How to Learn the Alexander Technique: A Manual for Students

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Summary: a wonderful supplement to taking lessons
Review: I feel moved to respond to some of the reviews below, which seem to me to judge the book more in terms of what it is not, rather than what it is. This is an excellent book to read *as* you're taking lessons; the book provides a wonderful companion to your ongoing learning, offering some fascinating insights on body perception and habits of movement, insights that have stuck with me half a decade after I first read the book. It's a great book to browse through, reading chapters as they relate to your interests. What the book is *not* is an introduction for absolute beginners who've not heard of the technique before; it is intended for people who have taken or will take Alexander lessons, and in this it succeeds admirably.

Rating:
Summary: Good if you have an Alexader specialist nearby, otherwise...
Review: That's a very interesting book, where you can learn about the importance of knowing your body in order to know how to use it. It can be very helpful if you intend to take Alexander Technique lessons. I bought the book because I thought this was THE book where you can learn something about the technique without taking lessons. That is not the case. The main problem is that Alexander was a fantastic pioneer on the field of sommatics but did not have the conceptual skills to transform its fantastic intuitions in an easily explainable system. If you do not have an Alexander teacher nearby you you should try Feldenkrais book Awareness Through Movement book.

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Summary: Not worth the reading.
Review: The auther seems to think it more important to be witty and wordy then to try to convey information. The book was painful to read.

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Summary: The nearest thing to a "do-it-yourself" book.
Review: The title of the book had prompted me to buy it. I had some basic knowledge of the principles of the Alexander Technique and wanted to know more about it both in terms of depth of understanding as well as guidance on what to do. While the book provided a lot of good information on basic concepts it failed to address the one thing that I had bought it for: How to Learn the Alexander Technique. Instead, it kept referring to finding a teacher and learn from this person. I was disappointed about that because I would have liked to have more pointers for myself first and had wanted to try it out without help.