Hagakure, Book of Five Rings & Art of War

[Devil_Hanzo]

What are the best (English) versions of these books/texts? I'm thinking of buying them, but after a quick search on an internet bookstore I found 15 or so editions of Book of Five Rings, and a similar number for Art of War (bit less for Hagakure), so which ones should I buy? I'm looking for the most complete and best translated versions, not necessarily top-quality hardbacks. I want to read them, not show them off in my bookshelf.

[Minagawa Daimon]

heya hanzo, it all depends on what topic your after, if you want strategy go for the art of war, hagakure for a guide on bushido, five rings is miyamoto musashis book on way of a warriors life, hope it helps you out, good luck!

[solypsist]

I picked up a cheapo $5 paperback copy after seeing Ghost Dog and it suited me just fine. Unless you're a linguist or historian of Japan, most copies in English probably read pretty much the same.

[Devil_Hanzo]

Minagawa: I know what they are, and I want to buy all of them, not just one of them. What I was asking for was which version of each to buy.

[FwSeal]

The Thomas Cleary translations of 'Art of War' and 'Five Rings', published currently through Shambala, have always been well-regarded. Cleary has a reputation as one of the west's foremost translators. My favorite Hagakure translation was that done by William Scott Wilson (and published by Kodansha). I have never come across an unabridged 'Hagakure' in english before, however.

[Devil_Hanzo]

Thanks a bunch. Those suggestions were really helpful, and I found good prices, so I'll be buying them today.