhands, either step right in with two rapid one-two uppercuts; or, step back and let the attackers momentum shift them right into range for your wild hooks.One or two of these is plenty, but a third and forth can be sprung on them if they are stunned or cover excessively.
3) Long hooks and sharp, in-close body punching can be the only way to open up a stubborn defensive fighter.No matter the situation, if you do 3 daily exercises, your strength for self-defense becomes two-fold within a month or two - pushups, situps, and squats.And if you wish, shoulder presses and pullups.
Bruce Lee was a master.In a real boxing match, he may not have been big enough to tackle the heavyweight devision, crowned champ.But when there are no rules out on the street, and if your initial move or instictive reaction fails (groin kick, knee kick, side kick to sternum, carotid strike, eye jab) then it becomes imperative to have a reserve of strong boxing/kickboxing know-how.Thank goodness for people who devoted their lives to helping innocents withstand perilous circumstance.Maybe not as beautiful as Euclid's Elements Book 13, enlightening just the same.

Requires re-reading and reference to the other volumes also
Review of Bruce Lee's Fighting Method, Volume 4,Advanced Techniques

This Volume has Chapters XII thru XVI

The main idea for this volume is that 4 elements that make for a good attack include strategy, deception, timing, speed.The inconsistent or fragmentary structure of Bruce Lee's writing almost mutes the main idea stead of supporting it.

Being able to adapt to change quickly is an important strategic quality.Bruce Lee expressed it in other words in his writings.He recommends that the fighter should vary his attacks and defenses ostensibly to prevent the opponent from anticipating what comes next and to be able to fight with fighters from other styles.

Bruce Lee recommends a number of ways to deceive the opponent such as using feints, drawing the opponent's attack by using footwork or leaving a target open to the opponent, using circular and semi circular parries and strikes: hooks and uppercuts that come from out side the field of the opponent's visual field, and broken attack rhythms.

Timing and speed are more important with use of more advanced techniques: good counter strikes, trapping, evasion techniques to allow the fighter to counter strike with more than one blow without blocking or parrying, and being able to sense and harmonize with the opponent' moves and the rhythm of his moves to strike him the moment he makes an opening in his guard are all advanced skills in timing and require the ability to move quickly to seize a moment and make use of it.

Some techniques have the potential illusion of speed built into them simply because the hand or food used might be closer to a target on the opponent.Eliminating moves that reveal your intent to the opponent also creates the illusion of speed by reducing or elimination of warnings.

In Chapter XIII, Bruce Lee mentions thattoo many fighters emphasize too much on speed and blame their failure to make contact on the opponent with their strikes on the lack of speed instead of not using the correct strike for the moment.This statement would have been better placed on the first page of the volume because it helps to preserve the main idea of this volume as you read about all the tactics and striking and kicking techniques that follow.

This volume covers each of the various basic striking and kicking techniques.The body mechanics of performing each strike, the practical uses of each technique, and quality ofeach type of strike is covered.So, in this volume, strikes are written about in such a way that a punch is not just a punch.A kick is not just a kick.But, each strike's characteristics makes it suitable at a particular instant, a particular type of scenario in fight.In a fight each striking technique becomes a tool for an instant, for the right moment: lead jabs to intercept and keep the opponent busy or at a distance, hooks and upper cuts to follow straight punches to catch an opponent off guard in close fighting, reverse punch or rear counter for a powerful, damaging strike when the opponents guard is open.

I think that these 4 volumes were originally intended to be published as one book; not in volumes.Each of the volumes has different range of chapter numbers.Sometimes while reading some topic, something will make more sense if you had read the previous volume or a related topic in the Tao of Jeet Kune Do.

If you like this series of books and the Tao of Jeet Kune Do, you might also like Paul Vunak's "street Fight" series of videos or former kickboxing and karate tournament champion, Hector Echavarria's3 video series on Kickboxing.Many of the principles Hector Echavarria talks about and demonstrates are the same or very similar as those in this series of volumes on Bruce Lee's Fighting Method.

Street Safe I by Paul Vunak

Street Safe II by Paul Vunak

Street Safe III by Paul Vunak

R.A.T. Fighting System by Paul Vunak

Jeet Kune Do: Its Concepts and Philosophies (Jeet Kune Do) by Paul Vunak

Anatomy of a Street Fight by Paul Vunak

Required reading
IN MEMORY OF MARIO PONTILLO
Since the late 1970's, I have studied Mr. Lee's "Way of the Intercepting fist."
This book will walk you through the physical aspect of his methods. It is the last in a volume of 4 books. I recommend you get all the volumes from this series. You will need to start from the beginning; and you do that by emptying your cup so Bruce may fill it.

