Lawrence Books

I have collected many books about the Doctor Who series. Books about the plots, books on the history, books on the Daleks and so on. These series of books, About Time, are the final word. If you just became a fan don't bother with the other books. Buy these books. And if you are already a fan dump all the other books into a Black Hole, or sell them on Amazon.com, and buy up these books.
The first book deals with Seasons 1 to 3, the First Doctor, and really gets into the details about EVERYTHING. The characters, the actors, the plot, the writers, the social and historical events that shaped each episode. Not just the origins of the show but the origins of each and every episode. Plots, merits, flaws, sets are dissected, broken down, and debated about. 288 pages of Doctor Who. Get it used or new.

For those of us not able to watch every episode, this is a good way to understand what has gone on.

They said complete and they mean complete. This is not a book for the novice. This is a highly comprehensive look at each episode, from the Unearthly Child and onwards. Each episode is examined for it's own issues, then looked at in how it fits the series, and how it fits the culture of the day. It's so detailed, this book only makes it through the first three seasons and there are a total of seven books covering the orignial series and I'm guessing we'll get the new series soon (he does mention the 2005 season).

If you are a detail junky, this is the book for you. The cross referencing of the culture of the day, BBC politics, actors issues, development of the story and so forth are facinating. It's kept me turning pages and running to order the next installment. It's a definite must for the hard core fan.

not only of the start of a great show, but also details British television history and pop culture to put it into a larger context. Sometimes academic, sometimes fanwankish, but never tiresomely pedantic or boring. Can't wait to pick up the next volumes.

It's so great to see Doctor Who making a resurgence. I've been avidly acquiring the DVDs as they come out to replace the four drawers full of rapidly decaying VHS tapes on which, as a high school student, I recorded every episode that aired on PBS. So, though I don't think I've ever reached the heights of rabidity of some, I guess you could say I'm a big fan of the series. And now I've been able to read a priceless manual for the fan--About Time. In it, Wood and Lawrence fulfill every desire of those of us who have spent much of our lives mulling over the series.

Compared to some of the other volumes in this series, I would expect that this one would be somewhat less popular. There are good reasons for this, of course. Primarily, this is because it covers the first three years of the series. These years of black & white transmission where many of the episodes have been lost struggle in popularity with some of the later Doctors. Which is too bad because, as the authors point out, the series was very experimental during this time as it set the tone for what would be common ideas as the series wore on.

For those of us who have a love and respect for Hartnell's tetchy Doctor, however, this book is fantastic. I, for one, was very interested in getting the background of stories about which I knew very little because the episodes were lost. Additionally, the authors simply offer a wealth of information. Not only do they provide facts about plot, cast and characters, but they also offer their point of view through analysis of continuity and "things that don't make sense" as well as critique of the stories. There is also a series of essays that look at some "big picture" questions like what makes the TARDIS work? can you rewrite history? what's the dalek timeline? did the BBC actually like Doctor Who? and many more.

If there's a problem in reading this book for me, it's that I am, unfortunately, rather young and certainly American. I never got to see these shows in their first run as they were designed to be seen. Nor do I understand some of the references about British TV, movies, and actors, which I'm sure are quite familiar to some readers. Still, I wouldn't have passed up reading this book for anything. I'm already working my way through volume 2.

This book, as with all Acanthus books is simply beautiful. I don't know any other publisher that puts more thought into their product, down to the ever present bookmarking ribbon. William Bottomley's work is given its just due in this well thought out and produced book. Frankly, I was not all that familiar with his work, so this book was a real eye opener for me. He producted everything from chic townhomes to spectacular mansions, and he was a master of many styles. As with all Acanthus Press books, this comes highly recommended, and it does not disappoint; well done indeed.

"The Architecture of William Lawrence Bottomley" is the latest addition to a fine series of books on architecture and design by The Acanthus Press. As with the other books in their series on architects, this volume presents the best of Bottomley's output with indepth discussions of 34 examples of his work, from a church to a city hall as well as his extraordinary residential commissions which inludes townhouses, River House in New York City and a variety of magnificent homes. The book provides a wealth of floorplans, some site plans and period photographs (mostly in black and white) of the various projects. Also included is a fine biography of Bottomley which discusses his family life and his professional career, and a catalog of commissions. This book is a must for anyone interested in Bottomley and/or fine traditional,(mostly) residential architecture. This hard-cover volume, as all volumes in the Acanthus Press catalogue, is beautifully envisioned and produced. Many congratulations to the Acanthus Press and author Susan Hume Frazer!

