Personally, I think the basics of 3D animation start with 2D animation. This book is great for that. Otherwise, the tutorials that come with 3dsmax aren't bad for learning keyframes and things. This intro to 3dsmax video helps explain some basics.
Rendering is a different beast. I don't equate sampling with being 'simple', so it's harder to advise. Vray for example comes with the sampling pretty much already worked out these days and you just render and go. Arnold might too, I'm not super familiar.
My experience the best way to learn rendering is pick a renderer and visit the help, documentation, and forums for that renderer. You won't gain much knowledge in general forums for specific renderers. Once you pick one, you should be able to ask in those specific forums for links to the best tutorials. Grant Warwick has some good modeling and Vray tutorials, for example. They might be older now, but still relevant.
Best Regards,