My favorite quote: "Knowing is not enough, you must apply; willing is not enough, you must do." -Bruce Lee

Please do not hesitate to check out my Poetry book that I published while in the U.S. Navy in 2003; "Under the Rose: Poetry of Tragedy, Essence, and Romance" ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

A philosophical look at a physical art.
Bruce Lee was an amazing person, able to blend the physical beauty of the body with the philosophical beauty of the mind and create the true essence of martial art. In the Tao of Gung Fu, Bruce Lee devotes individual attention to philosophical and physical aspects of his form. His main attention is on Wing Chung, the style of Gung Fu that he himself studied under a Chinese master. Bruce devotes most of the first part of the book to basics and philosophical principles of Gung Fu, including the redirecting of the opponents energy to use it against him.
I would recommend this book to most practitioners, and those that are considering getting into martial arts. The second half of the book covers some basic techniques, stances, stretches, exercises, and practices, while the last twenty or thirty pages include personal quotes, answered questions, and biographies of some of the old masters.
This book is good for beginners because it gives them an insight into the art and some of the things it will take to be successful. It also allows them to understand some of the basic philosophies of the martial arts.
Those with practice will enjoy this book because it goes into some of the more interesting aspects of the art and is written eloquently by one of the greatest martial artists in history.
This should be added to most martial art libraries. I've practiced multiple styles for nearly ten years and find that this book is an invaluable resource to study and train with.

Bruce Lee Tao of Gung Fu
The book Bruce Lee the Tao of Gung Fu was a good book because Bruce Lee hiself teaches you how to protect yourself from dangerous people. Also the style is gung fu a weapon to becoming a great skill fighter. Bruce Lee is one of the best in teaching
When and where to srike a person that is trying to take you down. But Bruce Lee doesent want his learners to just be using the style on any body just use it when needed. Their is three types of Gung Fu you can learn but to do so you have to be very fucus to learn step by step. Reading this book told me alot I didnt know.

I recomend this book to anybody or everybody because this book was good it taught me stuff that I never knew befor. I now that if somebody read this book they will feel the same way as me. If you like book that teaches you things then I recomend that you just give this book a try beacuse Bruce hisself puts hard work in makeing the reader's relax and enjoy the book. So yes I would recomend this book once again.

Get The Real Message
This is a good book in that a reader can get a clearer idea of who Bruce Lee was. One reviewer was quite rude and unfair to Bruce Lee, took offense to the man as though he had written the book. Bruce Lee's writings were made into a book, Bruce Lee did not write nor construct the book. So appreciating that fact, it's fair to say that a reader gets a pretty good idea as to what type of prerson Bruce Lee was. Bruce Lee did study philosphy and he shared a lot of what he learned from others as well as his own personal views and opinions. Any true Bruce Lee fan knows Bruce never presented himself as "the one who knew everything" he tried to inspire and/or guide people to be themselves, find the true meaning of themselves an not be fixed, labeled, a copy, tied to any set thing or boxed into something with no way for self expression. And not just to be applied to the Martial Arts but in life as well. I think the insulting reader was confused by the deeper meaning of Bruce's writings and what he preceived to be "Bruce the great philosopher". The reader didn't get the real message, that if there is value in any book, as there is with this book (better insight and inspiration)then it should be recommended. Bruce Lee's writings should be appreciated for the content of what was originally from Bruce, his writings in this book should be looked upon to help people gain a better understanding of the thoughts and principles that guided him-Bruce Lee. If some people are inspired to follow his principles or those of whom he learned from, I think that's the point. If a reader has already made up in his or her mind thatBruce Lee's writings are not "real philosophy" or at least based on "real philosophy" then don't buy the book. In my opinion, this book would still be a good book no matter whose writings they were.

Interesting
Fame brings out jaleousy in some people. Bruce Lee was one of the greatest martial art authority and expert known to the world. Anyone with at least some basic spiritual understanding of chinese Kung Fu could just not write with total disrespect about Lee no matter what he/she has to say. In fact the reviewer below despite his belief of the contrary and maybe years of training betrays in his own words his own frustration and a total lack of measure. He sadly belongs with the novices.
One thing indeniable about Bruce Lee is that he got something right and beware if you only look at the surface you might simply miss it. Real skills lie deep beneath the surface. I recommend reading this book

It's amazing...
how even toilet paper with Bruce Lee's name on it would sell to some people. Take this book for example. In your everyday life, would you consider a 24 y/o an "authority" on anything? Nooooo -so why consider one an authority on a 4000 y/o art? Because he had great pecs and abs and was lucky enough to die in his early thirties, right? The book contains nothing (I repeat NOTHING) that can't be found in "Tao Te Ching", so if you want to read real Taoism philosophy go get that.

