This book really caught my imagination. I haven't been climbing long and when I first read it I had only climbed in the gym and on pre-bolted sport routes. I devoured this book while I wasn't able to climb due to an injury (gotta be careful with that A2 pulley). It really opened my eyes to the greater world of mountaineering and convinced me that I could do more than climb sport routes. Since then I have been climbing with more experienced climbers trying to take the information I gained from this book and turn it into knowledge through experience.