She was practically in tears telling me I shouldn't believe everything I see in books
Poor lady, she must be so worried.
In the UK the official guidance on weaning is now either BLW or puree with finger foods introduced at 6 months. I don't know the guides where you are, I think maybe it helps some people accept the idea more if they know it is the official guidance and not just some weird modern idea from one book.
There's lots of videos of babies gagging on puree on the internet. Maybe if she realised that they gag anyway it might help her not feel so scared? There are also courses and videos on infant first aid for choking which are useful to see/do and can ease fears.
We are going to try some pear tomorrow morning.
I found raw pear and apple too hard for DS to begin with so used to steam them for a few minutes, or better still bake wedges. The baked ones were great as the outside was quite dry and easier to pick up whilst the inside was like puree almost, lovely and soft - the baked version is also easier to take out and about I think. He also likes grated raw apple now but I only recently tried that.