With thanks to my publisher Apress, the chapter on pivot tables from my Excel 2010 Made Simple (soon to be a major motion picture) is now freely downloadable in PDF format via the following link:
http://www.apress.com/9781430235453
When you get there, click the Source Code/Downloads tab and the resulting Download Now link. I think you’ll find the chapter a pretty intelligible, and fairly far-reasching, treatment of the feature. I’d take a particularly considered look at Table 7-1, which synopsizes some central pivot table concerns.
spreadsheetjournalism 
Thanks a ton. After figuring this out, I breathlessly rushed to tell someone that there is something more powerful than filters.
thanks – happy to oblige. It sounds a touch nerdy, but once you get the hang of pivot tables they prove slightly irresistible.