Rating: 
Summary: Great For Students With No Teachers
Review: This book follows in the style of Jigoro Kano's work on Judo. It has a history of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu which, though rather short, is as concise and as informative as I have seen. The majority of the book consists of techniques which progress through the different belt levels. There are more than a hundred techniques, which vary from basic self defense moves, tournament Jiu Jitsu techniques, and street fighting manuevers. Although a book is no replacement for a proper instructor, for those without access to one this book is outstanding.
Rating:
Summary: Eureka! I found the first high quality BJJ book.
Review: I've started looking for a book in Brazilian jiu-jitsu after the first Ultimate Fighting Championship but I ended up buying low-quality books so I lost interest in this superb martial art and even stop reading Black Belt magazines.
This is the first BJJ book that I can be proud to keep. In fact, I'll buy another one as a backup copy. My spirits are high again and I hope that they can produce more high quality BJJ books.
Rating: 
Summary: A good tool for review.
Review: The pros: The book has a nice layout, separating techniques by belt level. The photographs are sufficiently clear and close-up, and the authors do a good job of drawing the reader's attention to important details of each technique. The techniques are sufficiently varied that the reader is presented with 2 or 3 options for each position rather than dozens of minor variations for a couple of scenarios. The cons: Even though the book lists approximately 100 techniques, a few merely present very simple training drills or even the proper way to tie a belt. The book could have benefited from a more thorough edit: a few techniques are presented assuming that the reader is already familiar with another technique that isn't outlined until later in the book. Bottom line: While people interested in mixed martial arts will likely be better of with The Fighter's Notebook, this title is a good review tool for students preparing for belt advancement in the Gracie system. At Amazon's reduced price, it's a good buy.
Rating:
Summary: Best of the Best
Review: I have been involved in the martial arts for most of my life and I teach both Judo(black belt) and Brazillian Jiu Jitsu(blue belt) and this is the best book I have every seen on Brazillian Jiu Jitsu. In fact this is one of the best martial arts books I have ever read, period! The quality is top notch, color pictures, great background information, theory, excellent explanations of over a hundred techniques, and authored by two members of the Gracie family. Since the Gracies created Brazillain Jiu Jitsu you can't get a better source. I am at a satellite school under Rickson Gracie and I do not always have a black belt to ask questions so this book is an excellent reference. I recommend this book to anyone interested in Brazillian Jiu Jitsu or grappling. If you are a Brazillian Jiu Jitsu practitioner then this book is a Must! Usually I do not write reviews but this book is so good I thought I should. The only drawback to this book would be if you just want to learn grappling without a kimono(uniform). All the moves are based on using the Kimono. Although there are explanations on what you would do to modify some of the techniques to be used without the uniform. I would still recommend this book even to those who just care about kimono-less grappling(no uniform). Most of the moves can still be used without the uniform you just have to know how to apply them. Brazillian Jiu Jitsu has the changed the face of the martial arts. This book will teach you what makes this art so effective.
Rating:
Summary: A great introduction to BJJ and grappling combat
Review: First, I'll address production values. In this regard, this book is first rate. While it is a paperback, it is printed on high quality, heavy, glossy paper. The pictures are crystal clear, and the authors have made considerable effort to show close-ups and comment many of the more subtle facets of the techniques. If you have any background in grappling, you won't have any problem understanding the techniques. The margins are small for taking notes, but this is a nice bok; I know I don't want to write in mine! The section on the theory and history of BJJ is interesting reading as well, and it is refreshing to see BJJ acknowledge that it has a common history with Judo, even if it re-names identical techniques found in Judo and calls them BJJ techniques. I don't have a problem with this, however, as they show some interesting variations and uses on the classical Judo. There are a few reasons I didn't give this book 5 stars. First, while an effort is made to show some of the fine points of the techniques, many are left out. Oh well, you can't expect to learn everything from a book anyway. I would also have liked to have seen more counters to the techniques presented. Secondly, and the biggest reason for only 4 stars, is the books organization. It is organized into techniques based on what BJJ belt level they belong to, (where are the "white belt" techniques? how to tie the belt and break-falls are catagorized as "blue belt" level techniques) I liked the the fact that they showed responses to common street attacks, but why was the defense to the rear choke (being puled backwards) put in the purple belt techniques? I know for a fact that the defenses to common attacks are taught at the white belt level. Could be confusing to