( 10 reviews )
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Posted: Nov 2 2008
First, what it's not: it's not great literature, or a martial arts book, or a tabletop book with artistic pictures of arcane knife-fighting techniques, or a book that will give you invincible techniques. As Fairbairn said, there is no certain defense against a knife. What this book is, on the other hand, is a coordinated series of discussions about ways to avoid getting into altercations with knives, and ways to cope if you are involved in such an altercation. What separates this from many books on the subject is the extensive experience of the author. He does not write from theoretical knowledge.
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Posted: Jul 23 2008
Over a decades has passed since I read this book, but it stands out in my memory for being as entertaining as it was informative. Marc's style of writing is easy to read and his books are genuinely amusing. I would suggest them over a lot of others in the field just for the fact that they will hold attention while others will either bore you to sleep or come off as just a lot of macho BS. Marc's gasconades ring true by contrast, and add spice to what otherwise might just be another boring instructional.
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( 2 of 2 found this review helpful ) Posted: Feb 26 2008
"Knives, Knife Fighting, & Related Hassles: How to Survive a Real Knife Fight" by Marc "Animal" MacYoung is not his best book, but it does contain some gems of information that just might save your life if you ever face a knife. It is a rather short book, especially compared to some of MacYoung's other works. This book is only 116 pages long. But in this short space, MacYoung introduces some important topics related to knives and fighting with them. Being a friend of Marc, sometimes I can't help but read things into his books based on training, working, and sharing together. Reading some of the things he has written makes me remember other things we have done or that he has shared in person which make the lessons more relevant. I find that true with this book, since reading it makes me remember the hours we spent out in the back yard in California practicing with knives. I point this out to let readers know that as a friend and someone who has trained and worked with MacYoung, I have a bit of bias. As for "Knives, Knife Fighting, & Related Hassles," it is one of the earlier books that MacYoung wrote, and you can tell he was a bit closer to the streets at that time than he is now. (which is reflected in his later books too) The book by no means contains everything about knives and knife fighting, but then what book does. This book is a very good introductory piece on knives and knife fighting, and for some it may be all they need. After all, knife fighting is not something most people do on a regular basis, and even those who train in martial arts or self-defense systems should be focusing on staying out of knife fights rather than looking for them. Fighting is ugly, and when you add blades it multiplies that ugliness a thousand times. This book contains eleven short chapters: 1.
