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Summary: The Ninjutsu (Ninpo) Bible - Very Informative
Review: Considered as the Ninpo Bible, this book gives a complete general information about Ninpo by the Grandmaster. It covers almost all of the things you need to know anout Ninpo in brief explanation such as the brief history, stances (kamae), striking (dakentaijutsu), body conditioning (junan taiso), Ninja weapons (ningu), female ninja (kunoichi), special training, etc. I'd say it is a must for Ninpo students and is excellent as an introduction for beginners, I really recommend it. (It is the first Ninpo book I bought)Actually I'd also say that all of Hatsumi Sensei's books are worth buying, they will give you the real and true understanding about "What actually Ninpo is" through many different perspectives. My recommendation, try Stephen Hayes's books (esp. 5 series Ninja) for another awesome Ninpo author after Hatsumi Sensei. Other book/authors you might want to try are Andrew Adams's "Ninja: The Invisible Assasins" or Stephen Turnbull's "Ninja : The True Story of Japan's Secret Warrior Cult" (out of print) for the history of the old time Ninja. If you got a chance, get Robert Bussey's book Ninjutsu: Basic Skill and Techniques" which is out of print, you'll see some awesome techniques of Mr Bussey back while he was still in Ninpo.
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Summary: True Ninjutsu
Review: Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi is the 34th Soke (head hancho) of the Togakure ryu tradition. There is no higher authority on Ninjutsu than him.
Rating: 
Summary: This book is excellant, but a little dated
Review: For its time, this book was a 5 because it touched all the bases for someone wanting to learn more about Ninjutsu. Now, the book is a little dated. It sort of touches on the history, and it sort of touches on the theory of basic movements. Now that there are other books out there, you can find much better books on the history of Hatsumi Sensei's schools, and if you want to know more about the moves, look for Sensei's movies.
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Summary: Anyone interested in matial arts should read this book.
Review: Hatsumi is the man. He is it, the one, the big enchilada. He knows more than you or I ever will.
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Summary: Ninjutsu is different from Ninpo . Hatsumi is not a Messiah.
Review: Hatusmi is Soke of Togakure. There are other Families that fall under the name "Ninja". Hatusmi is good. Hatusmi is authentic. Hatusmi is not the last ninja. He is not the last master of "the types of covert warfare". Also,Ninjutsu was not formed by Togakure. Ninjutsu was formed by Emporer Fushi (Fu-hsi) and was even employed by the Yellow Emporer. When Hatusmi says "Beginning of Ninjutsu was Daisuke Togakure" he is meaning that is the begining of TOGAKURE ninjutsu. This book is good to read to learn about Togakure Ninjutsu before it was modernized into Ninpo. For those serious in Ninjutsu, three very old and very authentic books exist. Good luck finding them however, and if you cannot read ancient Japanese, they will be worthless to you. One of them is the Bansenshukai, the others you will learn about when you become serious enough. Those who are deep into the tradition know the Bansenshukai and other two by heart, and can walk on water (you know what I mean if you are deep enough). So..This book is good for beginners and a good reference book,but remember it is written by Togakure's Soke's position. I gave it 4 stars because it was good, but I took a star away because unless it contained view points from all schools, it could not be labeled "The Best"...
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Summary: My favorite book by Dr. Hatsumi.
Review: How fortunate we are to have Hatsumi Sensei and his unsurpassed understanding of these ancient family-based arts and traditions. A bit of irony. The book's Acknowledgement highlights Steven K. Hayes, Hatsumi's first non Japanese student. On pages 234 and 235 Tanemura Sensei and Manaka Sensei are depicted in photographs, eyes closed, avoiding Soke's sword in response to feeling his intention to strike. The irony is that all three, top students of Bujinkan, have since distanced themselves from Hatsumi Sensei and formulated their own small schools of taijutsu: Quest, Genbukan and Jinenkan.
Rating:
Summary: Very Interesting book
Review: I agree with the reader of BANSENSHUKAI on this book. This one as well as others by Hatsumi, focuses more on Ninjutsu before what we now know as Ninpo. I, being a trainee in Ninpo myself, can see this clearly as many of the techniques Hatsumi describes, are very different than the ones in Ninpo. They tend to be more complex whereas in Ninpo, techniques are executed more straight to the point. However, the book is still an excellent source on the history of Ninjutsu and I strongly recommend it. I still have yet to read the BANSENSHUKAI and would appreciate if the reader of this book e-mail me.
