The toolbox in Illustrator is a mightly handy palette, once you get to know it. Here is graphic that details the different tool icons: http://blogs.adobe.com/vikrant/2011/07/toolbox-overview-illustrator-cs5/
This is the main Adobe help page for Illustrator. There are tons of blogs with tips and tricks, but this is the official site (often the best starting spot if you have a question): http://helpx.adobe.com/illustrator/topics.html