Silman's earlier editions of HTRYC were rightly criticized for being too rule dependent. He completely rewrote it in the 4th edition to address that main complaint. His book is still heavily dependent on rules, some of which are only discussed in detail in his book.
I have known many titled players, but very very few credit Silman's books for their improvement. I've known many Class players (U2000 over the board) who love Silman's work.
What I don’t understand after reading all these comments here is whether Silman’s books contain a wrong approach to chess or a very elementary one. If it is the first case could you please give an example? If it is the second why can’t one after finishing Silman’s books move on to other writers? Why does everyone seem to think they are mutually exclusive?