Part Samurai history, part martial arts guide, this is THE book for anyone interested in Japan's fabled Samurai culture. Author Alexander Bennett is the ultimate insider, holding multiple black belts in Kendo and Naginata as well as a Ph.D. in Japanese literature and history. In this book, he shares his vast personal experience and knowledge with readers seeking to undertake their own personal quest in the Japanese martial arts. Bennett outlines the history of Bushido and the Japanese Samurai from early times up until the present. Then, as only someone steeped in this world can, he surveys the contemporary martial arts scene and provides the essential knowledge young foreigners need to find a teacher and learn a martial art successfully in Japan. Unlike any other book on this subject, Japan The Ultimate Samurai Guide is written by a Japanese speaker who has studied and taught martial arts in Japan for many decades.