I really disliked that part, not because it wasn't informative, but because it contradicted the whole point of picking up a book with "Real World" in the title.

I really disliked that part, not because it wasn't informative, but because it contradicted the whole point of picking up a book with "Real World" in the title. You don't write pretend monads for pedagogical purposes in the real world, but you do parse binary formats. Why is the chapter that tells you you're learning the latter actually teaching you the former? Which isn't to say I hated the book itself. On the whole it's a great introduction, if you ignore the title and take what's actually there.