If you allocate the time, and have the desire, you can approach TAOCP in any manner you want and get something out of it. I read the 3 volumes cover to cover, i

If you allocate the time, and have the desire, you can approach TAOCP in any manner you want and get something out of it. I read the 3 volumes cover to cover, including reading the exercises, but not really doing them. I did gloss over some of the really long hard algorithm analyses. At the beginning of the first volume is a refresher on all the maths Knuth uses in the books (a little over 100 pages).