Library

Some suggested reading material for students.  Some are practical Aikido,
some are ‘interesting’, other arts, or fiction or just ‘interesting’.  It is in
no particular order at this time.  Most of the books in this list are currently
in our dojo library.  One of our future tasks will be to organize them, note
which ones are and aren’t in the library and add more comments and/or reviews.

Aikido Exercises for Teaching and Training: Revised Edition
C. M. Shifflett
ISBN – 978-1583942178
— one of the best ‘beginner’ books I’ve seen

Aikido and the Dynamic Sphere: An Illustrated Introduction
Westbrook and Ratti
ISBN – 978-0804800044
— considered by many to be the ‘textbook’ of Aikido – detailed and technical

Kishido: The Way of the Western Warrior
P. Hobart
ISBN – 978-1890772314
— out of print now, but if you can find a copy…

Living the Martial Way : A Manual for the Way a Modern Warrior Should
Think
F. E. Morgan
ISBN – 978-0942637762

In the Dojo: A Guide to the Rituals and Etiquette of the Japanese Martial
Arts
D. Lowery
ISBN – 978-0834805729

Traditions: Essays on the Japanese Martial Arts and Ways
D. Lowery
ISBN – 978-0804834322

Ki in Daily Life
Koichi Tohei
ISBN – 978-4889960716

Art of Peace
Ueshiba Morihei
ISBN – 978-0877738510
— sayings of the founder, O’Sensei

Way of Aikido, The: Life Lessons from an American Sensei
G. Leonard
ISBN – 978-0452279728

Women in Aikido
Siegel
ISBN – 978-1556431616

The Intuitive Body: Discovering the Wisdom of Conscious Embodiment and
Aikido
W. Palmer
ISBN – 978-1583942123

Classical Bujutsu (Martial Arts and Ways of Japan, V. 1.)
D. Draeger
ISBN – 978-0834802339
— D. Draeger entered Japan at the end of WWII and was able to delve into the martial arts of Japan in a unique way – this series places Aikido in a historical framework.

Classical Budo (Martial Arts & Ways of Japan Series , Vol 2)
D. Draeger
ISBN – 978-0834802346

Modern Bujutsu & Budo Volume III: Martial Arts And Ways Of
Japan (Martial Arts and Ways of Japan, Vol 3)
D. Draeger
ISBN – 978-0834803510

Secrets of the Samurai: The Martial Arts of Feudal Japan
Westbrook and Ratti
ISBN – 978-4805309605

Crouching Tiger: Taming the Warrior Within
L. W. Christensen
ISBN – 978-1880336694

The Book of Five Rings
Mushashi Miyamoto
— many translations with expansions

The Art Of War
Sun Tzu
— many translations with expansions

Budo Secrets: Teachings of the Martial Arts Masters
J. Stevens
ISBN – 978-1570629150

Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
Yamamoto Tsunetomo – trans. W. Scot
ISBN – 978-4770029164

The Code of the Samurai: A Modern Translation of the Bushido Shoshinshu
of Taira Shigesuke
Y. Daidoji, T. Cleary
ISBN – 978-0804831901

Nerve Centers and Pressure Points
B. Tegner
ISBN – 978-0874070293

The Samurai Sword: A Handbook
J. Yumoto
ISBN – 978-4805309575

Remembering O-Sensei: Living and Training with Morihei Ueshiba, Founder
of Aikido
S. Perry, ed.
ISBN – 978-1590300817

Ki: A Practical Guide for Westerners
W. Reed
ISBN – 978-0870406409

Judo Training Methods
T. Ishikawa, D. Draeger
ISBN – 978-0804832106

Aikido for Life
G. Homma
ISBN – 978-1556430787

Essential Anatomy: For Healing and Martial Arts
M. Tedeschi
ISBN – 978-0834804432

The Warrior’s Path: Wisdom from Contemporary Martial Arts Masters
J. Sidney, ed.
ISBN – 978-1590300749

It’s a Lot Like Dancing: An Aikido Journey
T. Dobson
ISBN – 978-1883319021

Warriors of Blood and Dream
R. Zelazny – ed.
ISBN – 978-0380774227
— an anthology of stories with martial arts by authors who practice martial
arts.  The introduction by Roger Zelazny is a chronicle of his own journey through the arts concluding with his personal practice of Aikido.  Includes a passage by a Japanese ‘national treasure’ who calls himself “the only ‘failed’ student of O’Sensei”.

The Musashi Flex
S. Perry
ISBN – 978-0441013616
— a science fiction setting for a tale of martial arts duelists and a
question of “why”.  Part of the ‘Matador’ series.