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Kwoon
A martial arts instructor meets his match.
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About the author
Charles R. Johnson
85 books245 followersCharles R. Johnson is an American scholar and author of novels, short stories, and essays. Johnson, an African-American, has directly addressed the issues of black life in America in novels such as Middle Passage and Dreamer. Johnson first came to prominence in the 1960s as a political cartoonist, at which time he was also involved in radical politics. In 1970, he published a collection of cartoons, and this led to a television series about cartooning on PBS.
1990 National Book Award Winner.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 3, 2020
Heard as part of the LeVar Burton Reads podcast.
It felt like a writing exercise. A good writing exercise, very neatly put together, but without any feeling that the author really had any stakes in the story. I dunno, maybe the testosterone level in this was just too high for me to really get it.
It felt like a writing exercise. A good writing exercise, very neatly put together, but without any feeling that the author really had any stakes in the story. I dunno, maybe the testosterone level in this was just too high for me to really get it.
January 8, 2023
An interesting look at a martial arts school, where the Sifu and a new student are both struggling with their ego in different ways, and eventually find a way to connect. My experience with the hard martial arts is minimal, but I have many years of taiji practice, and the connections and relationship just feel right to me.
Rather than delve into spoilers, I'll just include a quote that I believe comes from Cheng Man'Ching (which I may be mangling, but the gist is there): "If you push me 100 times and I only push you once, I have had 100 chances to learn, and you have had only 1". Both central characters would have benefited from having this idea in mind.
Rather than delve into spoilers, I'll just include a quote that I believe comes from Cheng Man'Ching (which I may be mangling, but the gist is there): "If you push me 100 times and I only push you once, I have had 100 chances to learn, and you have had only 1". Both central characters would have benefited from having this idea in mind.
November 21, 2020
I listened to this story via LeVar Burton Reads. Though I enjoyed it, like others, it didn't quite move me like other stories from that podcast have. I also felt like the ending was a bit abrupt and could have been fleshed out more. I appreciated the shift in perspective in the middle of the story from the protagonist to the "antagonist" so to speak. All in all, an enjoyable read/listen which I would highly recommend.
April 3, 2020
Review of 'Kwoon' by Charles Johnson - 3 stars
Liked this story, but it didn't move me. It was a neat little package of a story, and worth the time, but probably wouldn't read/listen to it again. I did like the end, of upending what one of the main characters was expecting to happen.
Liked this story, but it didn't move me. It was a neat little package of a story, and worth the time, but probably wouldn't read/listen to it again. I did like the end, of upending what one of the main characters was expecting to happen.
November 24, 2020
This story has some of my favorite elements:
-It involves martial arts.
- It decries McDojos.
- It's written by a black author who doesn't need to make race an issue to write a compelling story.
Kwoon is fantastic! I'm looking forward to more by Charles Johnson.
-It involves martial arts.
- It decries McDojos.
- It's written by a black author who doesn't need to make race an issue to write a compelling story.
Kwoon is fantastic! I'm looking forward to more by Charles Johnson.
December 18, 2021
Via Levar Burton Reads. I had a hard time getting into this one. The characters didn't grab me, and their motivations didn't make sense. I did like the end.
December 7, 2022
A martial arts master has a new student
May 12, 2025
A martial arts instructor experiences a crisis of faith and an existential threat to his school when he is beaten by a new student.
This short story focuses on the philosophy and the greater meaning behind martial arts, which is self-discipline and personal growth rather than beating others and winning competitions.
As someone who practiced martial arts for many years, I have encountered people like Morgan, people for whom everything single thing is about them, martial arts practitioners who hit weaker students unnecssarily hard during in-class sparring and who try to hurt people at tournaments where the rule of self-control, and often the basic rules for sparring, are not enforced.
The story switches perspective at the end from Lewis to Morgan in order to redeem the character of Morgan, but I didn't buy his internal motivations. Most people are incapable of popping the hood on their own psychology and instead rationalize their behavior in the way that shows them in the best possible light. Even a$$holes believe they are the heroes of their own stories.
This short story focuses on the philosophy and the greater meaning behind martial arts, which is self-discipline and personal growth rather than beating others and winning competitions.
As someone who practiced martial arts for many years, I have encountered people like Morgan, people for whom everything single thing is about them, martial arts practitioners who hit weaker students unnecssarily hard during in-class sparring and who try to hurt people at tournaments where the rule of self-control, and often the basic rules for sparring, are not enforced.
The story switches perspective at the end from Lewis to Morgan in order to redeem the character of Morgan, but I didn't buy his internal motivations. Most people are incapable of popping the hood on their own psychology and instead rationalize their behavior in the way that shows them in the best possible light. Even a$$holes believe they are the heroes of their own stories.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews