Short version: this is a book about software architecture and patterns which is a lot more accessible and less abstract than most of what is out there. If you are looking for such a book you are probably not a Dummy and might overlook this book. That would be a shame. Long version: I'm not really the kind of person who buys or read Dummies books but this isn't the kind of book for your average Dummy. How many Dummies are interested in software architecture? Let alone patterns? The reason to buy this book is that you are not a dummy but many of those books are abstract and, frankly, boring. This book is a lot less abstract and hence far more accessible and easier to read. Technically this book is every bit as strong the Pattern Oriented Software Architecture (POSA) and Pattern Languages of Program Design (PLOPD) books sitting on myself. This book is idea for software engineers and developers out there who have a few years experience and increasingly find they need to know more about how big systems, important systems, reliable systems work. When you realise you can't just hack it and hope for the rest of your career. Still, I'm an experiences software engineer, well versed in patterns and architecture and I can get something from this book. Anyone buying this book probably won't be a Dummy, and they certainly won't be a Dummy after reading it.