Anyone 12k or stronger can benefit from this book. Kageyama, a professional teacher and lecturer on Japanese television, observed four levels, starting around 12K, where his amateur students seemed to hit roadblocks. His book prescribes the same remedy at each level. Review the fundamental principles until practice and experience give you the confidence to make sound moves without hesitating. Repeat as needed.

For example, you'll have a much easier time finding the best move if you know at a glance whether or not the ladder works. You won't have to look for alternatives to an obvious move, even though it seems wholly uninspired, if you can see how effectively it settles an urgent area. "Lessons" holds up well under repeated browsing. It comes in particularly handy when you're looking for something to help you warm up for the next tournament.

This is lots of people's favorite go book. It's written in a chatty, very entertaining style. It covers all sorts of different topics, from general concepts like "The Struggle to Get Ahead" to specific tesujis, so it's a real grab bag.

It's probably a good idea to read this book early and often, but not to worry too much about it while you're reading it. I've always enjoyed reading it, but when I first started reading it, I was really annoyed by the fact that his principles seemed quite imprecise: how can I tell if a move is a solid one or a meek one? I couldn't (and I still can't), but on the other hand, that's not the sort of thing that you can give a recipe for. So use the more conceptual sections of this book as an introduction to certain concepts that are important to think about, but don't worry too much about the fact that you can't do a very good job of thinking about them quite yet.