Rating: 
Summary: Wide but Shallow
Review: This is an excellent first book into the Game of Go. It covers basic concepts, rules, and a little bit about how to think in the game. It is fun to read, fast moving, and doesn't have the translation difficulties so many other texts in this field seem to have.That having been said, most of the information here is so basic that if you know how to play, you could comfortably skip this book and head on to the next one. If you want to get into go, but have no idea of what the basics are for this game, then this is the book for you. If you have an idea of how to play, then it is time for The Way of the Moving Horse (Book two in this series).
Rating:
Summary: Wide but Shallow
Review: This is an excellent first book into the Game of Go. It covers basic concepts, rules, and a little bit about how to think in the game. It is fun to read, fast moving, and doesn't have the translation difficulties so many other texts in this field seem to have. That having been said, most of the information here is so basic that if you know how to play, you could comfortably skip this book and head on to the next one. If you want to get into go, but have no idea of what the basics are for this game, then this is the book for you. If you have an idea of how to play, then it is time for The Way of the Moving Horse (Book two in this series).
Rating: 
Summary: Best Introduction
Review: This is the best introduction to the game of Go that I've read. It is clear and concise. It is also very readable with excellent examples. I recommend this book for anyone interested in learning the game of Go.
Rating:
Summary: A Good Move for Beginners
Review: This is the first book is a series of four (as of 2002) which are intended to help a potential player go from a complete beginner to a reasonable competent amateur. This is no trivial undertaking, for the simplicity of Go's rules hide and incredible complexity of play. Not only are bad habits hard to undo, but the gap between the lower levels of play are so large that it can be very discouraging to climb the first few hills. What Janice Kim and Jeong Soo-hyun have done here is to present the central ideas of the game in a careful, step-wise manner that is readable by anyone from about nine years old on. If a parent were willing to take the time, he or she could use this book to learn enough to teach a much younger player. Yet the information presented is still substantial, covering the basics of life, forming territory, capturing, connecting, and Ko fighting. I hate to admit it, but I found a thing or two in it that I had forgotten. Frequent examples and questions are provided so that the reader has many opportunities to test his or her knowledge. Little bits of Go history are provided as well. In the back of the book is a cardboard folding board and pop out playing pieces. These are a really too small for a playing adult, although they would make a neat lightweight traveling package for working out puzzles and playing in unexpected places. It does allow a child to get some practice playing before then investment in a decent board and pieces it made. I have been recommending this series to people for some time, since really good texts for beginners are rare. However, I have never taken the time to read them from cover to cover. Having done so, I am quite impressed. I do think that at one should buy at least the second volume in this series as well. This book reads very quickly, and one needs a bit more for a fair start. One thing is certain, it would be hard to get a better start at the world's most popular board game.
Rating: 
Summary: OK to start
Review: This is the first go book I bought. It does a good job of exposing the game and explains some techniques for capturing and connecting on a local level. However, it does not have any thing on a strategic level. I have since read another go book, which unfortunately is not in English or I would be raving about it, which does a much better job explaining the openings and the general strategy.
Rating:
Summary: A Clear, Introductory Text
Review: This was the first book I bought to learn Go. If you're looking for an introduction to the game, this book is a good choice. I wouldn't worry about others who claim this book is too shallow or easy. It gives you the fundamental tactics you need before you can appreciate bigger concepts. Other books don't do so well at explaining beginning concepts because they forget what it is like to be a beginner and brush over concepts too fast. One word of caution: Go proponents love to say how simple the rules of Go are. However, they are ignoring scoring issues which make the rules complex. As a beginner, it is very confusing to know how to end a game because of "dead stones". The authors don't even touch on this issue until almost half-way into the book, where they explain a real game. Unfortunately, the only words the authors give at this point are "Dead stones are taken out at the end of the game. It is not necessary to play extra moves in order to capture them." A little more explanation would have been nice. They don't even mention what kind of scoring they are using (Japanese), which punishes you for playing extra moves.
Rating:
Summary: A Clear, Introductory Text
Review: This was the first book I bought to learn Go. If you're looking for an introduction to the game, this book is a good choice. I wouldn't worry about others who claim this book is too shallow or easy. It gives you the fundamental tactics you need before you can appreciate bigger concepts. Other books don't do so well at explaining beginning concepts because they forget what it is like to be a beginner and brush over concepts too fast. One word of caution: Go proponents love to say how simple the rules of Go are. However, they are ignoring scoring issues which make the rules complex. As a beginner, it is very confusing to know how to end a game because of "dead stones". The authors don't even touch on this issue until almost half-way into the book, where they explain a real game. Unfortunately, the only words the authors give at this point are "Dead stones are taken out at the end of the game. It is not necessary to play extra moves in order to capture them." A little more explanation would have been nice. They don't even mention what kind of scoring they are using (Japanese), which punishes you for playing extra moves.
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