I read a different book to learn algorithms, 'Algorithm Design' by Kleinberg and Tardos, and I think its a fantastic book, with lots of sample material that actually makes you think. I actually may try this book to see how it compares.
+1 for Kleinberg-Tardos. I had already read Cormen before, and dabbled in TAOCP before I found Kleinberg-Tardos, and found it the most interesting (while remaining rigorous) of the three. I loved the structure of the book as well - focusing on real world problems and their algorithmic solutions, rather than a reference index of algos.
