Art of War Wisdom

‘If their encampment seems open to attack, then it is a trap.’ – Sun Tzu You don’t have to be a soldier to seek wisdom from Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. This classic Chinese text is commonly applied today to corporate strategy and used by anyone who thinks that daily life – whether that’s dealing with your boss, a salesperson, your landlord – can be a battle. In the introduction, translator James Trapp outlines the life and times of Sun Tzu, and examines the enduring significance of his wisdom. Beautifully produced in traditional Chinese binding, Art of War Wisdom offers more than 80 succinct quotes from Sun Tzu, on such topics as laying plans, attacking by stratagem, weaponry, terrain and the use of spies.

Author Biography

Sun Tzu (also known as Sunzi) was traditionally thought by historians to have been born around 544BCE, and that he later served as a general leading the forces of King He Lü of Wu, one of the seven Warring States of Eastern China during the Spring and Autumn period, and The Art of War is based on his many victories, although modern scholarship suggests the book may have been written later. James Trapp is the author of Chinese Characters: The Art and Meaning of Hanzi, Chinese Proverbs and also has translated a bestselling new multilingual edition of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. A Chinese language graduate of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, he teaches Mandarin and was previously an Education Officer on the China Collection at the British Museum.