Recreation Books

Diving: The World's Best SitesI gave this to my husband for a Christmas gift. He loved it. I don't dive but he loves it. He just got certified last year and this book gives him a lot of ideas on where to go for good diving. This book is only useful to someone who dives. Not for a vacation guide.

A really good book with great pictures. A source of inspiration if you're planning a diving trip. Obviously written by someone who really enjoys diving and knows what he's talking about. A lot of practical advice too. A must for divers!

i want to know what site for the best diving. because i just pass the diving license.

This is a good book for divers. It lists all the pertinent info about each site (i.e. water temp, sites to see, best time to visit, etc). I would definitely recommend buying this book. The pictures are awesome!

Read it cover to cover Christmas day-and over and over since

Crossing an ocean at 5 knots leaves one with ample time to ponder the surrounding world. (What's a knot? See pages 242 and 244). This book was born on such a cruise. Over the course their cruise the authors posed 211 questions "about ships, the sky, and the sea." Upon landfall, Pierre-Yves and Sally Bely sought answers.

Once in your hands, "Do Dolphins Ever Sleep?" is a challenge to put down. Thumb through the book, find an interesting question, and before you know it you've read four more questions. Each question stems naturally from the one before and leads naturally to the next, in much the same way our mind wanders from topic to topic when lost in contemplation.

The authors tackle easy (How are crews distributed on America's Cup boats?) and more challenging (How can a GPS be so precise?) questions alike, providing clear comprehensible answers. Some questions require technical answers. On these it would be easy to slip into highly technical and scientific responses, yet the Belys find ways to answer in terms understandable to most, if not everyone with a grounding in high school science.

Who should own "Do Dolphins Ever sleep?" For starters, every Yacht Club bar should have a copy alongside their Guiness Book of World Records. The rest of us should have a copy onboard to answer questions that arise while contemplating the surrounding world.

Oh, and do dolphins every sleep? Well you'll have to look on page 66.

Dave Lochner
NauticalReads

211 interesting questions are answered for you. You can dazzle your friends with a unique knowledge. The book is well written. There ARE some technical explanations that are above my threshold to know, but this book is fun to read and keep around.

Great read, informative on a variety of topics regarding the sea, weather, boating. Catchy title says it all!

Have you ever had one of those moments when you think to yourself, "Huh, I wonder how that works?" or "I wonder why that is so?" Then this is the book for you. In an accessible and engaging style the author provides concise answers to question such as , "Why is the sea salty?", "how do clouds and fog form?", and "How can the GPS be so precise?" Many people avoid books related to science or more generally technical matters for fear of not understanding them or of being bored to death. This book will quell those fears. While it's technical enough to keep a scientist or engineer interested, the authors deft hand at explaining each topic makes it accessible to the average person.

Very interesting book BUT very sophisticated. Not for the younger grandchildren as I had hoped. A lot of high level science in it.

Great book, I've read it numerous times and every time I enjoy a different aspect I overlooked in the past. From the author's obsession with Frank Sinatra, his driving and dining experiences, to his detailed and gastronomical adventures in baseball parks across America this is one of my favorite road trip books

This is one of the best baseball books ever written! Even non-baseball fans will enjoy reading about his epic road trip on a shoe-string budget. A must read for all true baseball fans!

I have owned the book "Dodger Dogs to Fenway Franks" virtually since its publication in 1989. As a baseball fan for many years, I had always myself fantasized of taking the trip Mr Wood did to every baseball stadium in America. Bob Wood's book is quite simply, one of the best books I have ever read in my life. It is a combination of baseball, travel, thrill seeking, and a trip of pleasure that every baseball fan can dream of. While reading the book, I could feel what it would have been like to sit with Mr Wood in his car on that trip. Despite weather, a robbery of his possessions in Northern California, a tight budget, and incredibly long drive, and an impending baseball strike that threatened to wipe out his dream of getting to every stadium, Bob Wood perservered and finished his journey. He achieved his goal through it all, and provided an exciting book that any baseball fan who has ever dreamed of taking the trip should be proud to read. I salute Mr Wood and his accomplishment. While is is now 18 years after his trip, it remains my favorite book of all time, fiction or non fiction. Bravo, Bob, you have created a masterpiece. A book that baseball fans and any readers should be proud of and salute you for.

