The unknown author of these hundred short chapters has left a different and worthwhile contribution to military history. Sawyer, the modern commentator, has made it even more relevant to the contemporary reader.
Each chapter has three parts. The first is almost always a brief reference to Sun Tzu, Ssu-ma Fa, or some other classic of strategy and tactics. The second part reaches into China's long written history to find historical examples of each precept.
Although phrased as a commentary on older texts, the reader should remember the rigid social structure and respect for ancient wisdom common in the Ming dynasty (when this was written). New ideas were suspect, even irreverent to the extent that they challenged the classics. Instead, new ideas were concealed as commentaries on the established wisdom. One should not dismiss these commentaries as just a rehashing of texts that were a thousand years old even then.
The third part of each chapter is Sawyer's modern addition, sometimes longer than both traditional parts together. Sawyer uses these notes to explain historical content and to point out relevance to the modern world. The real value of Sawyer's commentary, however, is its extensive citation of other Chinese military classics. He will often provide the whole passage to which a chapter alludes, as well as related passages from other texts. I found this very helpful, especially when Sawyer quoted classics that are little-known or inaccessible to English speakers.
The indices are good, providing reference by topic, by proper names referenced, and by the eight classics references for which commentaty is provided. There was no bibliography, though, a real loss. I would very much like to read the Wu Tzu or other unfamiliar titles named, but I'll have to hunt those down on my own.
This shouldn't be your first book on classical Chinese strategy, but it will be a welcome addition to any serious collection.
//wiredweird
