I've heard that learning and understanding tactical motifs early can be everything that a beginner needs to gain a couple hundred Elo and start playing somewhat decent chess, so the Winning Chess Tactics book is often recomended, but maybe I think it would be better to get a good grasp on general principles. I tried reading my system but it seem pretty complicated for me. Play winning chess just mentions principles and shows a game featuring them, which personally doesn't tell me very much. Any other book recommendations at my level are appreciated, thank you :)