This book actually caught me of guard. I was not expecting something this good because the author, Gene Simco is not a well known fighter or instructor. This book once again smashes the theory that you need famous talent to make a great martial art product. This is the first modern jiu-jitsu book to hit the market.
What really sets this book apart from any other grappling book on the market is the fact that it really represents where mixed martial arts is today. The book is divided into three categories. Sport Jiu-Jitsu, Submission Grappling and Vale-Tudo. No other book has attempted to do this and all three are represented well. The book even tells you the theory behind each style of grappling and what the differences are before each chapter. The techniques are current and are much more modern than any other Jiu-jitsu grappling book on the market. This single point makes this book a must have and gets it a 5 Star rating.
This separation of grappling styles is important. There are too many books and especially videos that jumble up Vale Tudo with Sport Jiu-jitsu and then throw in random submission grappling moves. Even the highly rated Fighters Notebook does this. The Fighter's notebook was published back in 1998 (and was created over the years before that). What type of grappling is represented in this book. I just took a close look and could not really tell. You have mainly submission grappling but then you have strikes and gi chokes tossed in. Hhhmmm. The Fighter's Notebook was a product of its era. It needs to be completely redone and undated. That's what the three ring binder was supposed to allow. Do not get me wrong, the Fighter's Notebook is still a great resource. However, it just has not aged well. Grappling has moved on. Even to this day, I am amazed that this halfass mixing of sport, NHB, self defense, and submission grappling moves together continues. The most glaring recent example of this is Renzo and Royler Gracie's new book that put Kukuk/Renzo videos into book form!! This is the prettiest book I have seen in awhile. However, it is the grappling equivalent of a civil war reenactment. Kukuk/Renzo 1 was a great tape set in the early Jurassic period, but does not have much credibility today (The headlock tape is the only one I would still recommend getting). I will review Renzo/Royler book in more detail in the future. But, I digress.
Simco does not fall into this trap. He teaches real No Holds Barred fighting techniques. Real Sport Jiu-jitsu and Abu Dhabi style submission grappling. The sport jiu-jitsu techniques also are current and solid. All of the moves seem correct. Simco does a decent job of giving the reader a lot of moves from each method of grappling.
Simco also does a number of interviews with top fighters. To me, I really don't get to excited over this stuff, but I am sure that beginners will love it. The biggest complaint I have of this book is that the descriptions of the moves could have been better. I think that Simco could have done a better job here. However, as this is a book, the pictures seem to do the job anyway. Currently, I think that this is the best Jiu-jitsu book on the market. Simco's book really shines as a modern day grappling book. At 325 pages this a fairly large book. It sells for $40 and is a excellent value. If you are an advanced grappler, this book may not offer much new. However, if you are a newcomer, this book may be an excellent place to start. It explains Jiu-jitsu grappling and its different styles better then any other book on the market.