I first read this book when it orginally came out. As a baseball fan It was awesome. Bob Wood lived every true baseball fans dream to see them all. I felt like I was riding along with Bob through out the whole book and his adventures.

I read this book in the late 80's and have re read it. It is the ultimate baseball fans road trip. I could just imagine myself riding along with Bob as went to see them all.

If you are looking to improve your golf, make this collection your first investment. It will be the best money that you have ever spent on your game. "Putting Out of Your Mind" and "Golf is Not a Game of Perfect" will make you a better player.

Great buy,

Excellent Cd's and have a vast knowledge regarding the Golf mental game. Great addition to anyone's collection

... and this set is a must-own for any golfer insteresting in improving ... until this stuff becomes natural and intuititve, it is very useful to re-visit these CD's from time to time to refresh the topics being presented ... to be honest, I wasn't impressed with The Golf Of Your Dreams (it seemed like a whole CD that only said "get a coach and get serious"), but the other three make this package worth every penny, and then some! Highly recommended! Cheers to all ...

I'd really had few expectations about something like a psychologist saying things about golf playing. But I found myself so nervous last amateur tournament I engaged, that I was about to try anything. What a surprise!! Not only my game has improved immediately, but, most important, I'm having much more fun. My government has charged me 60% import taxes but it worthed every penny.

Playing golf, getting lessons from the like of the great Dave Stockton(Mac O'grady system) and , attending the Masters for the last 10 years..none of that helped me like these Cds.
My attitude and direction for a better game helped me garner my 1st Senior National Championship 2007 (1st flight Costa Rica). Find a pro, learn the mechanical side, and most importantly, trust the Rotella Mental game!

This is a valuable book on tennis strategy based on court positioning for winning doubles.The recommendation of being in the same zone as your partner is not always practical and even the pros fail to do that.The price of this paperback book of some 140 pages with just black and white line sketches is exorbitant.Otherwise I would have given it five stars.

I love the layout of this book.
Each page is outlined and looks like an actual
tennis court! Helle keeps it simple. I learned
a lot more how I can recover quicker and grow
stronger long-term in tennis and in life. I really
appreciate watching doubles more too.

Betsy Andreini,
Naples,FL

This is a great book for the beginner looking for a specific strategy. This book could be applied right away. it totally makes sense. It is simple. I highly recommend it. It was a fun light read too.

This book is one of the best for doubles.
It shows players the concept which is the winning key in doubles.
Players who are good in singles but don't win doubles too much should definitely read it.

Championship tennis player Helle Sparre in collaboration with sports broadcaster Jim Schock teaches the club and tournament players just how to improve their "doubles" tennis game in a single afternoon in Dynamite Doubles: Playing Winning Tennis Today! Players should address four basic questions about doubles tennis: What should I have done?; Where should I have been?; How could I have gotten that?; and Whose was that?. Enhanced with line drawings throughout, Dynamite Doubles offers thoroughly "user friendly" instructional advice and insights recommended to the attention of all dedicated tennis players seeking to substantially improve their doubles play!

My seven-year old, now eight, has read this book over and over again! I like the descriptions of game rules that are worked into the text.

An Important Business Man runs into another Important Business Man on Wall Street:

I.B.M. 1: So, have you heard about the story/illustration merger?

I.B.M. 2: Yes, yes, but that's only affecting teens.

IBM 1: Well that's true, male teenagers have been reaping big rewards. But it's having trickle-down effects to younger children as well.

IBM 2: Ha! Look, the next thing you're going to be telling me is that girls will be seeing some benefits. Man, are you out of touch or what?

