How's it goin bud? Glad you decided on using live plants.
Here's the thing. There is a great deal of care necessary in order to maintain a planted tank(tank with "real" plants). First and most important, is lighting. We need to know how many gallons your tank is, what lighting wattage you are currently running on your tank, and if you have CO2 fertilizer, or fertilizer of any sort thus far. The reason being, your plants will need sufficient light( at LEAST 2 watts per gallon) in order to just survive. Right now it sounds like you don't have sufficient wattage. Wanna know why? You mentioned the plants are turning brown. This is usually a direct result of "low" light. You will not be able to keep plants with insufficient light. They simply won't grow and will die.
You asked about a book. I think a great book is The Aquarium Plants Manual by Scheurmann. The reason I think this is a good starter book, is because it is CHEAP, and it explains planted tanks plain and simple - great for a beginner. It talks about fertilizer(most importantly CO2), necessary lighting, various plants and their maintenance - you get the picture. Try this for starters just to get your feet wet. I am sure others can give you more in-depth material further on down the line.
Anyways, I hope that helps. Don't feel overwhelmed, however, start to take things slowly if necessary. Don't add plants without taking care of the basic lighting first. I'm sure most everyone will agree...
Be well and keep us posted...
Bondstreet