| Being the author of several books on the martial arts | | | | 4. Neutralize the enemy... |
| and fighting, I am always looking for books of | | | | This section end with the following quote from the |
| exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a | | | | author, "No matter how proficient the unarmed |
| book in my library, it's definitely worth owning. One | | | | expert becomes at disarming an armed assailant, he |
| such book is Michael D. Echanis', "Knife Self-Defense | | | | will remain vulnerable to even the smallest weapons |
| for Combat." This book is directly influenced by the | | | | expert." Concerning the subject, have any truer |
| Korean martial art of Hwarang Do and its current | | | | words been said? |
| Grandmaster Joo Bang Lee, who Echanis had studied | | | | The author proceeds to demonstrate 38 basic |
| under before his untimely demise in Nicaragua. | | | | methods for disarming an attacker who is armed |
| This book along with its two companion volumes, | | | | with a knife. The author stresses that these are |
| "Basic Stick Fighting for Combat" and "Knife Fighting, | | | | merely examples for the readers of this book to use |
| Knife Throwing for Combat," were not initially | | | | as a guide for finding the right technique that works |
| released to the general public, but instead were only | | | | for them. It is by no means intended to be cure-all or |
| available to certified and recognized self-defense | | | | gospel of knife self-defense. Use your own ingenuity |
| instructors. These books were originally intended to | | | | to find and develop your own self-defense methods |
| be military training manuals for the various elite units | | | | using the ones that the author has demonstrated as |
| in the United States military. These were units such | | | | a guide. |
| as the Special Forces, Army Rangers, Navy Seals, | | | | I have read other reviews where the readers have |
| etc. | | | | criticized some of the moves in this book as being to |
| This volume, like the other two in this series, starts | | | | complex and unrealistic in nature. I don't feel that this |
| out with a brief section on the history of Hwarang | | | | is the case and did not see that when I read the |
| Do and its relationship to hand-to-hand combat. This | | | | book as the author intended. However, if you read |
| is followed by another brief section that looks at the | | | | this book under the impression that these 38 |
| theory and internal dynamics which make up this | | | | techniques are to be executed exactly as they are |
| very impressive art. | | | | presented instead of as they were intended, which is |
| The next section of this book goes over in very | | | | as a guide to go by, then yes, I could see where |
| good detail the basic principles involved in defending | | | | that misinterpretation could come from. |
| oneself against an attacker armed with a knife. This | | | | Although the clarity of the photographs was |
| section is very well done and provides a lot of very | | | | outstanding and easy to follow, I felt that the |
| sound advice. It then concludes with the following: | | | | descriptions themselves could have been a little bit |
| 4 Basic Rules in Unarmed Self-Defense Against a | | | | longer and more detailed. I would have also liked to |
| Weapons Attack | | | | have seen some close-up photographs of some of |
| 1. Clear your body of the weapon's line of fire and | | | | the grabs and hand positions. Other than that, this is |
| angle of attack. | | | | a very good book and one that should be on your |
| 2. Stabilize and control the weapon... | | | | list too buy, if you don't own it already. |
| 3. Disarm the weapon... | | | | |