In TTOGF, Bruce displays his understanding (or lack thereof) of the aforementioned "Tao Te Ching", Chinese martial arts, the life, the universe and everything in the half-a$$ed way normally associated with youngsters trying to show off their "deep understanding" of profound matters. Pix are scarse and are the ones usually recycled in the other books of the series, although the, ahem, author's "Gung Fu Scrapbook" at the last pages, has to be seen to be believed.

He should had stuck with cha-cha. And, BTW, if you really, really have to buy a book on the MA, consider something written by a real martial artist e.g. Donn F. Draeger. Buying a book on MA written by Bruce Lee is like buying a book on archaeology written by Harrison Ford. Or, maybe more appropriate, Angelina Jolie.

Sheesh... ... Read more

Book Description
In this companion volume to his critically acclaimed first book, The Tao of Muhammad Ali, Davis Miller turns his attention to a second iconic figure of the twentieth century--and another of Miller's own seminal influences: film star and martial arts legend Bruce Lee.

Just weeks after completing Enter the Dragon, his first vehicle for a worldwide audience, Bruce Lee--the self-proclaimed world's fittest man--died mysteriously at the age of thirty-two. The film has since grossed over $500 million, making it one of the most profitable in the history of cinema, and Lee has acquired almost mythic status.

Lee was a flawed, complex, yet singular talent. He revolutionized the martial arts and forever changed action moviemaking. But what has his legacy truly meant to the fans he left behind? To author Davis Miller, Lee was a profound mentor and a transformative inspiration. As a troubled young man in rural North Carolina, Miller was on a road to nowhere when he first saw Enter the Dragon, an encounter that would lead him on a physical, emotional, and spiritual journey and would change his life.

As in The Tao of Muhammad Ali, Miller brilliantly combines biography--the fullest, most unflinching and revelatory to date--with his own coming-of-age story. The result is a unique and compelling book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (53)

Judged a Top Ten sports book by editors of BOOKLIST magazine
Miller, Davis. The Tao of Bruce Lee: A Martial Arts Memoir

Miller combines a biography of Bruce Lee with his own coming-of-age story as a "karate kid" in the early 1970s. Whether describing how a viewing of Lee's Enter the Dragon changed his life or dispelling many of the myths behind the Lee legend, Miller manages to turn the story of two lives into a fascinating study of the nature of the hero in popular culture.BILL OTT, Editor

Bruce And The Truth
The subtitle, A Martial Arts Memoir, describes what this book is really about. It's not a biography about Bruce Lee - though various "facts" and "myths" about him are detailed or debunked. Rather, it's a tale of how Bruce Lee's movies, athleticism, martial arts prowess, focus and determination, philosophy, and larger-than-life persona awoke the dormant soul of a ninety pound weakling. The Tao of Bruce Lee details Davis Miller's transformation from sad, loner, directionless, teenage failure into an accomplished martial artist, writer and, most importantly, vibrant, purposeful human being. The misery of Miller's life before seeing Bruce Lee explode on the screen in Enter the Dragon is, in places, gut-wrenching. But the sadness and despair are replaced by optimism and an the urge to yell, "`atta-boy!" as the young Miller slowly wriggles out of his cocoon. Miller's is a story of possibilities; if he can discover himself, find meaning and contentment in life, anyone can. Beside the quasi-spiritual autobiographical stuff, Miller touches on Bruce Lee's martial arts skills and reputation, his meteoric rise to superstardom, particularly in Asia, the facts surrounding his death and his enduring worldwide impact. There is a lot about Muhammad Ali and comparisons and contrasts between these two very talented men (and what they gave to the world.) Miller brings up Ali so much, one may wonder why he didn't simply write one book, The Tao of Muhammad Ali and Bruce Lee. This book is better on reflection than when actually reading it. I like it more now - and would rate it higher - than I did when I turned the last page this morning. It has a good aftertaste.

The Tao of Self-Awakening
The subtitle, A Martial Arts Memoir, describes what this book is really about.It's not a biography about Bruce Lee - though various "facts" and "myths" about him are detailed or debunked.Rather, it's a tale of how Bruce Lee's movies, athleticism, martial arts prowess, focus and determination, philosophy, and larger-than-life persona awoke the dormant soul of a ninety pound weakling.The Tao of Bruce Lee details Davis Miller's transformation from sad, loner, directionless, teenage failure into an accomplished martial artist, writer and, most importantly, vibrant, purposeful human being.

