There are lots of good chess books for beginners recomended by a good teacher called Dan Heisman at this page.
I would recommend 'Logical Chess: Move by Move' by Irving Chernev. Chernev was a popular writer of chess books and this one is regarded as a classic. He goes through 33 chess games and comments on every move to explain what is going on. It's a great book to get if you have learnt how the pieces move and don't know what to do next to play a good game.
Playing good chess also means learning about tactics and there is a great website which teaches this in plain language - ChessTactics.org
Good luck!
I never had the opportunity to really learn chess growing up. I understand how all the pieces move, but I don't know any strategy. A friend of mine and I made a gentleman's wager to learn chess together. At the beginning of a night out, whoever wins a game of chess has to buy drinks for the night. So now the game is on!
Could anyone please recommend books, web sites, strategies, exercises, etc. that would help me learn this game quickly? I'm a beginner, but obviously not a child. Thanks so much for your help!