[Sirenos]

You're not alone. On flip side, however, there are people who prefer a more informal tone and find academic treatments a little dry. I guess you can't win in that regard since someone else is bound to find your book/guide unapproachable due to whatever subjective reason they have.

That said though, I don't see why an informal tone should preclude getting the information across and sprinkling in some humor -- all without sacrificing precision. Something like Bjarne Stroustrup's C++ book is a good example of how to retain both humor and a thorough treatment of the subject.