Try impatiens and coleus. Both are shade loving annuals that look great in containers. The impatiens bloom all season mound up and look impressive. Coleus dont flower, but they have pretty foilage with a lot of color. Get some spikes for height and some trailing vines, and you'll have yourself a pretty container garden. You might also want to try tuberous begonias. They come in lots of colors and have big blooms. If you have clay pots you will have to water them a lot- up to 2x a day in the heat of summer. Start with good container soil- Miracle Grow makes one that retains water and has the plant food mixed in.

Tomatoes do very well in pots, but they need a lot of sun.

For house plants, any bookstore will have decent starter books, or take a look at:
[link|http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=howTo&p=LawnGarden/houseplants.html|http://www.lowes.com.../houseplants.html]