Rating: 
Summary: a special thing with a special review
Review: I do prefer to use the poetry version to express my deep sincere love of this more-than-words novel. Poetry somehow express the feelings in a way that prose can't.Listen now, young and old,
and you shall hear something
told and retold It is a classic story indeed
and its rank is certainly not
made of empty words to weed
but a book to be sought It tells the stories
of isolated ones
whom the law pursued
until its terror is done They won't be pushed like that
so they all band together,
become fearsome thieves that
cause havoc in every weather This story creates something to pity
inside the dear reader
where it causes a space
with one rare leader The story's pattern
may be predictable,
but you will learn
it's still enjoyable With it's cleverness
you overlook all flaws
and observe the pattern
doesn't get raw. All in all, I must say
this story brings tradition here
read it at night, read it at day,
yet something new will always appear So heed this review
you won't regret
a book amoung few
read and reread
Rating: 
Summary: Worthwhile though politically incorrect
Review: I have seen great things said about "Outlaws of the Marsh" and I agree with them. I especially laud the translation as successful though I haven't read others. The book was written in the 14th century in "colloquial style" Chinese (similar to modern speeches), in contrast to "literal style" Chinese which contains its own set of grammer and vocabulary (almost impossible to understand to people unlearned in that format). This book follows a very colloquial approach and the occasion use of some ribaldry which I deem to be essential in conveying the nuance of the original. Regardless,there is a certain loss in the conveyance of its 14th century time setting and that is only inevitable due to the particular nature of the Chinese laguage.
After the good things said, I have to make a few warnings of the politically incorretness in this book which I don't necessarily consider the downsides of the book if not the valuables in a historical and anthropological sense.
First of all, the villains and churls in this book are the protangonists indeed and this is even unusual in Chinese literatures of background alike. Violence is imbued throughout the book and the deaths are the most gruesome as our heroes are but blood-thirst men of desparation. A Chinese idiom puts it well in particular as regards this book: The young ought not to read "Outlaws of the Marsh" and the old ought not to read "Three Kingdoms". The reason behind this is that the former involves too much violence for the testosterone-driven mind of youth, and the latter involves too much shrewdness for the calculative mind of maturity.
Secondly, there is an advocacy of misoginistic brotherhood in this book. Women are spoken of as properties all the time and it is overtly states many a time that women of "impropriety" should be disposed off quickly, especially since women are nothing but trouble in general. However, the camaraderie portrayed here is quite an honorable thing - reminds of the New Testment as everybody is a brother therein.
Again please do not rage or regard these as drawbacks.
Rating:
Summary: A Grand Opening into Ancient Chinese Sagas
Review: If you read one saga in your life, you would die happy having read Outlaws of the Marsh. This is a particularly good translation and edition in that they take perhaps eight or ten different versions of this story and pack it all together in one bit so you get more quality tale for the buck. Mr. Shapiro even discusses the differences between several of the versions in the beginning of the book. The saga takes you through a few decades of this roaming band of Chinese warriors in a land of corruption and evil. Though they are no angels themselves (in fact they are demons on Earth), they fight together for loyalty and honor in the name of the Emperor during the Song dynasty. The descriptions of the battles are vivid and enthralling, and the window into the culture of that time is truly something to cherish. An ancient story such as this is not something to be taken lightly, though it has plenty of humor, sorrow, and action to captivate the attention of all ages. Characters such as Sagacious Lu, Stumpy Tiger Wang, and Liu Kui the Blackwhirlwind, will forever be a part of you in your travels. Chairman Mao, himself, actually carried this book with him during the Long March in China as a constant reminder of the proud traditions of the Chinese people.
Rating:
Summary: Deprive
Review: My admiration and respect for this book grows each time I come across it on t.v or writings. The violence in this book is one that stands out to many people. However, to me, it is not the violence, but certainly the legend being lay out before those who willing to accept that it was their destiny to be fulfilled. It is beyond the understanding of violence. in fact, it wasn't violence at all. the violence was forced out off them. violence was one that was put out by the culture in which their time requires them to be. They were guided by stars in their individual rights. Their prowess and virtue were certainly a period that cannot easily match or compare with by any other time, but maybe except the romance three kingdoms period. This story is much more than a mere period in time, it was an epic struggle for truth and justice in the face of violence that society has brought on to them. Brotherhood was built upon one thing, that is loyalty and honor. Their brotherhood was set upon one purpose in life, for glory. the glory that makes what legends all about. These people had nothing to lose, for many the brotherhood is all they have. For many reasons there, and what society had taken from them, they had managed to survive and upheld what is long lost and disappearing in this time, that is an ideal hero. In a period of chaos , heroes will arise, and so came the 108 heroes. Their individual abilities, prowesses, stories, and deeds left an imprint on this world shown being the brightest stars in heaven. what came to be an end, came to be a legend, the legend of 108 heroes was passed along through time.
