The MUST HAVE thing to read for everyone starting to brew beer is a "How to Brew" book by John Palmer.
The book is available online for free
here.
Useful forums:
HomeBrewTalk
RealBeer
Where to buy ingredients:
HomebrewersRetail GTA
The Brew Kettle GTA
The Brew Factory GTA
Clickabrew Online
Homebrew Supplies GTA
Mashing Heads Online
The Grape and Granary US Online
Where to buy equipment:
Clickabrew Online
Homebrew Supplies GTA
Mashing Heads GTA
The Grape and Granary US Online
Generally the beer brewing process consists of several steps (malting and filtering are not used in home-brewing):
malting, milling, mashing, lautering, boiling/chilling, fermenting, conditioning,
filtering, and packaging.
All steps are important and failing any one you fail everything.
The steps which require most complicated equipment, strict technology and skills are mashing, lautering and boiling/chillling.
That's what you do when you brew all-grain recipes.
There is a simplified process for beginners - extract (or kit) brewing - where you start the process directly from the boiling step.
Advantages of this approach: you don't need special equipment for mashing, lautering; you don't need to have skills to do that.
Disadvantages: extracts tend to be not so fresh and a final product could lack taste and aroma; chilling a wort require some skills and some equipment.
Anyway this approach is very, very good for beginners.
And beginners in the GTA have the third way! It doesn't have disadvantages of extract brewing. And it's even simpler - you don't need to boil and chill wort.
For us in the GTA
Magnotta sells already boiled and chilled wort (and equipment as well). You can start the brewing process directly from the fermenting step.
Magnotta sells the basic equipment for about $50 (it contains primary plastic fermentor, secondary glass carboy, racking cane, tube, thermometer, probably some other stuff). The wort is selling in boxes of 23L for about $35 and you can choose from about 10 styles of beer - they have most major styles of lagers and ales: pilsner, bock, IPA, stout, wheat, pale, cream etc.
I strongly recommend for beginners from the GTA starting from Magnotta's Festa Brew wort - it's easy, it's cheap and it's of high quality.
After making few batches and mastering yourself in fermenting, conditioning, and packaging you can go further - buy a big boiling pot and try to make an extract brewing. And after that you can start all grain brewing with mashing and lautering.
This staged approach is very convenient, you decide when you are ready to make next step, and you are always can quit if you are not interesting in brewing.
Few tips - it's nice to have a cool basement for fermenting and conditioning; consider to make ales as a few first brewings, it's easier 'cause lagers require more cold conditions and more time to ripen.