It's a very broad topic. And yes you can absolutely alter your thoughts, emotions, and actions using language.
There is the everyday language you use inside your head on a moment to moment basis, commonly known as the "voice in your head." In this regard positive self talk is one of the most powerful strategies to improve your life, while negative self talk is one of the most destructive habits one can have.
There are affirmations. There are mantras. There is meditating on certain words and phrases in order to reprogram the subconscious and conscious mind.
Then there are the actual sounds of the words themselves that also have an effect on your consciousness. For example Hebrew, Sanskrit, Aramaic and even I think Arabic were constructed phonetically to alter the speaker's consciousness as they spoke the language. This is a more esoteric side of the topic.
In terms of books to read... you can tap into the strict scientific ideas dealing with language and the brain, or you could get into the metaphysics of it, or both.
But like i said, it's a very broad topic with a lot of layers. If you tell me what you're trying to accomplish specifically I can point you in a better direction. If you just want to learn more about it then you could google affirmations, mantras or "language and the brain."
