Rating: 
Summary: A superior method of describing kata
Review: I am not a shotokan practitioner, I got this book as a kata reference for historical purposes. I can say easily that the book is one of the premiere kata references anywhere, and this is after reviewing dozens of kata books. Sugiyama and his students have created a kata book that others should emulate. I only wish the kata that I am more interested in were described in such clarity. One complaint I have with the book, and it's not really a complaint of Sugiyama and his students, more of a complaint about Shotokan/JKA kata, it's just so picky on the angles that you place your feet and hands and head etc... that it's infuriating. Not only that, but it really becomes meaningless in terms of application, it's just something that's always been done that way and nothing more. There aren't any generalities on how to perform kata, just all the stikily details. Many karate styles and schools have become that way. Having said that, I still feel that descriptions of kata movements and directions, pacings and strength are as good as any book on the market, much better than photo descriptions simply because of the choice of line drawings and specific notation rather than the traditional photographs and written description.
Rating: 
Summary: A Kata book above the rest
Review: Exacting detail, easy to understand, a must have for anyone who is serious about Shotokan kata. Your search is over. You aren't going to find a better quality or quantity kata book especially for this price.
Rating:
Summary: Better than Masotoshi Nakayama Kata books
Review: excellent book.for any Shotokan Deshi(student) to a Soke(Grand Master). It can be used as a reference or a get-to-learn-your-katas book!The book also has tips on powering up your Ki(internal force).Also the book has the human animation instead of pictures. it shows u directons with arrows and how fast u should do them.it even tells how many seconds to focus after every step. It never gets complicated either. Forget Nakayama (with all due respect) this book will blow the cover off of any Kata teching book. Please buy this book if you are serious about learning Katas.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: I am 11 years old and have practiced karate 6.I know lots about karate and I thought I new all steps in the different katas. This book proved me wrong! It is filled w/ detail down to the very last twist of the hip. I suggest this book to anyone taking (or interested in taking) Karate lessons.
Rating:
Summary: Now contains KITEI !!!!!!
Review: I opened a recent edition of this book and was astonished to discover a new chapter: Nishiyama's own Kitei! The best kata book ever written just became absolutely unique.
BDC
Rating:
Summary: Now contains KITEI !!!!!!
Review: I opened a recent edition of this book and was astonished to discover a new chapter: Nishiyama's own Kitei! The best kata book ever written just became absolutely unique.
BDC
Rating:
Summary: Truly Exceptional Karate Text
Review: It is not a question of how many katas are described, it is a question of how clearly they are described. This text uses thousands of precise line drawings, with side-by-side text in English, Spanish, and Japanese. This is the master reference text for katas.
Rating:
Summary: The best book to get a fast start on any kata
Review: Many people, especially beginners, have a problem picking up moves of a kata from somebody else (your sensei) performance. This book gives an excellent head start on most popular katas and enormously shortens the learning curve. Pictures in the book show exactly the right amount of details to minimize a confusion and emphasize moves and stances.
Rating:
Summary: 25 Shotokan Kata gives a unique approach to Kata.
Review: Most of the books that I have seen on teaching Kata become either a picture book of some Champion doing Kata or show some arcane applications to Kata. In this respect 25 Shotokan Kata is very refreshing. 25 Shotokan Kata is the only book on the market that is solely concerned with the teaching of kata. While it doesn't make for exciting pictures (with cartoon-style Kiai's overlayed) it does focus on what students need to learn Kata. In fact since using this book I don't have to teach my students the moves to the kata anymore, rather, I can take more time looking at correction and application. For the Karate student that needs to learn the kata's this book is essential.
Rating:
Summary: Easy to follow descriptions of basic Shotokan katas
Review: My wife and I have trained in both Shotokan and Shito-ryu styles. Sugiyama Sensei's book is easier to follow than the more popular "Best Karate" series by Nakayama Sensei. It also provides commentary on how to perform the Katas not only in English, but also Spanish and Japanese. We're ordering copies for our Spanish speaking comrades here in Guatemala.
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