Fighting Irish: The Art Of Irish Stick-Fighting (Bataireacht Shillelagh Irish Stick-Fighting Series)

Lots of usable information

Mention the art of Irish stick fighting, and you'll eventually come across the name John Hurley, a man who has already made his mark with the publication of books which have helped to bring this nearly-forgotten fighting art back into the public eye. Now, with his latest book, Fighting Irish: The Art Of Irish Stick-Fighting, Mr. Hurley delves into the early texts and accounts which serve to provide the reader with an understanding of the roots and techniques of Irish stick fighting.STRENGTHSThe book is well-documented. Hurley does an excellent job in extracting texts not only from the Irish, but also from the English, French, and German masters of combat through sword and analyzing the roots of their techniques and application, which he then compares to what was known in the Irish traditions of stick fighting. Through this, Hurley develops compelling arguments for the roots of the Irish martial art, providing evidence with the similarities in instruction and technique usage and application. Details are provided which prove to be especially useful for those experienced in the art of fencing, as they will find familiar ground in the presented materials.SUGGESTED IMPROVEMENTS:Hurley also includes several visual illustrations to accompany the written techniques. While some of these are readily beneficial to portions of the book, other portions could have been improved with additional visual illustrations, perhaps even going so far as to include photographs interpreting the texts which could have been more directly related to textual instruction, which would greatly benefit those readers who are not as intimately familiar with fencing or stick fighting. While the textually-based descriptions of the techniques may be sufficient for those who practice fencing, they may feel somewhat confusing for a person more adept at learning through visual means.CONCLUSION:Hurley's book is an excellent resource for the avid martial art practicioner and curious amateur. While the book would benefit from some more visuals, it is nevertheless an excellent title to read, one I would highly recommend.

Very interesting read and I love the background and the stick of wood with St. Patrick’s thumbprints upon it.

This is a good book the author covers many subjects of the Irish people And covers many traditions customs and facts of life in the Old country definitely a lot of research was involved I learned quite a bit and I am happy with my purchase

This book is extremely useful and informative about Irish stick-fighting techniques and history. The author has obviously put in years of training and experience in writing this book. Many of the techniques can be found in other works but this book brings them all together and synthesizes them very well. Truly an excellent book.

It was interesting to see it was actually like fencing!

good read

Was not what I was expecting. Was expecting some in depth on moves. The Celtic words were not any help to me. Overall an interesting read.

This is a very well written and researched book that one would do well to have in any library of martial arts.

l like it very much

It’s good to have a good walking stick and how to use it

I've just finished reading this book. It's brilliant! Mr Hurley brought together (nearly) all of the available written sources to give a great picture of Irish stick fighting techniques that would have been used in faction fighting. He pulls together both stick fighting techniques that would have been common in Europe and techniques that were specifically used for Blackthorn (Shillelagh) sticks, into one book. As far as I know, this is the most comprehensive book on the subject and will definitely be viewed as the authoritative work in years to come. As you would expect from a historian, the history section is fascinating. If my history lessons were like that in school, I would have listened.To balance up this review, if you are hoping to find technical information about the Doyle family style, you won't find it here. He mentions it a few times and states that "Glen Doyle....remains the only person to be teaching an authentic, complete living style of Irish stick fighting...." I am not criticising the book as it would be inappropriate for Mr Hurley to teach Mr Doyle's style.Mr Hurley talks about the connection between Irish and French stick fighting and I would have loved if he had gone into more technical details on that, but I didn't write the book.Also, Percy Longhurst's teachings are conspicuous by their absence and I was surprised that this was not mentioned at all in the book.These are all insignificant criticisms based on my personal viewpoint and I would still give the book 5 stars. The authoritative work, definitely "add to basket". D

Very informative about the rich Irish history. It caused me to rethink what I had conjectured would be the proper use of a Shillelagh. It is worth the read.