Introductory texts that would actually satisfy the industry leaders themselves

[Arnold Itsov]

I have found a few but they talk about brevity or they assume a slight amount of programming familiarity so I cannot trust them. Most introductory texts assume the reader is unintelligent. I am looking for the genuine introductory programming textbook even if it is a "higher level" language.

[OxBADC0DE]

Perhaps, you should take a look at C++ Primer 5th Edition by Stanley B. Lippman, Barbara Moo et. al. It introduced C++11 right from the beginning and use modern techniques for explaining things. Although a much more comprehensive list of good C++ books would be here -> http://stackoverflow.com/questions/388242/the-definitive-c-book-guide-and-list

[Tresky]

I found Beginning C++ Through Game Programming by Michael Dawson to be extremely helpful. Very good example driven explanations.