This is a marvelous book that will give hours and hours of visual pleasure and reading pleasure. It is very informative with personal information and professional information with many photos, many original black and whites. Susan Hume-Frazer has done an oustanding job. Thank you!

Though I have not finished reading this book, I am enjoying it. I have been looking forward to this since I first heard of it's publication. I am interested in Bottomley's work, but the original monograph by Mr. Weeks is now selling for $200-$300, which is not an affordable price.
As an architectural designer, I enjoy the book for the "pictures", however, I find the introduction and narrative of the projects to be just as interesting.

Plain and simply a beautiful book. If you have any interest in traditional residential architecture than buy this.

I've been reading about baseball for almost 50 years, and for some reason I didn't come across this book until recently. What a life Fred Lieb led! He reported on major league baseball for almost 70 years, most of it in New York City. He knew everybody worth knowing. This book is probably the best baseball book that hardly anyone has heard of (yet). Gehrig was Lieb's best friend from baseball. Lieb was an honorary pallbearer for Babe Ruth -- the only sportswriter so chosen by Ruth's widow. Lieb is in baseball's Hall of Fame. The book is filled with revelations, candid conversations, and reminiscences of many of baseball's greatest stars of its Golden Era. Lieb is the source of many stories that baseball biographers have drawn from. You get the feeling from reading this book that he is an impeccable source. He claims to have originated the phrase "The House That Ruth Built" in an inspired moment. I believe him.

Fred Lieb wrote a gem that will have you referring back again and again. His matter-of-fact, focused writing style is a delight. He was a sports journalist in the 20's and 30's and knew many players, managers, and owners well. He takes sports stars out of the realm of mythology and humanizes their foibles and follies. His tales of Babe Ruth and the chapter about good friend Lou Gehrig is worth the price of the book alone. This is what writing is about! You may even get a few chills when his wife's work is elaborated upon, and how premonitions sometimes come true. You will also get a huge kick out of The Babe's response to her avocation- and the stories about Damon Runyon are fascinating.

This book never gets old or out dated..........Lieb was a great writer and storyteller...........It's more fun reading this than watching some of the guys playing the game today...........Highly recommended...............

Fred Lieb knew the players he talks about personally. Anything written by Fred Lieb about baseball is coming from a true authority on the subject. Baseball has a history unlike any other sport. No other sport can touch it, and in reading about it from Fred Lieb you are getting it from a true master. Do yourself a favor. Buy the book.

Because Fred Lieb saw so many old time players and told about them in such an interesting way. I also thould he was very fair in his comparing of the players abilities.

Elsa is a frizzy lion-haired 10 year old who is NOT keen on staying at the rotting, peeling "Royal Hotel" or, as some of the letters have fallen off, Elsa would say "Oyal Htl" but there she has ALOT of adventures! She meets a group of vandalisms and eventually becomes great friends with them, along with Naomi, the girl who loves to read in the loos! She saves the hotel from burning to cinders with her loud voice and eventually moves to a 5-star hotel, where she has the time of her life! Have fun with Elsa in the 100% recommended, highly entertaining, incredibly amusing, and sidecrackingly hilarious "Bed and Breakfast Star"

A++

This book is about a little girl who moves from a lovely house to a evntualy a Bed and Breakfast Hotel . One night the girl smells smoke and goes to see what it is . She finds a fire and shouts to everyone to get up . They all hear her and run out of the building whilst someone calls the fire bragade . The fire is put out and the becomes a heroine .

I read this book at age 9 and couldn't put it down. This book is perfect for girls ages 7-10 who still have yet to master the art of reading. The story is about a girl who's parents are separated and she moves around very often. She is so witty and good- natured that she finds an adventure in every move she makes. The illistrations are simple and yet unique and I would recommend this book to any girl, around the age of 7-10.

It usually takes me ages to read a long book but I could not put this book down. It is one of very best books I have ever read!!!!!!!!

I read this book when I was younger, and I absolutley loved it. I'm 15 now, and I still have to say this is probably the best book I have ever read. I love all the titles by Jaqueline Wilson, but this one is my favourite. Probably because this story covers all emotion. It is at times sad, but others very funny. The main character is great, and Jaqueline Wilson captures the emotion perfectly. You can see the character clearly in your head. If this is an adult reading this review, considering buying it for a child, do! This is an excellent book, and even if your child does not like reading they will find it very hard to put this book down!

