What they say about The Pyjama Game
‘Approaching his 50th birthday, Mark Law decides to take up judo and his initial interest becomes an obsession, then a book. The result is a fascinating journey in which he unravels this most opaque of sports with humour, verve and style. Part travelogue, part history, part chronicle of midlife discovery, The Pyjama Game is an illuminating exposition of an enigmatic and marginal sport’
– James Corbett, Observer
‘This is a must-read for every judo enthusiast’
– Jimmy Pedro, World Champion and Olympic medallist
‘Excellent . . . a classic in its genre’
– Robert Twigger, Sunday Times
‘Beautifully written, and no interest in the martial arts is required to find it absolutely riveting’
– The Independent
‘If you really want to be bowled over by a book about a martial art then you really must read this extraordinary book. It is absolutely hilarious in parts, extremely well researched throughout and totally absorbing. I couldn’t put it down and read it twice. Next year I will read it again’
– David Finch, Judophotos
‘A book that will be riveting to those who practice martial arts and those who don’t. As a 49-year old who never did sport, the author took up judo. The book is partly his story, mostly that of the people who made the discipline. It’s beautifully written and very funny’
– John Meaney, Cognitive Resonance
‘One of the year’s most entertaining sporting books, and the best one to be written about a martial art since Robert Twigger’s Angry White Pyjamas. It’s lively, it’s witty and, above all, so persuasively enthusiastic that by the end you’ll find yourself feeling an intense urge to try it for yourself’
– James Delingpole, Mail on Sunday
‘I loved The Pyjama Game. It is one of the few books that makes judo understandable to a non-judo audience. It transmits some of the beauty and magic of judo while explaining the rigors of training and heartbreak of competition’
– Judo Information Site
‘Through his own observation of the sport and as a spectator, he is able to capture the feeling of an elite competitor. I know this feeling too well and it never lessens with experience’
– Kylie Koenig, Australian Judo Squad
At last someone has written a book that examines every facet of the sport. The Pyjama Game is by turns hilarious, intriguing and even horrifying’
– Yogi Marlon, sports writer
‘It is a fantastic read for all judokas, but unlike some sport books it is a mesmerising read for a wider audience . . . a book judo will be proud of’
– Matside Magazine
‘The Pyjama Game: a fantastic voyage, beautifully written, through this most challenging of sports’
– Independent on Sunday
‘This is damn fine stuff, and will entertain and enlighten an audience far beyond the confines of the dojo’
– Andrew Baker, Daily Telegraph
‘A brilliant exploration of judo’
– Matthew D’Ancona, Spectator
