CBear916,
Well, if you don't like the hatches, look into a 92+ Civic Coupe. What year you buy really depends on what you can afford. What I would suggest, as someone whos learning about cars, is to buy one that has not been modified at all. Also, get the factory shop manual so you can get the whole gist of how to work on these things. Additionally, a good set of tools will help immeasurably.
Depending on where you are, a Civic coupe can be had pretty inexpensively...so shop around. A lot of people are looking for the hatches and driving the cost up accordingly compared to a comparable coupe...so that's something in your favor.
Bogatyr