I thought the early chapters had some good information, but it's information I can find in some other books that I've already read. Earlier editions of this book may have been there first chronologically, I don't know. I really have problems with Chapter 6 on Normalization: I think the main example (figure 6.2) is very non-intuitive (report_no isn't a primary key for the Report table--it seems to be a one-to-one relationship with editor, dept_no, dept_name, and dept_addr based on the small sample data). Additionally, the example repeatedly states that there is only one candidate key in this table. The data sample doesn't seem to bear that out. I also think it would have been better if the author had given an example of how a table might NOT meet the First Normal Form, rather than just starting with an example of a table that is. I think the definition of 2NF is imprecise, although the example and solution are correct. I think the whole topic (of Normalization) is covered much more clearly and realistically by Clare Churcher in "Beginning Database Design".