Before the Happy Hooker, I knew single crochet and chaining. I could make really great scarves, haha. THH has great patterns for home, accessories, and clothes. Plus, the first third of the book is a progression through the levels of crochet, with great illustrations. I love THH because it describes the yarn used in each pattern very well, making it easy to switch out the featured yarn for something more affordable or more easily located. The opening chapter about hook size, yarn types, etc is far more detailed and comprehensive than any other crochet book I've found. I also use the glossary whenever working on a pattern from a magazine, and I need to interpret an abbreviation or a certain stitch. I would reccommend this book to all level of crocheters. I think it has a great introduction to the hooking world, and anybody can pick it up from this book, as long as they aren't afraid of diagrams!