This is quite easy to follow for beginners but you def. need a good stats background to do so!

No one expects statistics to be easy reading, especially when it concerns complicated models such as structural equation modeling (SEM). Nevertheless, this book manages to do just that.

Schumacker and Lomax have successfully put together a guide that explains to beginners (like myself) in simple terms how the whole thing works. As with most books that treat complex models, some basic knowledge of statistics is preferable before you begin to read it. But if your statistics is rusty and you have only vague impressions of probability sketches in your memory, fear not! Schumacker and Lomax are kind to us poor souls, and begin by introducing some basics in chapter 1 to prod your memory: terminology, variable scales, how to treat missing data, outliers and normality. And in chapter 2, they discuss correlation and covariance.

Before talking about structural equation models, Schumacker and Lomax dedicate chapter 3 to a number of statistical methods on which SEM is built. This chapter gives a basic overview of regression, path analysis and factor analysis. The review of these methods helps you to understand SEM better later on. They also provide an excellent understanding of the methods, in case you have not used them before or it's been a while ...

The rest of the guide covers SEM: how to develop and measure a model (chapters 4 and 5), how the model parameters are estimated and how you can check for reliability and validity (chapter 6), and checking for goodness of fit of your model (chapter 7).

In chapter 8, you are shown some examples of computer outputs by two software packages that can conduct SEM, EQS5 and LISREL8-SIMPLIS.

Chapter 9 goes into more detail on models and diagrams (regression, analysis of covariance, path, measurement and structural models). For those that feel by this point that they've gained enough experience, advanced topics such as cross validation, simulation, bootstrap and jacknife methods as well as multiple same and interaction models are covered in chapter 10. And for the super-keen, the technical bits are covered in chapter 11 (health warning: you better be up to speed on matrix algebra).

The great thing about this book is that you most likely will be able to run models and interpret results by chapter 7, and you don't need to go into the nitty-gritty if you don't want to. On the other hand, the details are there if you need them. In essence, the authors start at the beginning, building up slowly until you are able to handle a basic model, before going into more complex issues.

One drawback, I have found, is that this book was published in 1996. That's nearly a decade ago, and (fortunately) computer power and statistical modeling has come a long way since then. The authors, for example, are convinced that WordPerfect is the software of choice for word processing and that at some point in the future it would be possible to copy and paste diagrams into a word processing program. We've come a long way since then. Today, many SEM packages exist that are much more user friendly than some of the older stodgy packages that require you to enter data in a very specific way and interpret results by going through reams of data output. As such, the authors (or publishers) probably ought to update it with a second edition.

Nevertheless, the strength of the book lies in its guidance and explanatory power. And even if you use a different package, you can skim through the data outputs they use, and focus on your model, how to construct it, and of what pitfalls to beware.

I highly recommend this for anyone starting on SEM - your modeling days will be much happier with this guide.

This book lays out the basics of SEM in an understandable way. Doesn't address EVERY issue, but then again it's very accessible and application-oriented, with language not too highly techinical (in relation to other SEM texts).

This is a very good book about SEM for the beginners and advanced. The book gives a clear and concise principles and examples about SEM. This book definitely enables the readers clearly understand the subject.

Schumacker and Lomax make for a good first course in SEM. Although they are somewhat less technical than Bollen (1989), they are a little more up-to-date, and very good reading for a beginning student of SEM. I found the sections on confirmatory factor analysis and identification very useful.

Better Thinking Better Results is not just a case study on how Wiremold implemented lean; it is a fascinating manual for leaders on lean transformation. Thorough and yet extremely readable, this really should be one of the top three "must reads" of lean (along with the Toyota Way Fieldbook and Lean Transformation; finance professionals should also read Practical Lean Accounting). This paperback second edition has an short update about developments since 2002. The book has the added benefit of extensive footnotes full of further references, useful tools (such as the 20 question employee survey) and lean trivia (when did the term "lean production" first appear in print ?). It is an excellent book and I can't recommend it highly enough.

