content: This book is superb; the author's thoughts flow through my mind during every auction, competitive or not. He discusses in detail, for example, when a holding of xxx in a suit opened by opponents is terrible, neutral, or mildly positive. The studious reader will understand why a hand which opened 1 Spade with xxxxxx in spades improves vastly more than a hand which opened 1 Spade with KQJTx when partner raises Spades vigorously (in Lawrence's words, "Beware the short stubby suit.") Attention to the principles carefully explained and extensively illustrated (sometimes the same hand is given with half a dozen different auctions to explain evaluation niceties) by Lawrence will vastly reduce your phantom sacrifices, -800s when dummy hit with "all the wrong cards," and +1370s which delight your teammates, who were -630 defending 3NT at the other table when their opponents never looked for a minor-suit slam.