The misery of Miller's life before seeing Bruce Lee explode on the screen in Enter the Dragon is, in places, gut-wrenching.But the sadness and despair are replaced by optimism and an the urge to yell, "`atta-boy!" as the young Miller slowly wriggles out of his cocoon.Miller's is a story of possibilities; if he can discover himself, find meaning and contentment in life, anyone can.

Beside the quasi-spiritual autobiographical stuff, Miller touches on Bruce Lee's martial arts skills and reputation, his meteoric rise to superstardom, particularly in Asia, the facts surrounding his death and his enduring worldwide impact.There is a lot about Muhammad Ali and comparisons and contrasts between these two very talented men (and what they gave to the world.)Miller brings up Ali so much, one may wonder why he didn't simply write one book, The Tao of Muhammad Ali and Bruce Lee.

This book is better on reflection than when actually reading it.I like it more now - and would rate it higher - than I did when I turned the last page this morning.It has a good aftertaste.

Another great book by Davis Miller
When I first read the Tao of Bruce Lee, I was expecting another biography of Lee (and being a die-hard fan of Lee, that would have been perfectly fine), but this book turned out to be a lot more than that.

The first half of the book deals with the life of Davis Miller himself - growing up as a scrawny, ninety pound kid in North Carolina - and the profound impact Lee had on his life. Inspired by Lee, Miller finds the motivation to try and better his meaningless life by practicing hard to become the greatest Martial Artist alive (or as he puts it: "lightning on limbs"). I am sure the discipline and dedication he learnt while practicing Martial Arts helped him later in his life as a writer.

The second half of the book focuses more on Lee, and tries to remove the "thick mist of money making" that has obscured the true story of Bruce Lee by presenting a very honest and well researched account of Lee's life. Overall, an extremely well written and readable book.

Fun reading
"I desperately need something to read", I suddenly recalled when I was heading for my favourite coffeshop. So, I popped in and started to look for something, and this book sort of beamed at me. I got it under the impression that it was a biography about Bruce Lee, but it turns out that it is more a book about Davis Miller's relation to Bruce Lee and how Lee has influenced him. It is very easy reading and a quite nice book, and at page 97 and onwards a small biography about Bruce Lee (or Li Jun Fan, which was his real name) appears. Apparently it is hard to find any books with true facts, Davis Miller claims that this one shall be rather close to truth, and you will learn that Bruce Lee wasn't the lonely martial arts master that one thinks. If you like martial arts in general, and more specifically Bruce Lee, get this book, you will finish it within a couple of days and it is fun reading.

... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

be water my friends
Bruce Lee books or papers about him and his success are the best basis for every serious training martial artist. BL & his JKD are open minded, only truth development we can join this world.

A Peek into Lee
This collection of correspondence gives the reader a chance to peek into the mind and life of Bruce Lee. We get to tag along on his first trip to the US since his birth, his friendships, his marriage, his children, what he thought of the jet set, how the dog was eating, father-son bonding, etc. His heart went into every word, as his hand interpreted the flow of his mind.

Bruce's widow, Linda Emery Lee Cadwell, mentions in one of the forwards that until the last year of his life, Bruce didn't have enough money to make excessive long distance phone calls. I'd hate to sound selfish, but, lucky for us.

the real Bruce Lee....
I thought this book offered a completely different perspective of Bruce Lee and offered quality reading into the personal life of a famous martial artist. His letters were very honest, thought-provoking, and genuine from beginning to end. There was one very short and disturbing letter towards the end of the book which, in my opinion, was a significant clue as to why he passed so early and I hope other readers can understand this clue as well.

John Little did an extraordinary job of presenting the letters in order and importance as with all of his books on Bruce Lee.Highly recommended!

Great
Great book.I liked reading about Bruce Lee's thoughts and ideas

Another view of the man
This book provides another view of the legendary Bruce Lee. I really enjoyed reading his thoughts on the martial arts, his work (film and books) and his family. The letters to Linda showed how much he loved his wife andchildren. I know this is part of her life too and she may want to keep itprivate, but I would have liked to see some of the letters she wrote backto Bruce. ... Read more

Book Description
The first compilation of Bruce Lee photographs published in association with the Bruce Lee estate. This book reveals the full range of Lee's talents. It includes rare photos spanning from his early stage career in Hong Kong to his worldwide success as an actor and martial arts phenomenon. Selected with the assistance of Lee's widow, Linda Lee Cadwell, Bruce Lee expert John Little presents a photographic record, accompanied by descriptive commentary, of all facets of this fascinating man, from the start of his career to his untimely death a quarter century ago. Included are photos from Bruce's personal family photos, from his childhood years, through the early years in Hollywood, to the peak of his career as an international star. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

