Irodov has a reputation for being difficult. I remember that if someone could solve a problem from that book, they would be considered especially bright. Howev

Irodov has a reputation for being difficult. I remember that if someone could solve a problem from that book, they would be considered especially bright. However I also remember trying the book and after some failed starts really getting into it and it became one of my favorite books. I believe the difficulty was because the book was purely problems, there was almost no context of theory. But the problems were very well designed and solving them was a joy.