I'm about half way through the book and can say I've definitely picked up some useful tricks. Be warned, this isn't a passive read where everything will suddenly click and you will be a math whiz. I recommend taking the chapters slowly and making your own exercises to really drive the concepts home. The first few chapters are cumulative, but eventually you are able to jump around and learn what tricks sound most appealing to you. My personal favorite is the ability to memorize strings of numbers. Has a ton of practical use in everyday life. I love being good at arithmetic and this book gives you the tools to get there.