See if you can get it at the library. As a basic recommendation for your yard I can give you a couple of ideas. First, daylilies are, in my opinion, an excellent plant. They start their foliage fairly early in the year and don't bloom till July or August. Because their are so many blooms on each plant they are very colorful for 2-3 weeks.
Daylilies also come in lots of different colors and shapes.
Even after the flowers are gone the greenery looks nice and busy for a couple of weeks longer. Then, when the season is over, they can simply be mowed down with a lawn mower and the mulchings left to help nourish the soil. Daylilies also multiply rapidly. So eventually you can have a very full garden. Lots of shrubs would probably be a good choice also if you are low on time.