adding mp3 files to my ipod nano

Hello! Is there a way to copy mp3 files from my computer to my ipod nano? I have just purchased a book on learning Chinese that came with an audio cd of mp3 files. After spending a few hours with itunes, playlists, audiobooks, and the nano user guide, there does not seem to be an easy or straight-forward method on putting these files on my nano. The user guide is pretty useless in this regard. Was it a mistake to get a nano to play normal mp3 files? Do I have to somehow burn the book cd into itunes and then sync? I created a playlist of the files in my local itunes, but it does not want to sync with the nano. Any suggestions? Thanks!