- Tony Kuphaldt's books: http://www.allaboutcircuits.com/textbook/ and related forum http://forum.allaboutcircuits.com/
- "Practical Electronics for Inventors" by Paul Scherz
Both books start at explain-like-I'm-5 level and build up the narrative from there. The forum too is a great resource; lots of questions and good answers on fundamentals just like yours.