“Traditional Taekwondo: Basic Techniques, History and Philosophy” by Doug Cook is a book that all Taekwondo practitioners will want in their library. It is also a book that will appeal to other Korean martial artists and even those who do not practice Korean arts but would like to understand more about the “foot, hand, way” of the land of morning calm.
The book is divided into three parts, the first is History and Culture, the second is Philosophy, and the final section focuses on Technique. The first two sections were excellent and will help all those who practice the art of Taekwondo better understand the history, culture, and philosophy that lie within the art. These are the sections that will also appeal to other Korean martial artists and even other arts. The third part, Technique, did a good job of showing some techniques from the Taekwondo curriculum, but it was not as solid or as interesting as the first two parts.
It is extremely difficult to summarize the history of a country, especially a country like Korea which has a long and interesting history, in a few short chapters. I think Cook did a very good job of boiling the story down to some of the most relevant and interesting historical references, beginning with the legend of Tan-gun. He briefly covers the Three Kingdoms and some of the key players in Korean history. He has something about the Japanese occupation from 1910 to 1945, which is important in relation to the development of Taekwodo. The next chapter on the Formative Years of Taekwondo is very interesting and will be of value to all who want to know more about the history of the art.
The Philosophy portion had chapters on the role of meditation in traditional taekwondo, the development and use of combat ki, and the relevance of poom-se in traditional taekwondo. These chapters, again, were interesting and educational. I think they give the reader a deeper insight into taekwondo than just the popular combat sport.
The third part, and the longest, focuses on technique. It is the longest because it is mainly about images that illustrate the techniques chosen for the text. The chapters first cover conditioning exercises and then a chapter describing training methods. While I agree with most of what was written, there were a few things I would have written differently, especially the description of ho shin sool, or self-defense techniques. It is correct that ho shin sool techniques provide solutions to grappling as written, but ho shin sool techniques also include defenses against punches, kicks, and kicks.
I liked the guidelines regarding training, especially the emphasis on respect and safety. Then, for the techniques actually demonstrated with pictures, there are 18 Il Su Sik combinations (one step fighting), 8 Sam Su Sik combinations (three step fighting), 18 Ho Shin Sool combinations (self defense techniques) and 16 defenses. for women. You can see this in a couple of ways. First, look at this section as a small sampling of the techniques you’ll find in the taekwondo syllabus. That is what it is. And as a small sample, Cook did a good job of adding it. However, learning the techniques from the book would be extremely difficult, just like learning any martial art from a book is not recommended, you need a live instructor and a partner to train with. I had fundamental disagreement with the way some of the ho shin sool techniques were demonstrated because the correct body positions, movement, and weight placement were not illustrated, and I also struggle with a couple of the techniques altogether. (ie blocking a pipe with the forearm) However, it is not the purpose of this review to get involved in practicality of techniques etc. So enough to say.
There is a brief conclusion, and then the appendix sections. Appendix A was extremely interesting. He was talking about a training experience with Grandmaster Gyoo Hyun Lee in Korea. I found it interesting and also nostalgic to go back and train in Korea. It really made me year for my next trip there to train. Some Korean/English terms and few martial arts organizations were also listed. Good additions to the book, especially the training experience with Grandmaster Lee.
For the History and Philosophy sections I rate this book a 5, and for the Techniques section a 3. So the book is a 4 overall and I recommend all taekwondo stylists to read and learn. I also recommend it to anyone else who wants to better understand the history, philosophy and techniques of traditional taekwondo.