Book Synopsis:
Memoirs of a Karate Fighter is a gripping and hard-hitting story of karate training in one of Europe’s toughest dojos during the 1980s. The author is the novelist Ralph Robb, who, in his much younger days, was a Wado Ryu karate champion (UKKW 1982) and a European all-styles silver medallist. Ralph gives an insight into the training methods and philosophy of the Wolverhampton YMCA karate club which was once the top club in Britain. The YMCA won innumerable tournaments but amongst its greatest achievements were two All-styles British Clubs championships, five UK Wado team titles and one Shotokan national team championship (1976 GB Shotokan Karate International)- the only team in the history of British karate not to practise that style ever to do so. Within its ranks were one world, twelve national and three European champions.
Memoirs Of A Karate Fighter is available in ebook and paperback now. You can purchase your copy via the link below or through your local indie bookstore.
My Review:
Memoirs Of A Karate Fighter was a very intriguing, absorbing read that went much deeper than I expected it too.
I’ve always wanted to learn a martial art so this book really appealed to me. I really enjoyed learning more about the sport and as well as the culture that surrounded it. It was quite eye opening at times and I found it very interesting learning what being a karate fighter involved.
This was more than just about Karate however and it was this that really intrigued me and made the book stand out for me. It was fascinating to learn more about the culture of the 80s and to see what it was like to be a black karate fighter at that time. I was actually an 80s baby but I think I was too young to notice a lot of what was happening. It was therefore quite eye opening to realise how hard it was and to see what people’s attitudes were.
Overall I thought this was a raw and very honest account of the author’s experiences. In a lot of ways it read a bit like a coming of age story as we follow the author from a kid into adult hood. I thought it was a very gripping account and I found it very hard to put down as I felt invested in the story. This is the first book that I have read by this author and I am now very excited to read more from him in the future. I would recommend this book to everyone, not just those interested in Karate as it is a very interesting read.
Huge thanks to Rachel from Rachel’s Random resources for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
My original idea was to write a novel with a karate theme but with the encouragement of my publisher I decided to write an autobiographical account of my time practising karate. Sometimes it was a very painful experience for me and now with the hindsight of 25 years it is easy to see how some of the opinions I had about the world and karate were wrong – although a few may have been right. A lot of the views about karate in the book are – and were – not mine but I have done my best to convey the thinking of the time, as in the case of women competitors. Personally I never had a problem with it but it is easy to recall how many I knew did.
Quite obviously, I have made mistakes in my life, as every young man does, but perhaps what I wish to convey, is that despite all its problems and often very petty prejudices and squabbles, the practise of karate was a very positive influence in my younger life.
On reflection my tournament successes mean very little, it is what I learned about life that was the greatest prize I attained.
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