Henry Horenstein, Color Photography, A Working Manual (**) Fairly basic.  More detailed coverage of doing your own development, but not the best book for learning more about taking pictures.

Henry Horenstein, Black & White Photography, A Basic Manual (**) Pretty basic stuff.  Very useful if you want to learn darkroom technique., but if you are going to be using a photo lab the picture taking advice is a little thin.

Out of Print Books:

Michael Freeman, Cameras and Lenses, Amphoto Photography Workshop Series. (***+)  Despite its somewhat dry title, this is an excellent book for covering all of the basic aspects of photography and equipment, with good treatments of the effect of focal length on perspective, basic rules for photo composition, and an overview of many common types of equipment and when they can be used.

Michael Freeman, Film, Amphoto Photography Workshop Series (**+)  A broad overview of many different types of film, their characteristics, and their uses.  Probably more about film than the beginner will ever need to know, but it's almost sure to cover the types of film you shoot.  Also covers filters and their usage.