IBM 1: Well then let me show you (hands over a copy of "Ellie McDoodle: Have Pen Will Travel"). The evidence is right here. The merger has been very successful. It's about a girl who is forced to go camping with relatives she doesn't like. The book itself is the sketchbook that she brought on her trip. It's amazing, she documents everything that happened.

IBM 2: Alright, some kid's drawings. How is this a book?

IBM 1: The story is in there too. It's sort of like a cross between a sketchbook and a diary. Over the course of seven days, Ellie gets to know these people that she had judged as being weird. You ever meet someone you didn't think you'd get along with and end up becoming friends? Ellie goes through that in this book.

IBM 2: So there's some stuff in there about being open-minded and giving people a chance?

IBM 1: Yep. There's a lot of humor too. If you've even been camping you know there's a lot of situations to draw from.

IBM 2: What's camping? It that like when you have to go to your second choice restaurant?

IBM 1: Uh, no. I'm sure you've seen it: tents, forests, campfires. Although in "Have Pen, Will Travel" Ellie and her relatives do "fake camping", as she calls it - they stay in a cabin. Look, you're a friend, so I'm going to let you in on this. I just bought 1000 shares of Graphic Novels for Upper Elementary Girls, and I suggest you do the same.

IBM 2: Well that stock has been on the rise lately, especially when the "Babymouse" IPO went public. I may just take your advice.

IBM 1: (iPhone rings) Well, I have to take this call. Back to work!

IBM 2: (Putting book in briefcase) Is it okay if I borrow this book? I think my daughter might be interested.

IBM 1: (Cracking a sly grin) Not a problem.

This story is the book I would have loved to have read as a kid. It is on for 9-12 year olds, and makes the reader feel every part of what it is like to feel unheard, unseen, and unappreciated. A great debut for this new writer/illustrator. Can't wait for the next book!

As far as I can tell, there's no known solution to the problem of being an adult reviewer who reviews children's books from an adult perspective. I don't care how immature you are or how stuck you might be in your second childhood, since you will never be able to replicate the feeling of being a kid picking up a book and reading it for the very first time. It just ain't gonna happen. No, see, when YOU pick up a book you're carrying years worth of baggage on your shoulders. You're viewing the story through the filter of your own perspective and what you see will inevitably be tainted by your past. I'm telling you all of this up front because in order to convey just how much I adored "Ellie McDoodle: Have Pen, Will Travel," I need to make it clear that a significant percentage of that love is rooted in my own experiences as a kid. Author Ruth McNally Barshaw has successfully nailed what it feels like to be a child going on a summer vacation in Michigan. I was a Michigan child. I "camped" in cabins and experienced many of the same things as the heroine of this book. But even if I'd grown up in Bemidji, Minnesota or Walla Walla, Washington, I'm almost certain that I would still have adored this book as a kid. It's another example of the "illustrated novel" brought to brilliant, vibrant life.

How would you go about defining the word "torture"? If you were Ellie McDougal (McDoodle, to those in the know) you might define it as, "a family vacation with your monkey-boy little brother, annoying cousins, and boring aunt and uncle in the woods of Higgins Lake." Which, of course, is exactly what Ellie has been subjected to. Stuck with intolerable relatives, she decides to make the most of her ordeal by recording everything in her sketchbook (the one you, the reader, are reading) and getting some time away from the craziness. Of course, a series of incidents shows Ellie that maybe her extended family isn't the crew of monsters she thought they were. Maybe, in fact, they can all be a lot of fun and the summer isn't totally ruined after all. Maybe.

So what is this book exactly? I mean, on the outset it looks like a sketchbook with sentences in between the pictures. Obviously there are a lot more written sections than drawn sections, but the pictures are pretty steady throughout. So how do you categorize this book? It's not a graphic novel, since the pictures are sporadic and pop up only at random intervals. It's not a comic book either, nor is it a straight written novel. At this point in time, the only option left is the phrase, "illustrated novel". It's not perfect, but it's the only thing I've found to describe Barshaw's style. Plus it's a style, moreover, that I think is going to inspire a whole generation of kids. I can picture young 'uns bugging their parents to buy them sketchbooks and blank pages, just so that they can create highly illustrated personal diaries like Ellie/Ruth. Heck, while reading this I myself wished I knew how to draw, just so that I could jazz up my own life with pictures galore. And I know I can't be alone.

