LOL ... I know what you mean about bookbuying, kbaby - buy shares in amazon, I'm single handedly keeping them afloat.
Okay, I don't know if this is helpful, and obviously all babies are individuals, but this is our naptime routine. It took a few days of perserverance (and always doing the same thing) for it to start working well - I think it's the familiarity of the routine that's as reassuring to ds2 as much as the actual procedure.
About 1hr 45m after he woke (this is usually when he's most susceptible to sleep, but if he's showing signs of tiredness: grizzling, yawning, etc before then I'll take him up early) I take him up to his bedroom, pull the blind and the curtain shut (it's darker not pitch black though) and cuddle him on the rocking chair (just a bog standard wooden rocking chair - not one of those fancy things).
I switch on the white noise machine (it's got lots of options - brook, bird song, white noise etc... ds2 likes the heartbeat best so I use that), offer him the dummy, start rocking while he's sucking away. This sounds horribly exact, but it's just something that keeps me sane while I'm there to monitor time, not essential number! I count 50 rocks in time to the heartbeat sound then remove the dummy firmly so he knows it's gone. He's usually fairly well gone at this point. I then count another 50 rocks without the dummy to get him used to being calm without (when we started this routine it was nearer a 100 rocks of each to get him calm). If he starts fussing again, back goes the dummy - the goal is no crying as crying means wind, wind means pain, pain means no sleep.
After that, I gently lift him into the cot, tuck him in, thump the slumber bear to start the womb sounds (yes, I have two white noise machines! Excessive I know!), put the Cuski resting against his cheek so he can smell my scent and pull the chair closer to the cot.
I sit there for five minutes watching him so he knows I'm still there and he's safe before leaving (sometimes I leave after he's asleep, sometimes when he's awake and calm... depends). If he fusses or cries, I pop the dummy in and leave it in for five minutes or until drowsy whichever comes first then remove it and watch again for five minutes to check his calm and resting. Rinse repeat for each fussing, thumping the slumber bear every time it reaches its 5 min cut out! (the other white noise machine has a much more sensible 30min cut out).
It's rather time consuming, but it's getting quicker all the time now. Didn't even need his dummy in the cot at all this last nap, so the entire process only took just over 10minutes. However, I have been in over an hour some naps (noteably the 7pm one) but it's that or listen to him crying for all that time - which is better on the baby and your nerves?!
The short nap at 4pm it isn't worth the whole rigmarole so I either go out in the pram or let him sleep in my arms downstairs while ds1 and I watch a DVD together.
Hope that helps anyway. Almost certainly won't work exactly for you, but you may find some elements that help your little one settle a bit easier. Once you get them napping regularly it becomes easier as they're not overtired next naptime and settle quicker. I also found that some of the things (like white noise) weren't even remotely effective until after he'd had his second cranial osteopathy treatment.