It's a very useful book, but it takes time and practice to get used to it. I don't find it easy to navigate, but having read through it, it's getting easier.

The serial comma is a beautiful, perfect thing. This book is nowhere near perfect, but there's nothing else like it.

I don't think anyone really "reads" the Chicago Manual of Style, but I've sure referenced it a lot, and in depth.

Yes, I am this much of a nerd. I freaking love my CMS.

If you are a student or anyone who writes professionally in the political sciences, I HIGHLY recommend the purchase and use of this book. I added notated tabs on the side of mine, so that I could quickly reference the sections I found myself using most often (or the the tools of writing I used often that I wanted to refer back to in the CMS). It is a slightly more expensive book purchase, to be sure, but worth every single penny. Clear. Concise. And most of all, easy to use. I am in love with the Chicago Manual of Style, and I'm not ashamed to say it!

Yes, I basically read the whole thing, although my eyes glazed over in parts, and I definitely skimmed more as the year wore on. Being a self-taught editor, I wanted to fill in the "unknown unknowns", and learn what kind of information is in the manual, for future reference.

An invaluable tool for any author and editor, and THE main reference book for publishing for the US market

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Yes, I've read the whole thing, and I've lived to tell the tale.