The Art of War: Complete edition with original illustrations

By: Sun Tzu

A Chinese treatise called "The Art of War" contains thirteen chapters on different aspects of waging a successful battle. Its author is the strategist and thinker Sun Tzu. One of the central ideas in "The Art of War" is the concept of winning without direct conflict. This involves strategic maneuvers, psychological tactics, and diplomacy. Though it is a classic work on military strategy, its principles have been widely applied beyond the battlefield and are often considered relevant to other areas of life, including business, leadership, and personal development. "Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak." "The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting." "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle." Sun Tzu, The Art of War

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0CQY29XCK
• ISBN13: 9798872238737
• Release Date: December 2023
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 154 Pages
• Weight: 0.64 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.3" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

A few grains of truth in a lot of chaff.

Today, many of Sun Tzu's quotes are floating around mixed with Shakespeare and the Bible. And as with many of the quotes, they are out of context and misleading. The quoter usually thinks that repeating the word is some sort of magic. This volume at least tries to show the facts of Sun Tzu and not go overboard on popular cultural deviations as to how to apply them to other disciplines. There is an excellent index if you are looking for something specific. It is easy with hindsight and a closer look at the future to dismiss Sun Tzu as his practical tactical knowledge is of a time and place long gone. He spends a lot of time on the use of weapons and information gathering techniques of the time. This can be interesting in a historical context; otherwise, it is quite amusing. Oh yes, those grains of truth I mentioned, well, they may sound like clichés, but they are still viable. "Know your enemy and know yourself". Others are just practical sense and statistical outcomes that you learn in any military training. I could go through the list, but again, that is why you buy the book. Now, just as you decide that the book is outdated for any practical purposes today, we have artillery and now stealth and precision, the reminder that "no two wars are alike" and "it is the flexibility that makes a difference" is still true. Even in today's wars, there is a need for good intelligence and deception. We put a lot of time and energy into Psy-Ops. Sun Tzu shows the advantage of specialized units and crack troops. I have spent several years in the military and business and can say this book is a nice addition to history, otherwise of very little value to today's world for war or business or anything else that might come up.