The book is divided into three parts. You guessed it: Guns, Bullets, and Gunfights. The main portion of Guns -part consist of article on hybrid weapons (Cirillo likes to fit Dan Wesson revolver barrels into S&W frames. The problem is that Dan Wesson company has closed down years ago). In the Bullets -part Cirillo presents his patented "Felon grabber" -bullet design, and mourns that no bullet manufacturer has shown interest in producing the bullet. There is also some discussion on other hollow point bullets. The third part is the real meat of this book. There Cirillo tells about his gunfights and the ideas he has developed from his first hand experiences.

There are several problems about this book. Since there is only about 120 pages, Cirillo should have concentrated on only one topic. Now he can only scatch the surface on these subjects. Secondly, Cirillo seems to be a bit too much in love with himself. The book is filled with references of his achievements ("here are some of my police shooting awards...", "I fired this range record...", "...On my waist is the speed slide I invented, which revolutionized combat shooting", and so on. These examples are captions from preface). Third, because of the structure of the book, there is some repetition, as I mentioned earlier. Also, the text is written in layman's words. I don't doubt that Cirillo doesn't know what he is talking about, but it would be more credible if he would have used more scientifical approach.

The reason to buy this book is the third part, in which Cirillo tells tales about his adventures in Stakeout squad. It's a real shame that there is only ten pages of these stories, because the stories are witty and humorous, even if the subject of the stories is somewhat grim. In the third part Cirillo also introduces his "silhuette point" -system of aiming, and there is also discussions about the qualities that make man a gunfighter, realistic training and so on. However, the same problems that trouble the first two parts exist here also.

In conclusion, if Cirillo were to write a whole book of stories on Stakeout squad, I could recommend it to anyone. Sadly, in this book there is only a limited amount of good stuff.


Solid material, but too much technical data   January 2, 2003
 7 out of 7 found this review helpful

Before I begin: I'm a cop, I carry only the guns I'm issued, and I have tremendous respect for Jim Cirillo and his experience.

That said, this book is solid, but there is still too much discussion of the relative merits of different calibers, loads, and accessories. This book is of greatest interest to other cops who want to learn about deadly force situations. The material that's in here on those subjects is good, but there's too little of it. I really don't care about .44 Special versus 9mm, etc. Most cops have very little latitude about picking their firearms. Cirillo's discussions of different shootings he's been in are great - but give me more.

What the market needs, but lacks, is a book dedicated solely to combat case studies and breakdowns of different shootings, the tactics employed, what worked and didn't, etc. This was a step in the right direction, but we're not there yet.

Don't let this put you off, I own the book and I recommend it to anyone else, but I can't give it more than 3 stars.


Jim Cirillo an excellent model for all law enforcement   December 13, 2000
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

Cirillo's book is in the top five books that I have read over the years dealing with deadly force and the proper methods to use. I think his best chapter is "Selection of the gunfighter" and the traits needed. My only hope is that Cirillo will write a follow up book detailing more case histories from the stakeout squad. All in all, lots of practical information for the everyday police officer.


Ludicrous...!!!!!   September 7, 2000
 3 out of 63 found this review helpful

Only in America. The notion that some people find this kind of stuff interesting says a lot about them. That it found a publisher speaks volumes about a culture that encourages everyday citizens to pack heat...and "protect" themselves. In trying to make his vile case, Crillo indadvertently shows why we have more to fear from the pinhead next store with his or her shiny new Smith & Wesson than we do from all the so-called street scum. I support gun rights but let's be clear: this kind of nonsense will do more to sink the second amendment than any form of controls. No wonder the rest of the world finds the American preoccupation with firearms both idiotic...and inexplicable. Who can explain this? It makes no sense.