The Way of the Intercepting Fist
Many of the documentaries and biographies out there about Bruce Lee were unauthorized and created by shysters trying to cash in on his sudden death. This book, based on the recent video documentary "Bruce Lee: In His Own Words" is not only superior because it really is based on the master's own words, but the book and video are also endorsed by Bruce's widow and daughter. Here we get plenty of great photographs from Bruce's films, training, and family life. Meanwhile, Bruce's thoughts on acting, family, and his martial arts style (or, according to him, its dismissal of style) are true revelations for any fan of Bruce's classic movies. His thoughts on being a serious actor, rather than a martial arts "superstar," are quite a surprise; while his personal philosophy and attitudes toward martial arts mastery are both fascinatingly Eastern but surprisingly down-to-Earth and accessible for Western enthusiasts.So instead of fighting your way through all the frauds and fakes out there, get it from the master himself. [~doomsdayer520~]

Life and times of the true master
There are no limitations , save those that we create for ourselves... Bruce Lee

This is a great book if you are looking for a compilation of rare photos and facts.. Unlike most books out there that beat around the bush , This book showcases the man as he wanted to project himself to the world .The perspectives are variable throughout the book , giving the reader a vast panoramic view of the life and times of the much hyped martial arts superstar..

Frankly, if you're looking for a detailed description of his persona , you will find exactly that and more.. Full of great photos that give a realistic insight on the master , this book is a good buy if you are interested in the glam..

If you are a martial artist however , I would strongly suggest that you do not buy this book . There are various other books that will serve your purpose, books like 'The Tao of JKD'.

Informative. Great Pictures. A Great Addition.
This book is a great addition to my collection of Bruce Lee books of pictures, filmography, philosopy and techniques. It has one of the best picture collections of all the books I've seen. The content isn't bad either. Talking about the life of the Little Dragon and some of the deep thoughts he had in his short life in this world. My fan-ography of the Jeet Kune Do Sifu is just starting, even if I have been a follower for years. This book is not a dissapointment. It will be a great addition to any collection.

a must
Bruce Lee was his own man.he had so much style&smoothness about him.this book highlights his world in front of the public&behind it.very detailed&very upfront.you get a very insightful look into his world&vision.a man who forever changed the world with his talent&craft.a man who was trying to make sense of his surroudings&the things that were in placed around him.He will never be forgotten.

Like looking through a family photo album
What an intimate look at the man behind the image!The book is highly visual--the text is very limited--but the photos are like none that I've ever seen in other books on Lee.I'm talking about the baby pictures of Bruce and Brandon, photos of Lee from behind the scenes in his movies (a kind of spooky one of him and Sharon Tate from what must have been just before she was killed), and pictures of he and his wife just sitting on the couch at home.It makes you realize that there's a man and father behind the superhero that appears in his films.I loved it. ... Read more

Book Description
Here is the complete story of the great martial artist/actor Bruce Lee, told with great personal insight by Linda Lee with hundreds of photos from Lee's personal albums. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

It's okay
I was surprised at how poor a quality the actual book was. It's large, but the paper that it was printed on just made me think how cheap it was.

The content of the book was alright. It's a nice short read, but there are parts that are kind of slow.

Bruce Lee story is really good!
The Bruce Lee story is really good! Linda Lee's book about her husband, the legendary Bruce Lee is a great biographical story! Linda Lee shares her private moments and her thoughts about the man she loved so much! Bruce Lee is the Chinese-American who would eventually become the greatest Martial Artist of all time! The photos from Linda Lee's personal collection are great! Bruce Lee is at his best when pictured on the set of his movies, like the Big Boss, Fist of Fury, Way of the Dragon, Game of Death, and Enter the Dragon!I do recommend this book because Linda lee is the only person who knew Bruce lee better than anyone because she was his wife! their is no information on the death of Brandon Lee because this book was published in 1989.A+

be water my friends
Bruce Lee books or papers about him and his success are the best basis for every serious training martial artist. BL & his JKD are open minded, only truth development we can join this world.

Fascinating!
Bruce Lee was an "original" no doubt..He was an innovative martial artist who created an eclectic style of Gung Fu called Jeet Kune Do, an assimilation of many fighting styles...Bruce didn't believe in systems..he always believed that if you could use something to achieve a result use it!Bruce had many followers and "famous" students..such as Steve McQueen, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Chuck Norris, Joe Lewis, Mike Stone, James Coburn and many others...Bruce would be the first to admit that he was first and foremost a martial artist...He used the movies to bring his "art" to the masses and what an impact he made!His films today are quintessential examples of what a martial arts film should be!This book by his wife Linda Lee is a beautifully written biography that offers worlds of insight into who Bruce Lee was as a person..Linda writes lovingly of their relationship and brings a history of Bruce from a baby to his death at the too young age of 32 to you..Bruce lived his life to the fullest and was not only a great martial artist but a very profound philosopher as well...This is a wonderful book and highly recommended, not only to fans of Bruce but to anyone seeking inspiration in their lives....

