Yea I wouldn't be dead set on using a continental, Guidice seems to be too rigid and a bit antiquated. The title of that book is also too editorialized; "The Seven Essentials Of Woodworking". It's like "The 10 commandments". Read some more books, find or make a saw that is the easiest and...
I have a bunch of cedar wood left over from a few years ago and I'd like to build a couple of smaller, high visibility type projects, e.g. end tables, and I was wondering what I could do to lessen the knottiness of the wood?