There’s not a lot to using WordPress as a CMS. Certainly not enough to fill a book. Start by sticking to just Pages and avoiding Posts altogether.
Programming isn’t required for the majority of WP activities. Nearly everything you need as a beginner in WP can be configured.
If you eventually come across the need to code, knowledge of basic HTML will allow you to do most edits. If you indeed need to create new functionality, then you will likely need some training on php and there are plenty of php books out there.
I already know php.
But the majority of the wordpress book don’t go into the details of CMS websites.
What I want to do with wordpress is this:
Add/edit text to pages.
Add/edit items to pages (such as box like content (with image, text, title).
Basically things you do with any other CMS.
It seems I need to create fields with magic fields for the simplest of things, making the admin area of wordpress quite complicated.
Adding and editing content is done using an admin page that’s very intuitive. If you are tech savvy, and I’m assuming that you are if you are a php coder, then you should have no problems with the WP user interface.
The time you’re spending looking for a tutorial is probably better spent by simply using the tool and learning as you go.
If you want to add custom meta boxes for post meta data and such like, you have two options. Either use a plugin, or if you want to code it yourself, dive into the codex: http://codex.wordpress.org/
