In Ashtanga Yoga: The Practice Manual, David Swenson provides step-by-step illustrations for primary, intermediate, and advanced postures. The “Basics” section was a simple and clear introduction to the rest of the book’s content. I could appreciate how the author took the time to explain every step, term, and yoga pose. The chart that defined the eight aspects of yoga and little things such as explaining the meanings of the Sanskrit words made it easier to follow along with the instructions.

One of the added features I found surprising was the description of where the drishti would be in each posture. I don’t pay attention to my gazing point as much as I should. Sometimes not looking in a certain direction can mean the difference between a kink in my neck and no pain in a pose. Having the drishti assigned to each pose gave me a new focus and something to work on in the future.

Even though there were many photographs in the book that demonstrated different variations of the postures, it could have been even better to feature more of them. While the instructions were detailed, the photographs didn’t depict each step of entering into the postures. Some poses aren’t entered into as methodically as the others. The way I see it, the more pictures, the better the book can be.

In general, I found this book to be an informative and easy-to-read guide for all levels. The organization was consistent, and I liked how the same amount of instruction was provided for each posture. I tried following the “Short Forms” section and I found the sequences to be familiar, yet challenging.