I have now read four of the ten basic Achieving Kicking Excellence books by Shawn Kovacich (1, 2, 4, and now 5). This entry into the series, the Reverse Crescent Kick, is, in my opinion, the most useful thus far. The primary reason for this is the fact that the kick itself is extremely useful and versatile.

As is the norm for this series, Kovacich goes to great lengths to provide every piece of information you could ever want (plus some more on top of that) regarding this kick. From appropriate stretching to the dynamics of the human body when correctly performing the kick, Kovacich covers all the bases in this outstanding book.

The provided variations on the primary kick are all useful and provide a solid jumping off point for the potential student to explore other possibilities and uses for the kick.

The reality is that no book can replace a competent teacher of the martial arts, but this book is probably as close as it gets. Even better, if you are currently studying martial arts in a formal setting, this book will help your progress by leaps and bounds compared to classroom study alone.

(See my review for the fourth volume in the series, Crescent Kick, here.)