And man, did I like it. First of all, there were the obvious Michigan connections that drew me in. Using your hand to describe where you live in the state (complete with an image of a bunny jumping a mitten, in terms of the Upper and Lower Peninsulas). A kid from Kalamazoo (woo-hoo, hometown!). Visiting with other kids and finding that you don't like their cereals. Man, did that ring some bells! Ms. Barshaw has an almost eerie ability to either remember or channel instances from a kid's daily life that are all but forgotten by adults. Plus she just hits characters dead on. The "villains" at the beginning successfully become real three-dimensional people by the story's end. The sketches are great fun, and then there are some great ideas for games. Ms. Barshaw knows that you have to break up your narrative sometimes with an interesting little sidenote here and there. In this case, the sidenotes are games complete with instructions for Human Pretzel, Spoons (something I'd like to try out), Sardines, and others.

The temptation here is to call this book something trite like, "Diary of a Wimpy Kid but for girls!" or some such nonsense. Don't get me wrong. I loved "Diary of a Wimpy Kid too, but I am of the firm belief that, like this book, it is a title that goes beyond gender. Everyone can relate to Ellie. I mean, seriously, who likes to be peed on in the middle of the night? Nobody. But any book with a girl on the cover can be a hard sell to boys. Here's what I'm suggesting, then. When a kid comes to you asking for a copy of "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" and you're all out of copies, cough surreptitiously into your hand and say, "Sorry, kid. All out. We got something just as good in the back, y'know. As funny as `Wimpy Kid' and there's a lot more pranks and games and wars between kids but ...," shake your head, "I dunno. You might not get it. I mean, it's hilarious, and gross, and it has all these great drawings and sketches, but maybe you're just too young..." After that, reel `em in, give them the book, and watch it fly off your shelves in no time.

Part Harriet the Spy, and part Amelia's Notebook, "Ellie McDoodle" is just one of those books you can't help but enjoy. It flies low on the radar, so I suggest discovering it for yourself. There's never been a better time to indulge in a book that can offer you cool pictures, great characters, a fun story, and a little redemption on the side. A small pure gem.

It's camping time for Ellie McDougal but she's not happy about it. Ellie's parents have to go out of town, so she and her baby brother, Ben-Ben, will be going with their Aunt Ug, Uncle Ewing and cousins Erick, Deanna, and Tiffie. All of the camping supplies are packed and ready to go, including Ellie's sketchbook. Will the trip be as bad as Ellie is afraid it will be?

Through the pages of Ellie's sketchbook, she tells the story of her camping trip. She meets a 13-year-old boy by the name of Scott. He is one interesting character, as he speaks French, Japanese, and English. He wants to learn to draw, which is something that Ellie can help him with. He has to leave but never tells Ellie that he is leaving Campsite 137. She is saddened by her friend leaving. Her opinions of her relatives change throughout the book. In the beginning, she thinks of Erick as being a dinosaur but that changes as it goes along. Erick also collects frogs and thinks he has found the best frog, but holds him too tight -- Oh, no!

The illustrations are very cute and add meaning to the story. The characters you meet in this book are very unusual. The storyline keeps young readers interested. This is a must read for children ages 9-12 who would love to be entertained with a good story and a very easy read. With fewer words and many pictures on each page than most books for this age group, this is a delight. Pack up your bags and get ready for a camping adventure with Ellie along -- it's bound to be a great time! I hope that there are more exciting adventures of ELLIE MCDOODLE books in the future.

Reviewed by: Bri P.

