This book focuses on boat for boat tactics  encountered by the author and how he handled it based on his experience in dinghy and olympic classes. It is readable and the level of detail is very good. It is a much easier read than his book "Manual of Sail Trim".

However it is not a reference manual. It highlights some tactical scenarios as separate incidents but does not really piece everything together into a complete story. Thus, you get a series of disjointed articles.

The book was originally published in 1966 and surprisingly, the explanations still apply to this day. I think this book classifies as a classic. Because it was written so long ago, some of the rules have changed. References to "Mast Abeam" and such are dated. However, the tactical maneuvering described in the book still mostly applies.

There are gems in this book. One particular one that comes to mind was how he discusses, in several instances, how slowing the boat down in tactical situations can be useful. I don't remember that being brought up in other books on tactics.

Just a caution though, Walker writes in a very distinctly formal literary style and may not be as entertaining as some other books. But it is a solid book on yacht racing tactics and is good for the beginner and intermediate racer as a supplementary book. I can recommend adding it to your library.