Rating: 
Summary: A good all-around reference on Ninjutsu
Review: I bought this book out of an interest in seperating fact from fiction in Western ninja mythology. This is a good book for doing just that, but it has its ups and down. There are plenty of pictures showing weapons and techniques, but many of them are a bit difficult to see. This book is written by Dr. Maasake Hatsumi, Grandmaster of the Togakure Ryu of Ninjutsu. This is good, because he knows what he's talking about, but he seems to focus the whole book on his school (the beginning lists all 34 Grand Master of the school). Eventually this starts to sound a tad self centered; though I'm sure it isn't really, it just comes off that way...easy to deal with, just annoying sometimes. A lot of this book seems presented as a "How-To" sort of thing, which is never, ever a good way to learn martial arts, but it does result in a fairly good description of ninja tactics. I would especially recommend this book if you are interested in the Ninja weapons, as it contains a detailed section on them, filled with plenty of pictures. Overall, a good volume, particularly as a Ninjutsu primer, but there are a few down points. Worthwhile. ~
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Summary: Essential for the beginning student.
Review: I had the rare priviledge (for westerners anyway) of training with Haatsumi senei about a year ago, and had a great time, but my distance from his dojo and the class schedule have made regular trips to his dojo more than a little difficult. I do plan on training with him again when possible and appreciate the opportunity to do so. An opportunity some westerners would give anything to have considering the man's reputation as a living legend. Regardless, this book was one of the first exposures I had to this particular fighting style, one I considered more mythical than practical until I joined a dojo and began training. It isn't as comprehensive as I would have liked on the historical elements, but considering the secrecy surrounding the art (one that many of the more "hokey" instructors like to capitalize on) it's easy to see why. What the book does offer is very useful for the beginning student, and is a great companion when working with an instructor. Without and instructor this book is little more than a novelty. The book catalogues the many weapons of the ninja and gives many facts on the tactics used to imploy and construct such weapons. It also outlines the basic stances and some of the basic moves, but in that regard it is very light, rightfully so. Listing the names of the techniques is one thing, but you just can't learn from a book so there's no use trying. Of course, I never got the impression the book was attempting to teach the moves so I wasn't disappointed in that regard. It's important to note that Haatsumi-sensei refers to his art as Taijutsu these days and has strayed from calling his art ninjutsu or ninpo. I've heard a variety of reasons for this, but the one I'm most apt to believe revolves around the negative stereotypes of the ninja, often thought of as an assassin or terrorist. Haatsumi sensei's open relationship with the west, and this book which was one of his earliest attempts, has attempted to dispel many of these incorrect assumptions and stereotypes (although ninja did perform assassinations on occasion, it was far from their primary function) but many of them linger. Taijutsu is a simpler term that simply means martial body skills. It incorporates and includes the ninpo arts, but it also envelopes them into a much larger group. So, if you've just begun studying the art (and I should point out that I'm still a beginnner myself) I think you'll find this book very informative. It's not going to teach you everything you ever wanted to know about the art, but it will give you a good foundation to build on. To really become a student, you're going to need a teacher.
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Summary: This is a must have for all serious martial artist!!
Review: In this book, Dr. Maasaki Hatsumi, 34th Grandmaster of Togakure Ryu Ninjutsu provides the reader with a true glimpse of what it really meant and means to be a practicioner of ninjutsu. Dr Hatsumi discusses the history and evolution of Ninjutsu as well as its uses and applications during fuedal era Japan and beyond. He provides exceptional illustrations, photos, and artwork of various ninja weapons, techniques, and tools. Dr Hatsumi also shares with the reader a paper on ninjutsu written by his teacher or sensei, Toshitsugu Takamatsu. In his paper Takamatsu sensei describes what being a ninja is. He discusses the ninja's duties and responsibilities along with how their influence on certain events should be felt. Whether you are a student of ninjutsu or just an interested reader, this book is a must read! I felt this book went a long way towards dispelling many of the misperceptions often associated with the art of ninjutsu.
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