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The Art of War

A Norton Critical Edition
By Sun Tzu
3.94 goodreads logo

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( 583,489 ratings, 24,400 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Art of War by Sun Tzu is an ancient Chinese military treatise that explores strategy, tactics, and philosophy of warfare. This Norton Critical Edition features a new, acclaimed translation by Michael Nylan, detailed footnotes, an informative introduction, fourteen illustrations, and seven interpretative essays, providing a comprehensive understanding of this timeless classic.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$4199
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This edition is ideal for students, educators, and readers keen on military history, strategy, and classical Chinese literature. It supports both undergraduate study and general interest in one of the most influential works on warfare and leadership.

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β€œEach sentence is a struck match... [Nylan’s] translation is insightful and alert.” β€” Dwight Garner, TheΒ New York Times

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

This Norton Critical Edition includes:

The new and internationally acclaimed translation by Michael Nylan, accompanied by her detailed explanatory footnotes.

A richly informative introduction by Michael Nylan.

Fourteen illustrations.

Seven interpretative essays on The Art of War's central themes by Michael Nylan and Shoufu Yin, Benjamin Daniels, Trenton Wilson, Joseph Passman, Alfreda Murck, Li Ling, and Richard Curt Kraus.

A selected bibliography.

About the Series

Read by more than 12 million students over fifty-five years, Norton Critical Editions set the standard for apparatus that is right for undergraduate readers. The three-part formatβ€”annotated text, contexts, and criticismβ€”helps students to better understand, analyse, and appreciate the literature, while opening a wide range of teaching possibilities for instructors. Whether in print or in digital format, Norton Critical Editions provide all the resources students need.

... presents a fresh, distinctive and original rendition of the much-parsed classic ... the text is presented in a form that is clear and readily understood and at the same time inexhaustibly rich in meaning. – New Statesman

Michael Nylan's translation is marvellous. The pithiness of certain parts of the text, its aphoristic quality, presents an exceptionally difficult challenge. Because Nylan has a deep understanding of the social and cultural milieu that produced Sun Tzu's treatise, she has created an English-language version that is accessible while retaining the literary beauty of the original. Her introduction and supporting materials are very helpful to the reader, and I would expect that this version will become the standard one in the field. – Dennis Washburn, Dartmouth College and translator of The Tale of Genji

Michael Nylan's masterful translation of The Art of War brings historical depth to our understanding of the classic and also illuminates its broad significance for our world today. – Wai-yee Li, Harvard University

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Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

"... presents a fresh, distinctive and original rendition of the much-parsed classic... the text is presented in a form that is clear and readily understood and at the same time inexhaustibly rich in meaning." – New Statesman

"Michael Nylan’s masterful translation of The Art of War brings historical depth to our understanding of the classic and also illuminates its broad significance for our world today." – Wai-yee Li, Harvard University

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780393617290

Publisher: WW Norton & Co

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 19 August 2022

Country: United States

Imprint: WW Norton & Co

Edition: Critical edition

Contributors:

  • Edited by Michael Nylan
  • Translated by Michael Nylan

Audience: Tertiary education

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 15.0mm

Width: 132.0mm

Height: 216.0mm

Weight: 241g

Pages: 280

About the Author

Sun Tzu (c.500–320. B.C.) is the name used by the unknown Chinese authors of The Art of War and related commentaries. Michael Nylan is a professor of history at the University of California, Berkeley. Her work includes?The Art of War?and China’s Early Empires with Michael Loewe,?Yang?Xiong?and the Pleasures of Reading and Classical Learning in China, The Five β€œConfucian” Classics,?Lives of Confucius with Thomas A. Wilson, and several essays on feminism and Confucianism. Michael Nylan is a professor of history at the University of California, Berkeley. Her work includes?The Art of War?and China’s Early Empires with Michael Loewe,?Yang?Xiong?and the Pleasures of Reading and Classical Learning in China, The Five β€œConfucian” Classics,?Lives of Confucius with Thomas A. Wilson, and several essays on feminism and Confucianism.

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