Customer Reviews

Street Smarts, Firearms, And Personal Security: Jim Grover'S Guide To Staying Alive And Avoiding Crime In The Real World

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have mixed feelings about books that are comprised of articles published in magazines before. The main reason is that those articles seldom are detailed enough, because of lenght constraints placed on magazine columns. In addition, the chapters in these books are usually arranged in illogical manner, where stuff about a specific topic is dispersed thorouhg the book. This book avoids those pitfalls, however, and at the same time utilizes the main advantage of magazine column -approach: The book covers a wide variety of topics, in easily approached small portions.

While this book is comprised of articles published mainly in Guns & Ammo -magazine in years 1992 - 1999, the subjects of the columns are so tightly defined, that the shortness of the chapters is not a problem. Grover gets his point across in the pages devoted to a specific subject. There is also lots of details and examples on certain situations. In addition, the columns are arranged in sections by the subject, so you can easily find all the info on specific subject without having to flip through the whole book.

Although the word "firearms" is mentioned in the title of the book, the emphasis is not in surviving an armed encounter. The book covers the field of personal security very broadly, beginning from the security of your home, and ending to wounded shooter tactics. In fact, the book could well have been published in two parts, one concentrating on crime prevention, and the second on combatives. Therefore, this book should interest also those people who are not into guns, and are not interested in getting one for personal safety.

The crime prevention part of the book is exellent. It seems that while there are some books on the market on this subject, for some reason more books concentrate on combatives, than preventing these dangerous situations altogether. Perhaps this is the reason why I felt that the second half of the book was not as good as the first half. The book would have been better, if the magazine columns would have been edited somewhat to get rid of "in this month's column we concentrate on..." -type stuff. And there is some repetition also, which is a bit annoying in book form.

All things concidered, I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in raising their personal level of security.

Having had the honor of training with Jim Grover. I can tell you he is "for real". His information is updated from his and others "real time" situations. This book is not theory it is practical and "street tested". This book is extremely well written and easy to read. It covers the whole arena of "true" street smarts. The section on home security systems is worth the price of the book alone. You will find yourself using this book again and again. Destined to become a classic...

I read this book along with other books on self-defense/security. Its generally good, however, the book is made from articles in a magazine column, and it becomes very very repetitive. Also, I find that the author sometimes exagerates, as for when he says that whenever you hop in a cab, you should sit in the front seat and keep your foot near the cab driver's pedals in case "you should need to take control of the cab"... hmm.. i can imagine myself doing that the next time I take a cab. i'd sure get a look from the driver. 3 stars.

This is a lot more than a "how-to-pull-the-trigger" book. In very clear and understandable prose, Grover lays out a mindset which should go a long way toward keeping the reader out of violent confrontations, and a long way toward surviving such an incident if the worst comes to pass. The book includes specific ideas about weapons and weapon use, security precautions for home and travel, and ways to "read" common situations for indicators of danger. The tone is not paranoid, nor is it macho: it's realistic, and practical.

I don't pass myself off as an expert in self-defense, but I'm concerned about protecting myself and loved ones. To that end, I've read a decent number of books on the subject. This is one I keep going back and rereading.

Having read most of what's available on personal security, shooting and tactics, I can say that Jim Grover's book is just about the best single-volume overview of the topic. Calm, no nonsense and straightforward without falling prey to the macho chest beating that seems to infect even some of the best books on the topic.

Without any apologies Jim Grover (Kelly McCann) has the best stuff out on the market period. It is simple safe effective easy to learn and you do not have to wear pajamas. I was a cop for 7 years and I taught survival skills while also training for about 10 years in the martial arts. What would I use, what ever he says. He is smart creative and has been in the grease enough to know what works and what does not. He, unlike many authors and instructors leaves his ego at the door when it comes to teaching survival skills. He is not invested in putting his name on any particular draw or holster. I digress! This information is vital for parents, kids, teachers, and anyone who cares about another person. If applied, it can save a life. If you are serious about not wasting your money and time get hooked up with Jim Grover's book and video series and a good coach. This is the real deal and you can bet your life on it.

Over the years I have read much of the writings of Jim Grover in various magazines. I have gotten great feedback from many of my own students when they have read "Street Smarts" as part of the training in the use of handguns along with hand to hand concepts that we teach at Attack Proof Inc. Mr Grover is an authority who can be depended upon to give straight information which will put the odds seriously in your favor during a real life confrontation with a firearm. Some folks think that repetition of basic techniques is boring or not useful. Mr. Grover takes the best of the basics and presents it in a lanquage that can be grasped and appreciated by serious professionals, who can always use a tune up, as well as beginners who need real information for close and dangerous encounters. I can't praise his work enough.

This is an excellent book for anyone interested in CCW. Jim has excellent experience and knowledge that will be insightful for lethal and non lethal alternatives of personal safety

I have followed Mr. Grover's (Kelly McCann) work through the years and enjoyed most of his stuff. I think what the book gives best is the idea of how to do things and not so much as the physical application. I know that this is debatable but i personally don't thing you can get quality hand-to-hand instruction from a book.

I re-read the book since and really received more benefit the second time. I think with books like this and others like Strong On Defense and Tom Patire's Personal Protection Handbook their is enough quality material for people to read and become more vigilante in their way of life.

Great Book!

This book was somewhat helpfull, that is if you are new to the field, military personell and police probably wont find much new or helpfull techniques here, and the author, while knowledgable, tends to repeat himself. I would reccomend this book to the average civilian, but if your military or police, save your money.