If we could only have more time to get to know people like Ernie Harwell, there would be a much greater appreciation for life in this world. Despite all of the many changes in his life, the opportunity to be around baseball for so many years, get paid to do it and enjoy it thoroughly...he has remained humble and human.

He is quick to tell you that he is "just a turtle on fence post", noting that we all know that turtle didn't get there by himself. He credits so many people for the opportunities that he has experienced...yet he has spent so many years positively influencing our lives, about life as seen through the many stories he tells via baseball.

Although I have only lived in the Detroit metro area for two years which limits my exposure to hearing Harwell call games all my life, I could immediately feel the respect and warmth of his broadcasts. Seeing him at several baseball and community events, I am always impressed with the attention that the sports stars give him when they are around him. Not only professional baseball players but professionals from other sports seem to delight in being around him and hearing the stories he tells with his charming southern drawl.

Whether you have the opportunity to hear him or you value hearing baseball stories that have something interesting to learn from in each story, you will enjoy this book.

If you are a person that enjoys learning from people that have shared their life with others and brought a positive influence to the world, you will enjoy this biography of a hall of famer.

Thanks Ernie!

If we could only have more time to get to know people like Ernie Harwell, there would be a much greater appreciation for life in this world. Despite all of the many changes in his life, the opportunity to be around baseball for so many years, get paid to do it and enjoy it thoroughly...he has remained humble and human.

He is quick to tell you that he is "just a turtle on fence post", noting that we all know that turtle didn't get there by himself. He credits so many people for the opportunities that he has experienced...yet he has spent so many years positively influencing our lives, about life as seen through the many stories he tells via baseball.

Although I have only lived in the Detroit metro area for two years which limits my exposure to hearing Harwell call games all my life, I could immediately feel the respect and warmth of his broadcasts. Seeing him at several baseball and community events, I am always impressed with the attention that the sports stars give him when they are around him. Not only professional baseball players but professionals from other sports seem to delight in being around him and hearing the stories he tells with his charming southern drawl.

Whether you have the opportunity to hear him or you value hearing baseball stories that have something interesting to learn from in each story, you will enjoy this book.

If you are a person that enjoys learning from people that have shared their life with others and brought a positive influence to the world, you will enjoy this biography of a hall of famer.

Thanks Ernie!

Ernie Harwell has the ability to articulate his thoughts and possesses a vast reservoir of anecdotes and observations based on his lengthy career. The combination made this into one of the more enjoyable baseball books I've read in recent years.

Ernie Harwell popped up in a lot of unexpected places in the year 2001. On October 3rd, he broadcast the official recreation of the 1951 Miracle at Coogan's Bluff game for Major League Baseball's official website; later on, he broadcast the final game of a World Series for an all-time-greats fantasy league also run by MLB. Not bad, for a man who was fired by his longtime Detroit Tigers employees over a decade ago for being "too old".

"My 60 Years in Baseball" has a very unusual title for an autobiography. That's because it's not an autobiography -- it's a standard bio, written by columnist Tom Keegan. Presumably this was done with Ernie Harwell's full cooperation, and reprints of several Harwell newspaper columns highlight the book. I'm just a little confused by the use of the word "My".

I know Tom Keegan's columns from the New York Post, and "My 60 Years" reads very much like a 275-page human interest story. It's a puff piece, but in the best way possible. Keegan tracks down interviews with athletes, writers and friends who have known Harwell at various points along his 60-plus-year career, and the stories related are mostly heart-warming. The best chapter in the book is an interview with Denny McLain, one-time Tiger pitching ace, from his cell in federal prison. Even repeat convicts love the voice of Ernie Harwell.

Don't read "Ernie Harwell" because it's the best sports bio of all time, but read it to become more familiar with one of the last of the original (and now "old school") announcers. I listened to Ernie for the brief time I lived in the Detroit metro area, and I'm glad I had the chance. It's a specific style of broadcast, heavy on imagery and game detail, that's no longer in vogue and will be dearly missed when the last of its practictioners hangs up their microphones. Read the stories Keegan finds, and read again the reprinted Harwell columns, which are a delight of word choice, firm opinion, and humor.

