The best and the worst Xingyiquan books I have ever read.

Over the years, I've tried to get my hands on nearly every Xingyiquan book that has ever been published. I don't use them for training, that's impossible. I really like collecting them and taking note of the various differences in the styles and how they are structured. I'm a Shanxi practitioner and teacher. I know a great deal about Shanxi and Hebei styles. I know less about Honan and other obscure styles such as Ling, Che, etc.
I've read nearly every book I could get my hands on and have owned most. Some have evaded me. There are multitudes of Chinese titles I've never seen but would love to own.

Well here it is  - the best of the best and the worst of the worst.

This book was written by Douglas Hsieh and according to Amazon.com was published around 1990. I believe it is much older than that and the 1990 date must be a re-edition. What really stands out about this book is the very rich history of Xingyichuan and how it is chronicled by the author. The pictures are in framed action and as such a few crucial nuances are dropped here and there but overall it does a very good job of covering the main aspetcs of the style, its history, and traditions. In it the 5 elements, linking form, an shen pao, and each of the 12 animls are covered in detail. There is also a bit of practical application but not a whole lot. In all this one stands out as the best book I 've ever read on Xingyiquan. I think it's out of print, but I'm sure you can find a copy at some online used book stores. I highly recommend it.

Back in the day when I first began studying kung fu, I bought this book from Paladin Press for a whopping $50.00! (I picked up the Hsieh book at a used bookstore for about $6.00). I guess I got caught up in all the hype. It was advertiesed "Rob Whitewood strips away all the secrecy and presents a hard core analysis that will make Hsing-i work for you - gauranteed!" Well, I'm really interested in what exactly that gaurantee was because I want my $50.00 back! This has to be the worst book on Xingyiquan I have ever read. It presents nothing new as was promised in the review and Whitewood's posture is so far off that any half assed grappler would have him for lunch. His stance is wrong and his hand position in pichuan puts stress on the forearm muscles to the point that any technique performed would have no power, at least not enough to inflict damage. I also noticed that he arches his lower back in santi - a big no no. The book's cover is pleasing to the eye and it certainly is designed to be inviting. Just past the first page one can readily see the low production qualities as it looks like a paste it job not beyond the abilities of most 6th graders. Also as I recall the font was rather large and more appropriate reading for a grandmother without her glasses than anyone else. To aspiring readers I would suggest trying to find this one at a REALLY discounted reseller or simply cough up the bucks for Paladin's other title "How to be a Ninja" by Ahsida Kim as it will probably have more useful information than this book (sarcasm intended).