Very good an interesting book about an interesting man!
Bruce Lee.Some things the average reader will not know about this man:Bruce Lee only made four movies in his lifetime.Bruce Lee was an intellectual.Bruce Lee revolutionized the martial arts. Bruce Lee brought the martial arts to the masses.

This book is written by Bruce Lee's wife.It is a short and loving memory to an extraordianry man who is still famous.Why exactly is a mystery.Perhaps it is the outstanding artistry Bruce Lee brought to the martial arts.

Bruce Lee had been a child actor in Hong Kong before coming to the United States and studying at the University of Washington.Ironically, he was a philosophy major.However, Lee transformed himself into a tremendous human specimen through his physical discipline, and a intellectual regarding his sport.He introduced "the way of the moving fist," which was a new methodology in the training of martial arts. He also dared to tech the subject to non-Asians, a idea which was tremendously disturbing to many and resulted in a fistfight with a young challenger in Lee's studio in Oakland, California.

Linda Lee comes across as a traveler who feels luck in being able to travel (for a brief while) on the road with Bruce Lee.He was convinced to move to Hollywood, where he began training stars like James Coburn, and later Kareem Abdul Jabbar.Unfortunnately, Bruce Lee had to fight racism and stereotypes.At home, his wife's family rejected him because of his Asian heritage.Hollywood rejected him because he didn't want to play the 'chop-suey' roles Hollywood routinely put forth in portraying Asians in film and television.However, a searing performance in the late 1960's on a detective show cemented his star quality,and he made some appearences on "the Green Hornet."

Finally, he made some pictures in the Hollywood system such as "Enter the Dragon."

Unfortunately, his most interesting and allusionary work, "The Game of Death," which was supposed to be a representation of his philophy of his art was never completed.I believe an assembled film was cobbeld together after his death, but the film was never finished.Interestingly, Kareem Abdul Jabbar played the ultimate obstacle in the movie.

Linda Lee's book has many interesting pictures, and I think gives an interesting look at Bruce Lee's life and impact that will have even the most casual reader satisfied.

If you are looking for lurid details, conspiracies and the like this book is not for you. Understandably, Ms. Lee does not cover the topic of Bruce Lee's supposed drug use and the unusual circumstances of his death, but what would you expect, this is a loving portrait by a woman who obviously loved Bruce Lee very much. Cheers for her!

Interestingly, several weeks ago, I watched a Turkish film in which a charecter kept repeating the line, " I will chop them up like Bruce Lee."In a Turkish film for crying out loud.

Obviously, Bruce Lee ahd a great impact on the world for his incredible talent which was taken from us before Bruce Lee could intepret it for the rest of us.In this way, he reminds me of Jimi Hendrix; Bruce Lee was a shooting star across the heavens.

This is a good book, and I believe you will like it as well. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (30)

My favorite of the series!
This is my favorite of the John Little/Bruce Lee series.

If you are looking for real, honest-to-goodness Bruce Lee principles of JKD, then this is the book. Even though the book is organized into categories, I think the best way to study it is to take a random page (any page will do) and apply it to your martial study for a full practice session. Just the one page will be packed with ideas.

And your martial arts will improve.

Digest the book, one piece at a time, and you will improve every aspect of your martial arts ... speed, reaction time, attack and counterattack, rhythm and timing, and on and on.

This really is a value-packed book.

Remember, savor the advice and don't gloss over any of the writing. This "stuff" is important.

--Keith Pascal, martial arts author

The Jeet Kune Do Manual for the JKD student.
I study Jeet Kune Do in Denver Colorado. My Sifu referred me to this book. I do wish the book had more diagrams of some of the techniques. Overall it is the geatest book on JKD. Of course it is,it was written by the man who created JKD.
In one place in the book, Bruce Lee had written the pros and cons of different arts and what he liked about them technichly. This allows you to see how Lee was percieving martial arts and what he was looking for. You also get possible insight to where his art was going.
Near the end of the book are Lee's training routines. He even writes how to teach a class. There is much more info in this book than the original. Just don't forget the same author wrote them both.
Also don't forget to check out Bruce Lee's 4 volume Fighting methods to see how Lee trained.
JKD Pupil

Wonderful book, not the key to martial art though.
I see that a lot of reviewers that gave this book low ratings seem to think that you can learn martial arts from a book. I will give you this warning now, you can't and never will be able to learn a martial art from a book, but this is a good starting place for beginners to see some of the techniques and ideas put forward in Jeet Kune Do. If you're someone with martial training as I am you can learn a number of things from this book. Most martial arts that are taught today are for exercise, fun, or competition, rarely are they taught for safety or other more historical reasons. This book can help you get back to those roots of your art.

