You've gotten a lot of good tips. I personally have found clipless pedals easier to manage than toe clips. It's pretty straight forward to get your foot out of a clipless pedal.

I started with Bebop's, but those are pretty rare and were something my LBS carried. They look similar to speedplays. After about a year or so, I switched to Look pedals/cleats. I like thsoe better. Very easy to get in and out of. I gave my Bebop's to my friend who was getting started with clipless, and she did great. She fell more with the toe clips

Good luck!