HTML texts from other academic publishers treat HTML in a step-by-step cookbook fashion, as though it were a simple software application, limiting the amount of material and concepts covered. Unique in the marketplace, Gottleber and Trainor’s Even More Excellent HTML combines the pedagogical support of academic texts with the comprehensive coverage found in trade books. No previous knowledge of HTML or Web design is assumed.
This is actually a text book I picked up for a class on HTML I was taking....it's an excellent textbook and well organized. It covers everything you would want to know about HTML and even gets into the CSS aspects. It has taught me much.