As a young boy growing up in a Detroit suburb, I often fell asleep at night with a transistor radio and an earphone, listening to Ernie Harwell and George Kell broadcasting Tigers' games. I've been a fan since. This book brought back a lot of those memories. It was well written and a fitting tribute to a man who has meant so much to the game. Well done.

I gave this book to my 12 year old son after reading some of the reviews. I gave it to him as one of his many Christmas gifts but never realized that I had also given myself a great treat. He & I shared reading the book and both of us truly enjoyed it. It's about a young man who dreamed and set a goal of playing football for Notre Dame. It follows his ups & downs and the strength and intestinal fortitude it took to hang in there as a non-scholarship "walk on". My son also plays football (as well as other sports) and like many young kids his age dream of playing in college and the "big leagues" when they get older. This story doesn't "sugar coat" what it takes and portrays the emotional turmoil it took for this young man to hang in there. While I won't ruin the ending for you, as a dad of a young aspoiring athlete I can confidently recommend this book for both young & old.

I picked this book up on Amazon because a friend of mine recommended it to me. I was expecting a "Rudy," type story. There were parallels to be sure, but this book was so much more than that. It is an autobiography of the ups and downs in a four year premier Division I program. The book is a quick read and I didn't want it to end. I found myself cheering for Timmy O'Neill that his hard work would finally pay off. And by the end of the book, you are right there with him as he starts to realize some of the fruits of his labor. Overall, a very enjoyable and well written book. Would recommend very highly, especially to anyone who has ever been told that they couldn't do something.

This book is the Caddilac of Notre Dame walk-on books. From page one to the end, the book is filled with excitement, laughter, and tears of joy. Not only do I recommend this book to children of all ages, I encourage this to middle-aged people as well that are looking to get over the 'hump'. I read this book 6 times and I'm still determined to make the team as a walk-on. I will write Timmy O'neill's name in for the next presidential election.

I bought and read this book after I found this under a "football search" on Amazon. I was looking for a good book for my nephew. Having been a former college running back myself at 5'9" 195lbs, I continually broke stereotypes as Timmy has done in this book. How many times do you hear a sport commentator say something like, "even though he's 5 foot something, he an incredibly gifted runner" It never made sense, because what better height to be as a running back--low to the ground--than 5 foot something!..I never found any advantage to being a taller running back unless you're blowing open holes with your blocking...look at the best, Barry Sanders, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith, etc. Every Play Every Day is about breaking perceptions and beleiving in yourself, and I thoroughly enjoyed it and passed it along to my nephew who loved it as well!

Tim is one of the most genuine people you will ever meet. As a freshman I was fortunate enough to live across from Tim and his roommate, Murph. They were the older brothers I never had. The book is a testament to hard work and determination. I read the book over the Thanksgiving holiday, I recommend the book to all sports fans. Tim is the real deal, I hope someone puts his ND and high school highlight tapes up on youTube.

The author is a biologist with experience in the area. He is also an entertaining writer. Anyone exploring the Northern Yellowstone / Beartooth area for fishing should get this book. It will lead you to some of the best places.

It is a wonderful area to explore and this book is the best guide.

Good guide to all the lakes in the Beartooth Mountains. Ever wonder if all those lakes have fish in them. This book tells you. Tells you depths and last time they were stocked and other useful information.

Pat Marcuson knows the beartooths. If you are planning a trip into the Absaroka/Beartooth wilderness area you need two things a good map and this book. After a few trips into the Montana wilderness especially the Beartooths you will quickly find out you need to know what your up against and what going to be there when you get there. Pat's book will give you the best fishing advice because he's been there and fished the lakes for a decade working for Montana's Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. So again if you're a fisherman looking for trout in the Beartooths you have to get this book.

