I'm getting it for myself -- Kernighan is a wonderful writer, and I want to see how a master can explain technical concepts gracefully.

There are probably more than a few HN'ers who are interested in Dennis Richie's take on these things because of their interest in what he thinks. It is analogous to the reasons HN'ers are interested in PG's thoughts about High School.

Ummm...the book is authored by Brian Kernighan, not dmr. But I can see that the crux of your argument still holds if you substitute Kernighan back.

A book like that can also be useful for understanding what you take for granted.

If Kernighan explains a concept that seems obvious, it's almost certainly because most people haven't a clue about it.