I have studied various forms of martial arts for around ten years now and would consider this book an invaluable edition to my library, which is always growing and always changing and I still rank this book as one of the better ones in my collection. Inside you will find sections of philosophy and sections on technical work. The reason I gave this only four stars is that if you are not a martial artist or if you don't at least have some basic training, the technical section of the book is worthless and will do you no good. However, if you have practiced, you can learn a lot from the technical section of this book as Bruce goes over individual moves and how to use them to their best in a fight. He also explains how to close space between yourself and an opponent, how to mix up the rhythms of a fight, and how to make your attack and defense more effective.

If you haven't studied martial arts then you will find some sections of this book to be quite interesting while others are utterly worthless. If you have, however, this is one of the better technical manuals that can be purchased that is also veined with the philosophies behind this physical and mental art. It is a wonderful resource and a useful tool for any martial artist.

Disorganised and rather painfull
Jeet Kune Do is a book full of insight into the martial arts through the eyes of Bruce Lee. It does contain many important aspects of martial arts. It appears to attempt to address very important topics which many martial art styles tend to ignore. Martial arts are more than lists of techniques and pre arranged kata. They are about developing fighting skill, and about how to train in order to perfect your agility, balance, power and timing. Volume three does address these concepts and more.

The down side to this book is that it isn't very much more than the brain storming sessions of Bruce Lee committed to paper. One statement after another is made with very little logical connection. What this book needed was to be ordered such that related statements and concepts were grouped together. In places there are simple lists of various techniques without little or no explanation of the context. Rather than clear explanations of concepts we are treated to short unrelated sentenences.

The job of trying to extract from these notes the real meaning of what Bruce was trying to convey was very difficult indeed. The book is full of photos of Bruce in action, however these photos are generally not related to the content. Drawn illustrations are in somewhat better context, but they are obviously the original illustrations Bruce had drawn himself.

For those who are interested in the original notes from Bruce Lee there may be some interest. However, for a general reader the presentation of his ideas is confusing and incomplete. This isn't to say that the book does not have value. There is quite a bit of good advice. My issue with the book is that the editors could have substantially reorganised it in such a way as to make it more comprehensible. It would also have been an advantage to redraw the illustrations professionally so that we don't have to strain to read the notes.

Bruce was a great Martial Artist, but that doesn't mean we should expect him to be the best writer. In this case his ideas should have been extended and examined. Where there were incomplete sections the context should have been filled in for people. Also the order of ideas should have been changed so that similar ideas were not repeated throughout the book.

Great Book!
This is the best book on on Bruce Lee's philosofies yet!A must read for every martial artist. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

Well-done biography
A good biography that tells the story of Bruce Lee and the development of his martial art Jeet Kune Do. I give it 4 stars instead of 5 due to the excessive number of grammatical errors in the book.

Well Done Biography
This book tries to convey a more human Bruce Lee. It includes his triumphs and his mistakes and allows the reader to judge what kind of man Bruce Lee was. While not everything in this book can be verified as truth Bruce Lee's life is portrayed in a respectful but in my opinion honest manner. I must point out again that the so called facts in this book have not been verified but it what is told here seems to correlate well with what I have been told by meeting and training with people who knew and trained with Bruce. My only complaint is the authors obvious bias for chinese martial arts. He claims to be a Wing Chun Gung Fu student and in certain parts of the book it becomes clear that he feels that this method is superior to others. However this is still a good read and the author is not obnoxious with his opinions

Good book
A good book and a plesant reading by a good writer. There's not so much new information in this book, but it puts facts in perspective a gives a good general body of information for those wishing to begin to learn about Bruce Lee's life. And what a life...

Like Bon Scott of AC/DC, for example, Bruce died when he was starting to reach his full potential in movies. It was a shame.

Solid biography
This is far from an official biography. It has not the endorsement of Linda Lee, and it also lacks interviews with some key member of Bruce's life. Also, the excuse given for the total lack of photos was not convincing at all.

But you will soon forgive the author for these minor flaws, because once you begin to read this book you will not stop it. Bruce Thomas, a bass player with Elvis Costello's band, writes with passion, but without bias. He tries to be objective all the times, including the "conspiracy theories" surrounding Bruce's death.

This book has a serius side effect: after reading it, you will not watch ever again the movie DRAGON (1993). Although Jason Scott Lee gave a great performance, it is clear that the movie was a total absurd, it's amazing how Linda Lee gave her support to it.

Good, But Beware: The Enthusiast's Point-of-View
Generally speaking, this is a fair and somewhat gritty bio of Bruce Lee.There is much detail here on Bruce's disillusionment with fame, and also his health problems -- stunning to learn that he was taking back-pain injections while filming Big Boss, and had even sprained his ankle at one point.And the unpleasant details of the Enter the Dragon shoot were also somewhat shocking, especially the scriptwriter's obnoxious plan to make Bruce say the letter 'R' as much as possible.There is a lot of text on Bruce's early struggles, and then a way-too-quick zip through his first two movies.

But in some ways, this book falls in with the other Bruce Lee tributes.The author is a kung fu practicioner, and as such takes almost all pronouncements of Eastern-thinking or Chinese superstition as having complete validity -- so, for example, you'll be intellectually face-to-face with someone who is describing "chi" as if it actually physically exisits, as lungs do.So he hasn't the sceptic's eye for really talking about martial arts in an objective way, but this won't bother a lot of folks. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Pretty good, but...
It was a pretty good book, however, like people have mentioned, some of the stuff is repeated. A lot. I don't know how many interviews he did in that period of time, but I wish they had done better choosing what they did instead of repeating so much of the same stuff. The one I really wish they had put in there was his most famous interview. The one they video taped, where he talks about everything while trying out for a tv show. If you've seen the new Enter the Dragon 25 year anniversary, its the one before the movie that lasts like 15 minutes. They should have included a text version in this book.

If you find this book on sale at a used book store or something, pick it up, it's worth it. But don't go spending full price for this, because it isn't worth it. If you find it on Amazon here along with another book (like Tao of Gung Fu and this together) then go ahead and get them. To buy this book solo though would just be a waste, you would have it done within a couple of hours.

Still Bruce, but...
I heard several of these interviews from other sources. If YOU haven't then the book might be worth your time and money, but then again even the interviews in the book get old. Each interviewer asks the same questions and Bruce gives the same answers. It's less thrilling than other Bruce Lee books.

words of the dragon
This book gave me an insight into the personality of Bruce Lee.it is the second book about him i have read.The only thing i do not like about this book is one peice of information which it gives without correcting it inthe notes.He didn't die in hospital; he died in the house of an actresswhich he and Raymond Chow had gone to see about offering her a role in thefilm Game of Death.While they were there, Bruce got a headache and took apill and retired to the bedroom.That's where he died.

better title 'Words about the Dragon, Press Reports'
The title of the book „Words of the Dragon, Interviews 1985-1973" reflects a little bit a wrong impression of the book. A better title would be „Words about the Dragon, Press Report 1958-1973". At the beginning of the book afew things are repeated over and over again. It seems that it would bedifficult to investigate e.g. how old Bruce Lee was when his parentsreturned to Hong Kong. Only at the end of this book one could catch a smallimpression of Bruce Lee's philosophy. His carrier as an actor comesprimarily up. The US Press didn't understand until Bruce Lee's death thathis art wasn't Karate. I expected more philosophically thoughts andbackground knowledge of his martial art. The Bruce Lee connoisseur gainedno really news and I thing the book isn't stimulating for beginners. I wasimpressed by the letter of Brandon Lee, which is printed at the end of thebook.

"words of the dragon": a unique perspective on bruce lee.
for lee fans and martial arts fans alike, "words of the dragon" provides a unique perspective on the life of an extraordinary man. through newspaper articles, tv and radio interviews, etc. mr. little (with kind cooperation of linda lee cadwell)has pieced together a media history of bruce lee. readers find a chance to get to know the lighthearted and the intense mr. lee, the fighter, the artist, the family man. though we all realize how the media can turn words around, or add them, etc., the author has included corrections at the end of each chapter, which, in themselves, must be read to understand the full story.very well-crafted, and intelligently pieced together, "words of the dragon" will take the reader to a new level of understanding of the mind and heart of the great bruce lee. ... Read more

Book Description
Get to know the true Bruce Lee through the eyes of the author. Pound for pound, he may have been the greatest fighter who ever lived. Cocky and full of confidence, Lee was also compassionate and witty. Read about the dreams and destiny shattered by his early death. The author, a student of Bruce Lee's and one of his best friends, is the co-author of the best-selling Bruce Lee's Fighting Method. Fully illustrated. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Good, but not enough
You can't blame this book for not being able to capture Bruce Lee'stechnique.Why?Because he had no technique. ... Read more