This is the best fishing guide that I have ever read. When I first purchased the book, I had little experience or success with fishing for trout in mountain lakes. I had taken an earlier backpacking trip to the Beartooth Mountains, but only caught 4-5 fish in 9 days. Then I purchased and studied this book in detail and during my next two 9-day backpacking trips to the Beartooth Mountains, I caught fish for dinner almost every night. Where once I had to settle for catching small brook trout, I now could plan trip routes to catch big fat Cutthroat trout for dinner. It was a true joy to read the detailed descriptions of each mountain lake and to understand Pat's reasoning behind stocking each lake with specific trout species. Not only that, but Pat gives you details on what years are the best to fish each lake based on their individual stocking schedules. Finally, Pat gives invaluable fishing tips such as how to locate and catch fish in these remote mountain lakes. I thank Pat for what has become a lifelong joy of trout fishing throughout the west.

The author managed the fisheries and fish stocking program in the Beartooths for many years, and provides enormous detail in this book about every lake that has fish. There have been some changes since he wrote the first edition, and not all of them are noted in this latest edition (1997) but, overall, the info is great. I don't know of a similarly complete and authoritative fishing guide to any other wilderness area. One small gripe: this book talks solely about the lakes of the Beartooths without mentioning that some of the best fishing is in the feeder and outlet streams, some of them a long way from the nearest lakes.

I did not enjoy the first 62 pages of spiritual mumbo jumbo. After that there are 274 pages of useful instruction. I bought this book because we are doing some Eishinryu in the dojo. It makes a great reference for Eishinryu. I demote it 1 star for all that Zen / Jesus freakish soul instruction in the beginning. It is more likely than not if you are studying Japanese swordsmanship then you have studied other martial arts previously. People usually dont just jump up and say "Hey I think I will study a martial art that has no known street fight application." The majority of the students in my dojo either previously or currently study other martial arts. So its pretty safe to assume that anyone buying this book has had some previous spiritual instruction. Even if they have been going to MC.Dojo's then probably they found that instruction elsewhere. As training the body kinda goes along with training the mind as well. So that spiritual garbage seems a waste of paper.

This second edition has even more detail and photographs than the first edition. While a book is never a substitute for in-person training, it makes an excellent reference and study guide for the Iai student.

Definitely a must-buy, I highly recommend this book.

There's a lot of books about sword, believe me, I have plenty, and I learn nothing intresting from a lot of them. But if you are looking for something else than tecnique, this is the book for you. Also, if you are a serious student of iaido, kenjutsu or kendo, or even karate or aikido, this book is for you too.
When you are really inlove with sword arts, when you also love japanese culture, when you really feel, like your sensei teach, that this is something to study for your entire life, because there's things to learn everyday and also age is not enough to be a sensei (your sensei has also a sensei...) you begin to understand that this arts develop in people the sense of responsability, patience, compasion, respect, perseverance, and this you can achieve it trough the tecnique you learn in class, the real budo. The techique is only the way to reach other things. If you know this things I'm talking here, you need to know Shimabukuro sensei is a real sensei, who teaches this things, with Carl Long sensei, his senior student and chief of East Coast - Latin America, they are responsible for spread this invaluable knowledge to all of us.
Note: Shimabukuro sensei is now 8º Dan, and holds the Hanshi title, the highest rank.
Patrizia Gallo, JKI iaijutsu 2º Dan, San José, Costa Rica.

While the first edition broke new ground outlining many of the techniques and the philisophy of Eishin Ryu swordsmanship, the second edition raises the bar significantly.

There are more photos that make understanding and referencing the waza easier but even Shimabukuro Sensei would tell you that you need a qualified teacher to guide you. I've trained with Shimabukuro Sensei and there are myriads of layered technique, bunkai,and meaning behind what he does but this book gives you a great head start.

This is the best Iaido book available in English - highly improved from the first edition. pictures are much more explicit and a much better help to understand the wazas. Of course one won't be able to learn from any book, for all details can't be written, but this one is absolutely excellent and extremely detailed; an excellentreminder of what has been studied in class with one's instructor.