Book review: The Art of War

The Art of War
Sun-tsu


Not sure why this book made it to my "must read" list- possibly because his writings were quoted by one or more authors of books I've read in the past. This is the classic "art of war" text from the original bamboo strips as recorded by the ancient Chinese general. Master Sun was born in the state of Qi around 550BC, and served the Kingdom of Wu. My edition is the Penguin Classic from 2002, edited by J. Minford. There's not a lot to it- some 100 pages, double-spaces and written in a poetic-verse form. There is considerable foreword information, and the whole text is reproduced and interdispersed with commentaries from Chinese and British military experts- this was only moderately interesting. Master Sun's text by itself was more interesting; coming direct from a voice from 2500 years ago.

It's pretty simple stuff in general: "Invulnerability is defense; vulnerability is attack." ... that sort of thing. But most verses bring to mind something specific in military history. For example, "When a general misjudges an enemy,... the outcome is rout." To me this immediately brought to mind Napoleon's rout in Russia. To others, it might bring to mind any other of hundreds of examples through history.

The commentators were quick to point out flaws, which I found boring, self-serving, and made possible only through the benefit of hindsight. Sun says that he "has never seen delay that was wise." To which I thought (and the commentators mentioned): "what about Maximus against Hannibal?" But this was a defensive action- Sun was talking about aggressiveness versus timidity. The commentators (and I) were out of context.

The most interesting parts were when Sun suggests that on the battlefield, the general is in complete command, and should overrule his political superiors, should they send orders contrary to his better judgement. One can come up with many examples through history where rulers spoiled the plans of commanders in the field. The commentators didn't have much to say on the subject, not surprisingly, being military men, and subject to chain of command.

In summary, I'd definitely recommend Sun's "The Art of War" verses to anyone with interest in military history- after all, he's been quoted by many of the most successful generals in history. 
Otherwise, pass.