I've always considered the first edition of this book to be the best real-world example of how to execute a lean enterprise transformation. The story of Wiremold is one of the unfortunately rare cases of a group of executives that understand that lean is not only about continuous improvement, but also respect for people. The operational and financial results that Art Byrne and his Wiremold team achieved are stunning and inspirational. This second edition also includes an update that describes what has happened at Wiremold after Legrand purchased the company. Unfortunately it's a sad story of reverting back to the old batch and queue methods and losing operational excellence. But Bob Emiliani is able to turn that negative outcome into a very thought-provoking lesson for all of us on how tenuous and fragile lean enterprise excellence can be.

If you are looking to get the best advices about how lean can transform a business and its profound implications within a company and its market, please read this book. You will understand how leadership and lean knowledge at the top is of paramount importance, how humor make lean transformation simpler, and how, besides the production floor, Lean affects product development, accounting and can make profitable an acquisition faster. I strongly suggest this book to everyone in an executive position.

This is the best overall book on lean management since Lean Thinking. An excellent methodical description and analysis of the Wiremold lean journey, demonstrating the tools and leadership required to execute a lean transformation. Like Lean Thinking, you have more "a-ha!" moments each additional time you read it. Very highly recommended.

Emiliani et al have written a very readable, easy to understand and thorough case study of the West Hartford, CT based (at that time) privately held, Wiremold Companies lean transformation.
In 1991, the formerly successfull but now declining wire management products producer began a lean transformation which changed Wiremold into an acquisition machine that by 1999 was generating ten times the operating profit and eleven times the net profit of pre lean operations. During this period, Wiremold boasted a 23.2% compound annual growth rate.
The real benefit of reading this book are the comments by the management team explaining in their own words the reasoning behind each step in the lean transformation process.
The book includes:
1. An analysis of strategic models leading to the selection of the lean management model.
2. A financial strengths and weaknesses analysis leading to the lean transformation plan.
3. The actual lean transformation plan.
4. A discussion of the whys and wherefors of the adopted lean organization strucure.
5. How to move from an MRP push production control system to a lean flow/pull system sensibly.
6. How to practically dispose of excess inventory during the lean transformation.
7. The best way to align the workforce with the requirements of the lean organization.
8. A detailed description of a growth through acquisition strategy financed internally with the lean management process.
9. A comparison of standard cost accounting with actual cost accounting.
All in all - an absolute must read for the lean manager. Not a book for the lean practitioner.
Relevance to the lean practitioner 4/10
Relevance to the lean manager 9/10
Clarity and organization 9/10
Original content 9/10

Sex and the City meets Dr. Phil
It may not be quick, easy, or pretty, but with a little help from the girls and your friends, you will:
* Throw your own (very short) pity party
* Resist the seductive lure of the "moment of weakness"
* Survive your first post-breakup solo appearance
* And tackle all of the issues in between
Bittergirl takes you from initiation into the bittergirl club, including warning signs, the shock of rejection, the seductive lure of "the moment of weakness," and relationship apathy, through your first solo appearance, and on to the bittersweet moment when our bittergirl realizes, "Wow, I'm over him."
If you ever need a little help to move on, this IS your bible bittergirls everywhere!

Just when I thought I'd never laugh again the bittergirls came to the rescue! The bittergirls made me laugh out loud, asked some great questions and made me think long and hard about this break-up. Best advice for me? Relationship Mythology - don't make him better than he was. He's a guy. Not a superhero. Thanks bittergirls.

honestly. i went from thinking i was a happy, balanced seemingly normal gal, to feeling like an angry, lost and slightly psychopathic wreck. this read gave me a hearty laugh and some damn good pointers to getting it togther. um... perspective! plus the voices of a few other ladies who have clearly been there. even if you're not broken up, you probably will be eventually at some point (sorry... just the way the cookie crumbles) or you'll need to advice another fellow foe. so read the book anyway! it's a fun AND funny ride that will make any state feel better.

Best thing I've read about how to NOT enter into a breakup. Funny and biting and, according to the women I know who've read it, oh so true.

What a great read - the best laugh in a long time. No matter what stage of life you're at you can relate to the hillarious and very real antics and moments caught and brought to life by the Bittergirls. A nice reminder that getting dumped is something that eventually each of us can learn from and more importantly laugh about.

The poem is an old favorite. The illustrations fit the time of the work. My 5- and 3- year olds enjoyed it as well.

Casey at the Bat tells about mighty Casey and his missing 2 strikes - like messing up in life.

This is by far the best rendition/publication of this poem that I've ever seen. The combination of the real-life looking people, but have their legs look like pencils, is quite humerous. Our particular favorite is the smoke coming from Casey's ears when he has struck out twice. The pictures in this book greatly enhance the story. Especially when Casey is standing there examining his fingernails on the first strike. Pretty cute and funny stuff.

