Rating: 
Summary: Rigan Machado
Review: The book is a bit small, (we always seem to want more of a good thing). It is, however, an outstanding addition to any martial arts library. There are plenty of techniques and entries for most people to be satisfied with.While it is primarily a technique reference, Rigan does a good job of distinguishing the gi from the no gi game and gives strategies for both. He describes the many benefits of Jiu Jitsu for everyone from professional fighters to folks, like me, who just want to have fun, stay in shape, and enjoy life. Most of all, the Machados are great instructors whose efforts contribute greatly to the continuing development and popularity of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. My advice is to buy the book and get training!...
Rating:
Summary: A great BJJ book from a great teacher
Review: The Machados are known for being great guys as well as wonderful teachers. This book at least shows the great teaching aspect. Although, I was a little disappointed with it's size ... and the fact that the photos are black and white, the queality of the material inside is great. It covers each major section of submissions in seperate sections and builds upon them. VERY well organized and the pictures and instructions are very clear. I have waited for this one for a long time and I am glad it is here. A great follow up to the Gracie's BJJ book (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Theory and Technique), just don't expect the same quality of the actual book. Just my opinion.
Rating: 
Summary: Warning: Not for beginners!
Review: This book assumes that you already know the basic mechanics of BJJ and therefore, it jumps right into the techniques. This books could be used more as a reference to someone who has BEEN learning BJJ for sometime. This book is definitely not for the beginner. The explainations are very vague. A beginner would most likely execute the techniques improperly if not supplementing this book with an actual BJJ course. I would not recommend this for a beginner nor an advanced student.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for a supplement
Review: This book is good for a supplement to what you already know. It is a great reference for lots of submissions. It also has a great section on no gi training. The one thing I think this book suprisingly lacks is a section on sweeps. I think the book would have been much more complete with such a section. I think this book is very good to own and can increase your skill with study. However, you still need to have a base knowledge of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to make up for the lack of explanation to the pictures. If you are looking for another good book on Brazilian Jiu Jitsu I would have to recommend Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Theory and technique. It was put together on a much higher budget and the amount of things shown in the book is definately influenced by this. Once again though Rigan's book is a good selection to add to your library.
Rating:
Summary: very impressive
Review: This book was with out a doubt one of the best ive looked at on BJJ! This book contains chapters on ,sport jujitsu moves, vale tudo moves(anything goes), and even a breif family history(keep in mind he is related to the gracies)! i highly recamend it as although it IS A SHORT BOOK, it packs some good knowledge on these pages.if you are more advanced then this may(keyword being MAY) not be the book for you. goes into very precise detail about the "keylock" from many diff. angles. also more on leglocks, chokes,etc. Rigan Machado is a VERY skilled BJJ instructor! the machado's have a very good name for themselves and this was a good reason why. highly reccomended !!!
Rating: 
Summary: Good supplement to regular training
Review: This is a good book to pick up if you've got some grappling training and want some ideas for new submissions to try or want a visual reference to help refresh your memory on occasion. I enjoy reading this book right before I leave for Jiu-Jitsu class because I will usually pick out a move to practice and try out when I arrive at class. However, I cannot imagine how someone could learn these moves from the pictures and relativly short captions to go with the pictures. I think beginners should pass on this book as it'll have them attempting things like heel hooks when they should be working on passing the guard.
Rating:
Summary: No gi and leglock information worth the price alone.
Review: This is a great book to add to your collection but it does not stand on its own. The complete emphasis of this book is on submissions from various positions. There is a tremendous amount on leg and foot locks that you won't find anywhere else. The "no gi" section is also valuable and unique. This book is not meant for a BJJ beginner since it does not cover positions, sweeps, escapes, or anything else except submissions. There is also not a lot of detail in the photography or the written explanation of the moves and a prior knowledge of BJJ would be required to fully understand everything. Despite the shortcomings, this is a very good and inexpensive book that will definitely add to your knowledge of submissions with and without a gi.
Rating: 
Summary: problems, problems, problems
Review: This is by no means a book for the beginner. There are far too many small details Rigan chooses not to discuss. Why he does not discuss them is beyond me, but he sure skips right over them. There is little that is mentioned about weight, space, or proper technique. His arm bar form is not what I would expect from someone of his caliber. In many photos his legs aren't squeezing the arm tightly, his heels aren't close to his buttocks and the leg that crosses the chest is just hanging out over the top (this is a reference to one of his standard armbar from knee on the stomach, or mount or side control). those are all important details. Why doesn't he address them? Perhaps it was space considerations, I don't know. What I do know that if you are not an advanced player, don't think you will be pulling anything off in this book
That being said, the basic techniques are great, and worth the cost of the book. For the more advanced practitioner there is a wealth of good stuff in this book.
Good training to you!
Rating:
Summary: Poor Intructional
Review: This is monkey do, monkey see intructional with very few key points and theory. This book is more like a collection of photographs you see in martial arts magazine, do this, then that and so on-nothing more. Very lazily put together book.
Rating:
Summary: Poor Intructional
Review: This, like the other Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) books which have come onto the mass market in the last year, are loooong overdue (by about 10 years!). Rigan (Hee-gan) Machado introduces the theory of BJJ, his family's history (the Machado brothers studied under Carlos Gracie and are cousins to the Gracies), and then goes right into applied ground techniques: Arm locks (chapter 2), followed by Leg Locks (chapter 3), Chokes (Chapter 4), and grappling without a gi (Chapter 5). The best place to learn grappling is from a teacher, but for those without an extensive range of ground techniques who haven't the time or money to find a teacher, or anyone who just wants to see the differences down on paper this volume focuses almost entirely on the ground applications of techniques which many arts lack. Those who already have backgrounds in judo or wrestling will enjoy the BJJ variations of techniques with which you will, for the most part, probably be familiar with, in theory if not practice. Another excellent volume to consider is "Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Theory and Practice" by Renzo and Royler Gracie.
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