Welcome to another book review!
As an initial matter, I wanted to apologize for being away for so long. I was terribly busy at work and didn’t have time to sleep, let alone read. Rest assured, I am back, however, and even had time to read and review a new book since then! Thank you to Gretchen Carson and her Martial Journeys podcast, which is where I learned about this book.
Iron & Silk by Mark Salzman can best be described as a series of vignettes. As stated in my earlier reviews, I tend to see martial arts books as generally fitting into different categories. In my experience, these books are instructional, philosophical, or biographical. Of these categories, this book would definitely be considered biographical, at least partially. I say partially because it only covers a few years of the author’s life while in China. The book is not a beginning-to-end tale of his life and experiences.
Life as a Foreigner in China in the mid-1980s
Generally, this book follows the author, Mark Salzman, during his time teaching English at a medical school in China. While there he has the fortune to study martial arts (and other arts such as calligraphy) under various different teachers. He also shared a number of his other experiences throughout the book.
Just as a general note to the reader, this is not a new book. Iron & Silk was published in 1986, and as such, serves more like a snapshot into the past rather than an examination of what a modern visit to China would entail. It took me a few chapters to realize this, and the stories made a lot more sense to me once I understood that the action was not taking place in the twenty-first century. As such, I just wanted to point it out, so anyone who reads this book doesn’t make the same mistake I did! Nonetheless, I found it to be an interesting view into a time and place that I knew very little about, and to be honest, I’m pretty much a sucker for anything set in the 1980s, especially if it’s martial arts related.
Each chapter is basically broken up into three short anecdotes recounted by the author. Although there are certainly martial arts in the book, the author’s stories are by no means limited to them. Usually one of the three stories in each chapter relates to the author’s martial arts experiences in China. The others relate to his time in the classroom teaching English, or his general forays into the local culture, including some very interesting stories about some local fishermen he encounters.
Martial Arts and More!
As with most stories of Americans traveling to foreign lands to learn martial arts (or at least the stories that I am familiar with), it takes the author some time to “get going” so to speak. This is especially true when the prospective student shows up unannounced with no contacts, letters of introduction, etc. The author’s case is no different. Especially in the pre-internet period in which this book takes place, Mr. Salzman is unable to immediately find an instructor who is a good fit for him. I found it especially interesting the manner in which people made introductions to Mr. Salzman. His status as an American both helped and hindered him in certain aspects throughout the book, and I found that especially interesting.
Eventually, however, Mr. Salzman is able to meet Pan and strike up a student-teacher relationship which lasts for the rest of his time in China. I found the stories about his interactions with his teacher to be the most interesting parts of the book. They were both familiar in that there seemed to be a dynamic that I believe is common between students and teachers the world over, especially in the realm of traditional martial arts. Yet they were different and intriguing in that the student had this unique status as an exotic foreigner in what, at that time (based on the book), was a place that seemed fairly closed off to the outside world.
Conclusion and Recommendations
All in all, I really enjoyed Iron & Silk. I would make one note to anyone who is planning on reading the book. It is about more than just martial arts. Yes, the author does focus on his exposure to the martial arts while in China. And there are, in fact, a number of stories about his training. Nonetheless, I would not classify this as a purely martial arts book. If you pick it up, you will also spend time reading stories about his other experiences. These include: teaching English, meeting fishermen, calligraphy, and in some cases dealing with governmental bureaucratic red tape–which makes a trip to the DMV seem like an absolute picnic.
I enjoyed these other stories as well. But if you are interested in a purely martial arts focused book, then you may want to take a pass on this one. But don’t fret! You can explore some of my other book reviews for other options that may interest you more!
- #1 Enter the Dragon vs. #12 Seven Samurai (votes needed) - June 7, 2019
- #12 Seven Samurai vs. #13 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) (Votes Needed!) - May 13, 2019
- Enter the Dragon v. Game of Death - April 10, 2019
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