Grab this book for all the young ball players you know - it really tells a nice tale of always doing your best, no matter how good you get at whatever you do. It made my little guy pretty sad to read this book/poem, but it definitely opens the door to emphasizing the importance of always doing your best. Highly recommend!

Thayer's classic ballad, `Casey at the Bat,' is greatly enhanced by Patricia Polacco's brilliantly achieved, big-hearted illustrations. Ms. Polacco captures emotion, action, and character through wittily exaggerated, slightly loopy pictures, and through lots of uncrowded background shenanigans. It's very cinematic: She effectively isolates action through extreme close-ups, and extends time through a montage of events occurring within a single picture. Like the auteur she is, she even adds some opening and closing story elements (while leaving the poem intact) that augment the poem's appeal to the younger reader.

This book is simply great fun to read aloud; you'll find yourself wanting to memorize its evocative imagery and epic aspirations:

"Ten thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt; Five thousand tongue applauded when he wiped them on his shirt. Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip, Defiance flashed in Casey's eye, a sneer curled Casey's lip."

You and your youngsters will love the humor and the drama in this a classic rendition of Thayer's beloved poem. Infants and toddlers will enjoy the bright pictures, and all readers will appreciate the perfect teaming of Thayer and Polacco.

I thought this was a wonderful book. I enjoyed Thayers use of poetry to exrpress the emotion in the story. The language used in the text is of very high quality and when read by an adult to a child, the child is able to thourghly understand. The illustrations play an important role with the text. They not only enrich the text, but they tell a story in itself. We can feel the emotion of the players and the crowd through Polacco's work. Overall I thought this was a wonderful book and reccomend it to a child of any age.

The fates of those who sacrificed during the 60s to make America a more perfect union were varied; Some were cut down by assassins. Others re-defined the struggle by securing historic victories at the ballot box. Most simply returned to anonymity, choosing to bear the scars of battle in silence.
While many of these heroes remain unsung, the legacies of the more prominent among them have been well-documented in mainstream media outlets dutifully marking civil rights anniversaries as a way of gauging how far we've come since then. In some cases, these stories have now been re-told so often they seem dated and stale.
But John Blake's compelling new book, "Children of the Movement" traces those human blood lines forward and breathes life into these intimate -- but largely unknown-- family portraits. His interviews with the sons and daughters of those who fought for America's soul are at once inspiring, depressing, universal and utterly unpredictable.
Blake's sparing but effective writing frames each vignette, putting them in context without overwhelming you with tons of historical detail that might have detracted from the narrative. His book is not only a pleasure to read, but also informative, captivating and timely.
Most of all, "Children of the Movement" reminds us that while the struggle for civil rights has changed much in a generation, it is still far from over.

This is really one of the most fascinating books to deal with the civil rights movement in recent years. The author does not rehash old ground, but instead strikes out to see what happened to the next generation born of the activists, heroes, martyrs--and even the repulsive racists--of the 1960s. The older generation that we all know in another context turn out to have been parents ranging in quality from wonderful to awful--and those who knew them 40 years ago may sometimes nod their heads knowingly and say "Told you so!" It adds a human element to our knowledge of that great movement that shaped modern America and inspired the world.
I should add that I took this book with me on two hurricane evacuations this year (you can see that I am from Florida, The Hurricane State), and I could not have wanted for a better literary companion. I recommend it highly.
It does not pretend to tell the whole story of the civil rights movement--but it does tell an aspect of it that no one before John Blake has put between hard covers. No library dealing with that era is complete without this book.

As a child born in the late 70's, I've often felt, in some sense, that the Movement was something in the "past tense"...something that was really (according to History Books) only associated with MLK and other "icons".

After reading Children of the Movement, I realize I was reading the gaps of my childhood history books. I was also hearing the story told from the children...the youth of the 50s/60s...the ones that essentially "gave up" their fathers and mothers for the cause.

Wow...what sacrifice...John Blake makes you look at MORE than the leaders we often hear about, but forces the reader to face how the movement affected children of the time and how the pain and loss weighs on all of us today.

The only way to ensure this perspective is HEARD is to recommend this book to an educator you know...a History professor, a Social Studies teacher...someone who can truly ensure that children today absorb this rich perspective...

