Best translation for the serious student of Sun TzuFebruary 2, 2008 Whatever has attracted you to Sun Tzu's The Art of War, you crave both a deeper and a broader understanding of the often hidden meanings in this little book. No doubt, you want to know how these passages apply to the daily and lifelong challenges in the wide world about you. The Denma Translation provides a thorough discussion, in Taking Whole, of shih and node (as in drawing the bow and releasing the arrow) as well as Tao. In The Sage Commander, you can begin to learn the personal traits you must develop to apply Sun Tzu's principles. You already realize that you'll be studying Sun Tzu for the rest of your life. You'll come back to this little book again and again on that journey.
The Best "Art of War"November 24, 2006 2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I've read a few different translations of the Art of War and I found this one to be the most accessible. I'm not a scholar of ancient Chinese, so I have no idea whether or not it's the most accurate translation, but, for me, it is the easiest to get into. Not only is the translated text highly readable, but the essays included with the translation are brilliant. The essays bring a whole new level of understanding to the text. With this translation and the accompanying articles, you have a book that can change not only the way you think about conflict, but the way you engage in it as well.
Mixed BagAugust 3, 2004 10 out of 12 found this review helpful
I'm new to "The Art Of War" but after going to the local bookstore I decided to pick up this copy. It has a small size, is made of high quality materials and appears to have a lot of useful additional information. And for all that the price is very nice, even when paying full price. When I began to read this I found that while the translation is supposed to be sparse and allow the original text to be read as closely as possible in another language the actual text is so spartan to be nearly unreadable by someone who is new to the text. Even when reading the portion with commentary the commentary was almost as spartan. What I have ended up doing is reading this along with another version and I have found that I am getting quite a bit more out of it than I would have with just one version or the other alone. The introduction and essays are well written but I my review is to point out that this version of "The Art Of War" is not for "newbies". If you have read this before and are looking for more this is for you, if you are new to this text I would suggest picking up another version before tackling this one.
good but hardMay 24, 2003 1 out of 22 found this review helpful
I like most of it but at times it was hard to fully understand. I am going to read it again and I hope to better gain more of it the second tie around.
Ok, but just not engagingMay 8, 2003 3 out of 34 found this review helpful
I don't really understand all the reviews about Sun Tzu's work. People saying that this one or that one is closer to the original; are there really that many experts in ancient Chinese out there. How can anyone say which is the best translation unless they are personally familiar with the original, in the original Chinese, and if that the case they should write their own version.