beginners who might be tempted to take catagories in the book as gospel. Also, Arm-locks, chokes, guard techniques, and self-defense to common attacks are all mixed together instead of being organized into their own sections. To add to this, there is no index in the back of the book to assist in rapidly finding that technique you are trying to remember. The content is good; it just needs a bit of a re-org in my opinion (and an index!!!). My final reason for not giving 5 stars is that I don't believe that this is a "must-have" book for all martial artists or even for all BJJ players. Intermediate level or above Judoka and BJJers likely have seen all of this material before. BJJers will like it for the fact that is one of the nicest books on the art out there. Martial artists who are not interested in grappling won't care for it all; there are few striking techniques. Also, it really is only an introduction; it does an excellent job of giving the flavor and basics of the style, but don't think this is anywhere near the whole art! (A book for the complete art would take volumes and probably never be finished, however) I recommend this book; it is the best documentation (off of video) of BJJ yet to be seen, and belongs on the shelves of BJJers and Judoka who enjoy collecting and reading books. It is also an excellent starting point for a new or novice BJJ practitioner, and good insight for non-BJJ grapplers into the basics of BJJ strategy. I would not recommend it to those experienced students looking to hone their game by adding new techniques; there are lots of great videos out there for that. For beginners, I would also recommend "Best Judo"; the section on grappling is excellent. Cheers!
Rating:
Summary: Best BJJ Book I have Seen Yet
Review: This is the Best BJJ Book I have seen yet. Renzo and Royler do a good job showing the techniques throughout the book, The Pictures are in Full Color and Clear, and there are 110 Different Techniques shown. In the Beginning the book goes into the Theory and History behind Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, it was well researched and well written. Then a Short Section explains the belt-ranking system of BJJ. Then the Best part of the Book, The Techniques, The Techniques are divided into belt-levels, Blue, Purple, Brown and Black. Each Technique is explained well and shown in detail. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in BJJ.
Rating:
Summary: The Bible of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
Review: This book is a MUST HAVE for any BJJ practitioner. It's filled with hundreds of color photos and crystal-clear descriptions of techniques. These, in and of themselves, make the book a necessity for students of BJJ. There are also, however, eye-opening sections on theory that clarify, among other things, BJJ's built-in strategy for achieving increasingly advantageous position to the detriment of the opponent. Probably the best-written martial arts book on the market today (certainly, the best one that I've read). If you're a student of BJJ or are otherwise interested in achieving a greater understanding of the art that revolutionized MMA competitions, buy it. You'll be happy you did.
Rating:
Summary: awesome
Review: This book is great. Great detailed pictures. Easy to understand
Rating:
Summary: The best book for ANY grappler
Review: Alot of people involved in the grappling arts have taken sides as to which discipline is the "best". Some like traditional (Japanese) jujitsu, others Brazilian JJ, others judo, etc. After a side is chosen, some tend to poo-poo to the other disciplines. Forget your homage to your art and buy this book if you want to supplement your grappling training.
Here's what sets this book apart from the other grappling books (and that includes the other Gracie books). Most other books have small, b&w photos, some are even hand-drawn. These will do you little, if any, good because you'll never be 100% certain that you really understand the sequence involved in any of the moves. The photos in this book however, are large and in vivid color. Illustrations are so important in this type of book. There are over 100 moves that are well illustrated in this book.
The next big difference is that most books (again, some of the other Gracie books are guilty of this too) have captions that simply describe for you what you should do. It's usually a lengthy point a-to-point b description. That is too hard to follow by itself. This book also provides logical reasoning behind almost every sequence so that you understand (instead of just memorize) why you're moving a certain way.
Don't let the happy-looking cover fool you into thinking this book is light, or cheesy, or for kids, beginners, etc. The material in the book is just as devastating as any other, except that you're far more likely to retain what you read from this book.
I paid 50% more for this book because I bought it off the shelf but it's still worth every penny to me. I compared it to Mastering Jujitsu, as well as two or 3 other Gracie jujitsu books and this one takes the cake. There is another Gracie book that has almost the exact same title so MAKE SURE you get the one with the smiles on the cover (regardless of how you might be inclined to think the book is watered down).
The next best thing would be an excellent instructional video, but good luck finding that.
Rating:
Summary: simply great
Review: title says it all.. do not feel like typing.. feel like grappling :)
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