This book should be required reading for anyone from the age of 10 to 100, but particularly for those members of the last several generations who may take certain freedoms and rights for granted. For anyone who may be only slightly familiar with the struggles, sacrifices, pains and scars of those who fought for civil rights in America, Blake's book is a vital history lesson, presented in fascinating narratives that captures the reader's attention from beginning to end.
By focusing on the children of the movement, Blake gives a fresh and often unpredictable view of the civil rights movement. The extensive use of photographs was an important compliment to each and every chapter.

John Blake's book, "Children of the Movement," provides a powerful, if painful, glimpse into the heart and soul of the Freedom Movement of the Sixties, as, an insightful portrait of its legacy, through the lens of some of its children--one of whom is my own daughter, Ericka Abram. Blake's tenderly-written report reveals many common themes in the perspectives and lives of these offspring, the most compelling for me being that Movement parents seemed to have been so committed to our cause and protecting our children from the social ills we fought, we forgot to tell them what and why we were fighting. The resulting common disconnection between parents and children is more broadly reflected in the confusion and despair of today, in dealing with unrelenting racism and poverty and oppression, that stand in the stead of the clarity of purpose and commitment of the past. Blake's book opens the door to a healthy discussion toward healing familial wounds and easing generational divisions so as to bring us together in a new effort to finally find freedom in America.

This book is superb; the author's thoughts flow through my mind during every auction, competitive or not. He discusses in detail, for example, when a holding of xxx in a suit opened by opponents is terrible, neutral, or mildly positive. The studious reader will understand why a hand which opened 1 Spade with xxxxxx in spades improves vastly more than a hand which opened 1 Spade with KQJTx when partner raises Spades vigorously (in Lawrence's words, "Beware the short stubby suit.") Attention to the principles carefully explained and extensively illustrated (sometimes the same hand is geven with half a dozen different auctions to explain evaluation niceties) by Lawrence will vastly reduce your phantom sacrifices, -800s when dummy hit with "all the wrong cards," and +1370s which delight your teammates, who were -630 defending 3NT at the other table when their opponents never looked for a minor-suit slam.

Someone once charitably described me as an "average player." So, take my review for what it is worth.

I believe that this is an excellent book for its target audience. But, most novices are probably not ready to make much use of it.

The introduction says that it is for "experienced bridge players." I would interpret that as meaning those who have completed a series of beginning classes (perhaps based on the Audrey Grant - ACBL - series) and have played at least a year.

The book is well written. (An enhanced discussion of what Lawrence terms "shell points" would have been helpful to me.)
It helped me to understand in a more profound way how both "shape" and competitive auctions affect hand evaluation.

I think that this is a very insightful book, which I will read and re-read several times.

This book is superb; the author's thoughts flow through my mind during every auction, competitive or not. He discusses in detail, for example, when a holding of xxx in a suit opened by opponents is terrible, neutral, or mildly positive. The studious reader will understand why a hand which opened 1 Spade with xxxxxx in spades improves vastly more than a hand which opened 1 Spade with KQJTx when partner raises Spades vigorously (in Lawrence's words, "Beware the short stubby suit.") Attention to the principles carefully explained and extensively illustrated (sometimes the same hand is given with half a dozen different auctions to explain evaluation niceties) by Lawrence will vastly reduce your phantom sacrifices, -800s when dummy hit with "all the wrong cards," and +1370s which delight your teammates, who were -630 defending 3NT at the other table when their opponents never looked for a minor-suit slam.

You hold AQTx in a suit. 6 HCP. The suit is overcalled on your right. Its likely RHO holds the K and J. Your hand is worth maybe 2 extra tricks (finesse the T and Q). Lets say LHO overcalls the suit instead. Oh, oh! Bad news, they probably have the K and J, your hand is probably good for 1 trick, though its still got stoppers for NT.

The books has many bidding sequences where your hand fluctuates in value.
A singleton in your partners first bid suit is not necessarily an asset as their suit is hard to set up and secondary honors are worthless.

Axx gives you control as to when to take the ace - 1st 2nd or 3rd round. COmpared to a stiff ace.

You need some practical experience to get something out of the book. Read some books, play for a year, THEN read this. This is beyond counting HCP

No ZAR points or silver bullets, just how to dynamically value your hand.

A must for any serious player. Good advice on every aspect of reevaluating your hand as the bidding proceeds by one of the most readable of all bridge authors.