That guy, Charles Platt (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Platt_%28author%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Platt_%28author%29) probably taught more

That guy, Charles Platt (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Platt_%28author%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Platt_%28author%29) probably taught more people about electronics than most. I believe the schematic is in his breadboard-friendly style, which takes a bit getting used to but is optimized for easy implementation on a breadboard. So, I guess CamperBob2 is right that it's optimized for building rahter than theoretical analysis. Usually the text does a pretty good job of explaining his circuits.