I own several of Alan Wallace's books. I like them all. He presents information from a Western perspective, which I find easier to understand. Here there are specific meditation techniques presented in detail. You are encouraged to practice for a while at each stage using the suggested exercises before continuing on in the book. This book serves as a nice checklist for a complete Buddhist meditation practice, including meditative quiescence (Shamatha), (Buddhist) wisdom meditation, dream yoga and more.Alan Wallace's other book, "The Attention Revolution: Unlocking the Power of the Focused Mind" would be more appropriate if your interest is specifically in meditative quiescence (mind training).