Glad you asked! There are obviously alot of chess books available, but a very good resource is the internet.
For starters you might want to go to Wikipedia.com and type in the words "chess", "chess openings", "chess theory", et cetera.
You'll find alot of articles for free. Good luck and welcome to the game!
You will receive no shortage of advice - but remember, no-one has a silver bullet!
The Exeter Chess Club has a helpful website ... http://www.exeterchessclub.org.uk/Openings/10openrules.html
Here are some links to a few previous discussions ...
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/your-mental-checklist-you-run-through-before-each-move
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/teaching-chess
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/community/7-deadly-sins
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/chess-players/tactics
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/help-support/where-do-i-go-from-here
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/blunders-a-passing-phase
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/chess-guidelines-and-principles
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/how-to-win-at-chess
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/chess-software-stack---what-do-you-use
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/stop-the-blunders
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/examining-games
You might also consider joining one of the chess.com groups that focuses on mentoring/tutoring/coaching/guidance.
hey! thanks a lot..im about to check out some of those resources rite now..thangs again for the advice, i appreciate it...
Well, when you say 'better understanding of how to play" does that mean your at the stage where your still trying to get a feel for the rules and the moves of the actual pieces, or do you just want to get better. Well, if your still at the rules/moves stages but you kind of want a little more, then you can pick up a "chess for dummies" book (no pun intended) the book is chocked full of rules and moves that you should definately know. It has helped me alot in the begginning. It also has a little on strategy, tactics and that stuff. Actually, I still go back to it from time to time, its been my bible and i've been playing for years. Truly, its a good first book for the rules: it really defines alot of things that you may not know or even have thought about for instance what is "en passant"- ahhh, it's in the bible let me go check! It may seem cheezy but the book is great for that. And its never to early or late to brush up or learn rules and terminology for stuff.
Now, if you want a little more than that than you can try some of the Silman books (Jeremy Silman) but dont get the ones that really get into the meat and potatoes of the game because it may be too much too soon. for instance, "How to Reassess Your Chess may be too much right now but "the Amatuers mind" by Silman might be better for you. I say this beacuse when your just learning the game this kind of technical stuff can kind of take the fun out of the game and possibly ruin your experience. You might say: Damn I got to learn all this stuff just to play well- uh, yeah, you do but you just dont have to learn it all just yet. Playing good chess is a process that you just have to go through. Natural born "good Players" may have a better knack at playing, but average Joes like you and me got to pay our dues. So study where you can off the board, learn the rules/moves, Play often, and keep track of your mistakes and triumphs and always remember your gonna get your ass kicked at times but thats o.k. losing will build your character, and that losing wont last too long. Good luck Dude!
hey! im kinda new to the chess game..does anybody have any advice that would help me IMMEDIATELY develope abetter understanding of how to play?