Rating:
Summary: Deprive
Review: My admiration and respect for this book grows each time I come across it on t.v or writings. The violence in this book is one that stands out to many people. However, to me, it is not the violence, but certainly the legend being lay out before those who willing to accept that it was their destiny to be fulfilled. It is beyond the understanding of violence. in fact, it wasn't violence at all. the violence was forced out off them. violence was one that was put out by the culture in which their time requires them to be. They were guided by stars in their individual rights. Their prowess and virtue were certainly a period that cannot easily match or compare with by any other time, but maybe except the romance three kingdoms period. This story is much more than a mere period in time, it was an epic struggle for truth and justice in the face of violence that society has brought on to them. Brotherhood was built upon one thing, that is loyalty and honor. Their brotherhood was set upon one purpose in life, for glory. the glory that makes what legends all about. These people had nothing to lose, for many the brotherhood is all they have. For many reasons there, and what society had taken from them, they had managed to survive and upheld what is long lost and disappearing in this time, that is an ideal hero. In a period of chaos , heroes will arise, and so came the 108 heroes. Their individual abilities, prowesses, stories, and deeds left an imprint on this world shown being the brightest stars in heaven. what came to be an end, came to be a legend, the legend of 108 heroes was passed along through time.
Rating:
Summary: I didn't read the English version but my dad
Review: read the Chinese version in his teens and I watched the TV series "The Water Margin." This Classic is actually considered as one of the four greatest literatures ever written in Chinese. The other three are Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Journey to the West (a Monkey, a Monk, a Pig, and a Monster from a river--this one should be hella fun for non-Chinese reader), and the Red Chamber (the intellectualism and daily life of ancient China). Jeez, 3 generations of my family were brought with the stories from these 4 literatures. If you want to know Chinese culture, history, customs, philosophies, disciplines, etc, definitively you need to own these books.
Rating:
Summary: A novel of political corruption, murder, love, martial arts.
Review: Stunning portrayal of 14th century china. Intertwining tales of bold heroes, corrupt officials, jealous lovers, and chivalrous martial artists. I have never enjoyed another book as i've enjoyed this one. Will leave you wanting more! A must read!!!
Rating: 
Summary: This is no Robin Hood.
Review: This book is entertaining at first, with multiple parallel stories. However, in the beginning of the second volume, it starts to get a little crazy. The protagonists are constantly drunk or eating mountains of meat. They are often crude and without reason, acting like bullies to those who do not sate their appetites. There are several events that make the protagonists extremely unlikable. It is outrageous how one of the protragonists would stick his neck out to help one organized crime boss over another, thinking that he is actually doing something righteous. In another instance that same character not only takes revenge on those who wronged, but also kills the women and children that live with them. He goes on to kill several more innocent people, and all the while gets off scott free. I just couldn't read anymore after that.
Rating:
Summary: a special thing with a special review
Review: This review is in reference to the paperback version of this book. 5 stars to the novel itself! This is the finest novel i've ever read. I remember reading this novel as a young martial arts student and loving every minute of it. Now as an instructor of Shaolin Kung-Fu, i not only carry the series but a i recommend it to all of my students! The characters in this novel are famed throughout history and Shaolin Monks often named movements after these heroes and their adventures, like Wu Song - "Step Back and Ride the Tiger!" Even entire forms were created to commemorate heroes - "Li Kui's Double Hand Axe" and "Subdue the Tiger w/fists on Jianyang Ridge" forms come to mind. (if you have never seen the Chinese Goverment soap-opera style production of Outlaws of the Marsh or "Water Margin" on DVD, you don't know what you're missing!!! Crouching Tiger/Hidden Dragon type quality - the goverment spared no expenses! Amazing fight choreography and drama. No English subtitles though, so need to have read the books to follow along!) The only problem i have with the book version that Amazon.com is offering is the fact that it is not available in hard cover. The paperback version was the first one i owned (3 volume set, 100 chapters) but i've found hardback more durable. In fact, i carry only the 3 volume HARDBACK (100 chapters) set at my school for a few dollars more than the paperbacks.
Rating:
Summary: 5 star book in a 4 star paperback
Review: This review is in reference to the paperback version of this book. 5 stars to the novel itself! This is the finest novel i've ever read. I remember reading this novel as a young martial arts student and loving every minute of it. Now as an instructor of Shaolin Kung-Fu, i not only carry the series but a i recommend it to all of my students! The characters in this novel are famed throughout history and Shaolin Monks often named movements after these heroes and their adventures, like Wu Song - "Step Back and Ride the Tiger!" Even entire forms were created to commemorate heroes - "Li Kui's Double Hand Axe" and "Subdue the Tiger w/fists on Jianyang Ridge" forms come to mind. (if you have never seen the Chinese Goverment soap-opera style production of Outlaws of the Marsh or "Water Margin" on DVD, you don't know what you're missing!!! Crouching Tiger/Hidden Dragon type quality - the goverment spared no expenses! Amazing fight choreography and drama. No English subtitles though, so need to have read the books to follow along!) The only problem i have with the book version that Amazon.com is offering is the fact that it is not available in hard cover. The paperback version was the first one i owned (3 volume set, 100 chapters) but i've found hardback more durable. In fact, i carry only the 3 volume HARDBACK (100 chapters) set at my school for a few dollars more than the paperbacks.
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