While I suspect you are correct, I also suspect that the audience for this book would probably be significantly more aware of it as a problem. This isn't a mainstream book, it's just a more accessible version of the sequences, so the target audience is going to be less "random Joe" and more "aspiring rationalist / potential LessWrong reader".
Speaking to my social circle alone, any of my friends who weren't curious about a book like that would probably also struggle with the material.
For some reason, it also strikes me as signalling "I am not a peppy self-help 'you can do anything!' book", which seems like a very useful property in a title. I have no clue if that's just me though :)
As you may have heard, the Singularity Institute is in the process of creating an official ebook version of The Sequences (specifically, Eliezer's Major Sequences written between 2006 and 2009).
Now is an opportune time to make any alterations to the contents of the Sequences. We're looking for suggestions about:
Put separate suggestions in separate comments so that specific changes can be discussed. All suggestions will be reviewed, with final changes made by Eliezer. Next thing you know, you'll be sipping a hot mocha in your favorite chair while reading about Death Spirals on your handy e-reader.
The Sequences that will be present in the ebook: