If you've ever wondered what Northern Chinese Praying Mantis style is all about, look no further. In "Mantis Boxing", Zhang Yuping covers practically all the bases--stances, hand techniques, elbow techniques, footwork and leg techniques--in admirable detail. No, you can't learn a martial art from a book...but if you're unable to find a Praying Mantis instructor, reading this particular book will be an illuminating experience. What I found especially helpful is the section devoted to combination exercises. Most books of this type take you straight into a complicated routine (form) without the slightest preparation, but here the author shows you a number of combination exercises (groupings of hand techniques and footwork, footwork and stances plus elbow techniques, or leg techniques and footwork plus hand techniques) which go a long way toward helping you perform the routine effectively. The form demonstrated in the book is White Monkey Steals Peach. It was created by Master Yu Hai, who played Jet Li's teacher in "The Shaolin Temple"."Mantis Boxing" is a very solid instructional book that I would recommend to anyone interested in Chinese martial arts. I knocked one star off my rating only because no self-defense applications are shown.