Reddit reviews The Ultimate Parkour & Freerunning: Discover Your Possibilities

I am just learning myself. I read a couple books. This one is great and may be worth a read. You probably won't be able to learn too much actual technique with it, but it is great to learn some of the terminology you will hear used. Then I found a gym near by and have started practicing there.

As I have done 95% of my Parkour in a gym, I can't really comment on shoes.