While we don't include a printed book in the box (to save trees and lower shipping costs) Elements does come with a digital instruction book and video tutorials.
The instructions can be accessed by launching Elements and selecting one of the following from the Help menu:
Photoshop Elements 12 Help (the manual)
Getting Started (A new user guide)
Video Tutorials (step by step tutorials)
I've collected these and other Free Elements learning resources (video tutorials, user manuals, etc) from Adobe which should help you get up to speed:
http://adobe.ly/iczlLh
Hope this helps.
