It's an instruction manual on how to get recovered from alcoholism written by recovered alcoholics...recovered meaning having had a spiritual awakening an alcoholic can recover and go anywhere and do anything...AA itself is a bridge to normal living, not a hiding place.
There are many different ways to get sober as my sponsor says and there are many different understanding of what sobriety is...i peronsally wanted complete freedom from alcoholism, e.g. being able to go into a bar for an event and not even think about alcohol being consumed around me, to be able to stay in a hotel room with a full mini bar and not walk 3 feet around it or have to ring reception to get it sticked with fruit juice...basically for the mental obsession to be removed as it has been...and to be restored to sanity.
Just my experience, i tried everything else and nothing worked but AA:-)