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Rating: 
Summary: 1st book: Not just a translation! 2nd book: good reference!
Review: About 1st book:
Taira Shinken is a well know name in Okinawan Kobudo. His "RyuKyu Kobudo Taikan" stands as a reference on Okinawan Kobudo technique not polluted by modern fashion which is almost always the result of plain ignorance and show-business.
Mr. McCarthy issued this english version of the old master work apparently for the benefit of non-japanese practitioners.
However there are some issues:
1 - He boldly replaced all the pictures of sensei Taira Shinken for pictures of himself and one of his pairs.
Some pictures, mainly the in kon-bo katas show some irregular handling of the weapon (with hands too close to each other) and some indefinite stances which can puzzle some inexperienced practicioners.
2 - He didn't respect the original material.
Every kata in Shinken Taira original work has been somewhat changed! Techniques were added, omited or replaced in all katas! An entire sequence is different in Shushi-no-Kon.
Old katas were made as a global repository of knowledge by old masters in a age of practical life-threatening fighting. The knowledge they contain is unique and irreplaceable. Modern fancy-athletic-acrobatic pseudo-kata cannot compare and never will!
These katas can have some school or local variations which should be respected and considered when looking for a "reference" form. Each new generation should try to respect the old forms keeping in mind that there is no way of reliably testing and improving them in life-threatening situations nowadays as they once were.
Works such as "Ryukyu Kobudo Taikan" should not be altered: they are a personal testimony of a great master and document uniquely an entire epoch and a long martial tradition.
I advise everyone interested seriously in Okinawan Kobudo to buy the recently re-issued japanese version of Taira Shinken work featuring the original (yes! They are still usable!) illustrations (along with Mr. McCarthy's "interpretation" if one doesn't read japanese) in order to get the correct knowledge.
About 2nd book:
The 2nd book of the series is a repository of reference historical documents about traditional Karate featuring precious info about old karate masters and the true spirit of Karate. It's mostly text-based with only 10 b/w pictures but has a lot of "juice" in it. It should find a prominent place in the library of the serious karateka.
Rating: 
Summary: Karate Weapons
Review: Ancient Okinawan Martial Arts: Koryu Uchinadi; volume one and volume two, ISBN 0-8048-3147-5, work well separately but best when taken together. I will review volume one here separately from volume two so that one might make a better decision when it comes to purchasing.This volume deals with Kobudo (or the art of Karate weapons), widely considered an advanced topic in Karate-do. As such I would not recommend it to the novice Karate-ka. But I would definitely recommend it to those who wish to get a better grasp of Karate-do-- especially an Okinawan variety, to those looking to a different perspective on Kata, and to those studying Isshin-ryu Karate-do. For those looking for a different perspective on Kata this volume is for you since it illustrates techniques solely through Kata. Six weapons Kata are described here which is not bad considering that most book an Karate rarely even describe one Kata. As for those studying Isshin-ryu Karate-do, you'll be interested in this book since it features a text written by O'Sensei Shimabuku's teacher Taira Shinken. This book contains six Kata, as mentioned: three for the Bo and one for Sai, Tuifa (or Tonfa), and Nunchaku each as well as instructions on how to make a Bo. For those looking for an introduction to weapons this is an excellent book. If what you want is Okinawan Karate-do technique none surpasses The Essence of Okinawan Karate-do by Shoshin Nagamine, ISBN 0-8048-2110-0 which compliments this book. If what you are interested in is more specifically the history of Okinawan Karate-do and Kobudo get volume two along with Patrick McCarthy's Bubishi: the Bible of Karate, ISBN 0-8048-2015-5.
Rating:
Summary: Ancient but Not Irrelevant
Review: Ancient Okinawan Martial Arts: Koryu Uchinadi; volume one, ISBN 0-8048-2093-7, and volume two, work well separately but best when taken together. I will review volume two here separately from volume one so that one might make a better decision when it comes to purchasing. For both the novice and advanced Karate-ka this volume will prove to be an indispensable reference. It contains a brief outline of Karate-do master Kenwa Mabuni's life, details on the influence of Southern Chinese fighting systems (particularly White Crane and Monk Fist styles and their use of Qin Na), and the process which led to the transformation of Karate into a system of Bodo. Of special note in reference to this is the minutes of a meeting featuring Karate-do notables which is reproduced in this volume. For those practicing Goju-ryu Karate-do take special note of this volume for the text "An Outline of Karate-do" by O'Sensei Chojun Miyagi is contained in full in this volume. Those practicing Kyokushinkai and Isshin-ryu will also find this text of interest. Those in Shotokan-ryu will be surprised to read of the controversy that arose between O'Sensei Funakoshi and controversial Choki Motobu. If what you want is Okinawan Karate-do technique none surpasses The Essence of Okinawan Karate-do by Shoshin Nagamine, ISBN 0-8048-2110-0 which compliments volume one. If what you are interested in is more specifically the history of Okinawan Karate-do and Kobudo get this book along with Patrick McCarthy's Bubishi: the Bible of Karate, ISBN 0-8048-2015-5.
Rating:
Summary: Ancient Okinawan Martial Arts : Koryu Uchinadi Vol #1
Review: Dear Readers As the researcher & translator of this book, I found some of the reader's critique rather amusing, if not naive. Simply put, the publication of this work is an exact English translation of Taira's 1964 book. From where I stand, it was never meant to be a journalistic marvel or impress Joseph Pulitzer, but rather, only to reveal what the "father of modern kobudo" published in 1964. Therefore, I am assuming that the negative comments are actually aimed at Taira rather than the messenger. In an effort to lend something more to the publication, I also included an informative postscript and dozens of vintage photos. Sadly, the original photos could not be used, but the photos we did include are an exact replication of Taira's technique published in his publication and should be accepted as such. This is virtually no different than what Mr. Oshima did when reproducing the technique of Mr. Funakoshi in his English translation of the 1935 publication of "Karatedo Kyohan" published by Kodansha. Finally, many of the supplementary vintage photos originally intended for this publication, but were never included (I still am uncertain as to why????????), can be located here ....... Enjoy Patrick McCarthy
Rating:
Summary: Not just a translation!
Review: Taira Shinken is a well know name in Okinawan Kobudo. His "RyuKyu Kobudo Taikan" stands as a reference on Okinawan Kobudo technique not polluted by modern fashion which is almost always the result of plain ignorance and show-business.
Mr. McCarthy issued this english version of the old master work apparently for the benefit of non-japanese practitioners. However there are some issues: 1 - He boldly replaced all the pictures of sensei Taira Shinken for pictures of himself and one of his pairs.
Some pictures, mainly the in kon-bo katas show some irregular handling of the weapon (with hands too close to each other) and some indefinite stances which can puzzle some inexperienced practicioners. 2 - He didn't respect the original material.
Every kata in Shinken Taira original work has been somewhat changed! Techniques were added, omited or replaced in all katas! An entire sequence is different in Shushi-no-Kon. Old katas were made as a global repository of knowledge by old masters in a age of practical life-threatening fighting. The knowledge they contain is unique and irreplaceable. Modern fancy-athletic-acrobatic pseudo-kata cannot compare and never will!
These katas can have some school or local variations which should be respected and considered when looking for a "reference" form. Each new generation should try to respect the old forms keeping in mind that there is no way of reliably testing and improving them in life-threatening situations nowadays as they once were. Works such as "Ryukyu Kobudo Taikan" should not be altered: they are a personal testimony of a great master and document uniquely an entire epoch and a long martial tradition. I advise everyone interested seriously in Okinawan Kobudo to buy the recently re-issued japanese version of Taira Shinken work featuring the original illustrations (along with Mr. McCarthy's "interpretation" if one doesn't read japanese) in order to get the correct knowledge.
Rating: 
Summary: Not what I was expecting
Review: The information is pretty good in the book, I would have liked to have seen more notes from the translator on some of the references made by Taira Sensei, but I'm sure that the translation is correct. For instance on page 10, Taira lists a group of well known kobujutsu masters and whether they lived more than or less than 100 years ago. None of this was clarified in the translation. Also, this very same information was included in an article by Mr. McCarthy in Bugeisha magazine article but never credited there to Taira Shinken, I don't know why. The production quality isn't quite what I've come to expect from Tuttle and Mr. McCarthy, the photos are a little fuzzy and don't stand out as exceptional. Also, there are a quite a few typing mistakes throughout the text. The numbering of the photos is quite sub-standard and all of the photos are simply numbered sequentially from 1 to 408, they don't match the kata numberings. I don't know if this is from the original translation or not. Apart from that, there isn't a single historical photo of Taira Shinken, all of the photos except the cover are Mr. McCarthy and an uncredited individual demonstrating the weapons techniques. Except for the translation itself and the article at the back written by Mr. McCarthy, there isn't much else to this book, certainly not any new photographs which would have been great to see.
Rating:
Summary: Hhhhhmmmmmm...........................
Review: This book has good writtings by some of the master's of Okinawan. I bought it thinking it was a continuation of Taira Sensei work (Espically since his photo is on the cover). This book is for those that are interested in all aspects of Okinawan history.
Rating: 
Summary: Ryukyu Kobudo
Review: This book is required in a library like mine. Espcially since I am a memebr of "Ryukyu Kobudo Hozon Shinkokai". The list of katas and the lineage of Taira Sensei is good. It is a little disapointing that almost every photo in the book is of McCarthy himself.
Rating:
Summary: This book on Kobudo is a geat reference text!
Review: This text has included a great amount of info on Shinken Taira and his great teachers. There also is a fantastic listing of Okinawan kobudo katas. Mr McCarthy has done a great job on history tracking on this topic
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