# Classic Reference Books **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 19, 2002, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962 "2002-03-19T00:32:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![panamajack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/47e85d/32.png) [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/1 "2002-03-19T00:32:53Z")
In many fields there are a few books (or only one) that are simply the best-known (or even the best) general reference for that field. Just about everyone with some knowledge or interest will have heard of it, most would consider owning or having access to a copy a requisite for study of the subject. They are often so venerated and recognizable that only initials or a single name is used to refer to them. Few would find it odd if you wrote ‘OED’ in a sentence without explanation, and most would agree that a word not found there was likely never an English word. Not every classic reference is as well-respected, and in some fields the material is growing old, even though the book will still be known and recommended. We’re talking well-known, not necessarily well-liked. So opinions are welcome, of course. And this is open to any subject, no matter how obscure you think it might be – if it has a reference well-known in those circles, let’s hear it. (I’m sure this has been done before, but all my searches crashed out today.) I’ll give a few examples I can think of for now: _ **The C Programming Language** _, Brian Kernighan & Dennis Ritchie a.k.a “Kernighan & Ritchie” or “K & R”. Not just the best book on C, but the best computer programming book ever. Slimmer and shorter than most computer programming books, but tells you exactly what you need to do it right. By two of the people who wrote the language itself. _ **The Sunset Western Garden Book** _, Sunset Magazine For the region west of the Continental Divide in the lower 48, and California especially, covers the basics of gardening and a detailed guide to each plant species. _ **Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills** _, Don Graydon (& Kurt Hanson), ed. a.k.a. “Freedom of the Hills”, “FOTH” A collection of contributions from specialists in each field, this is a complete guidebook for all aspects of mountaing climbing, covering equipment, techniques, and safety on rock, ice, and snow. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/2 "2002-03-19T00:48:00Z")
_The Summa Theologica_ - St. John Aquinas. All you’ve ever wanted to know about Christianity and Catholicism. _Gray’s Anatomy_ - Heh, seems like an obvious one Working in horticulture, I can tell you the Bible of the industry is Michael Dirr’s _Manual of Woody Landscape Plants_. Accept no substitutes 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Manach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Manach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manach)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/3 "2002-03-19T01:13:55Z")
IMHO Military - Art of War in the Western World by Archer Jones Irish History - A history of Ireland by E. Curtis ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/4 "2002-03-19T01:35:06Z")
Samuel E Morrison’s _History of WWII_ _Jane’s Fighting Ships_ and other Jane’s military publications _Principia Mathematica(sp?)_ – who did this? _Robert’s Rules of Order_ _The Prince_ _The Origin of the Species_ ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/5 "2002-03-19T01:53:46Z")
Journalism: The **AP Style Book**. In most newsrooms it is so all powerful, it is just called “the Bible”. (AP stands for Associated Press, but you probably already knew that). When I was starting in the business at the _Denver Post_, there was even a copy in the bathroom that the reporters used. It was the only publication (other than the _Post_) that was allowed in there. When we were not working on a story in the newsroom, the news editor and a copy editor or two would quiz us from the stupid thing (usually from memory). ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/6 "2002-03-19T04:10:32Z")
This many posts and no one’s mentioned the **CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physicsw**? It’s the closest thing in the Real World to the Junior Woodchuck Manual! Old-timers called it the “CRC Bible”, and before the 40th edition or so it _looked_ like a Bible. After that it got Ponderously large, like th copy I got as an undergrad. But it’s got your conversion factors, common integral formulas (assuming you commonly perform integral calculus), the physical constants, data on every compound, organic and inorganic, permittivities, specific gravities, indices of refraction, daa on the planets and their satellites, persistent spectral lines, biographies of the elements, and more. In the past twenty years or so a lot of mutant “CRC Guides” on all sorts o other subjects have come out (CRC Guide to Food Science, CRC Guide to Hazardous Chemicals, CRC Guide to Laser Technology), but there’s only One True CRC Handbook. ---
**Author:** ![CzechHistory411](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/94ad74/32.png) [@CzechHistory411](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CzechHistory411)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/7 "2002-03-19T05:17:09Z")
_Joy of Cooking_ _Joys of Yiddish_ _Joy of Sex_ – CH ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/8 "2002-03-19T06:00:28Z")
For pilots, “From the Ground Up” is a standard ground school text. For SCUBA Divers, “The New Science of Skin and Scuba Diving”. Halliday and Resnick is a standard freshman physics text, or at least used to be… “Human Action” by Ludwig Von Mises is a standard text for Libertarians and Austrian School Economists. “The Road To Serfdom” by F.A. Hayek is a fundamental political tract for Libertarians. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/9 "2002-03-19T06:05:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by yojimboguy \* > **_Principia Mathematica(sp?)_ – who did this?** Newton wrote one way back when, and then Russell and Whitehead did another one at the beginning of the 20th century. As far as algorithms texts go, I believe that Cormen, Lieserson, and Rivest is pretty much a classic. ---
**Author:** ![Oncle\_Biere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8baadc/32.png) [@Oncle\_Biere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oncle_Biere)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/10 "2002-03-19T06:26:33Z")
**What Color Is Your Parachute** , the primary job-hunter’s bible. Which ironically was written by someone who himself only landed a couple of jobs in his life, but the first big one was helping priests find work in other fields, as a sort of ouplacement councellor. ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/11 "2002-03-19T06:56:01Z")
Wow…I have four of the works mentioned so far: _Gray’s Anatomy_, _The Origin of Species_, a Halliday & Resnick physics text, and a CRC (1st Student Edition). My contributions: _ **Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution** _ - Robert L. Carroll (1988) _ **The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Pterosaurs** _ - Dr. Peter Wellnhofer (1991) _ **Predatory Dinosaurs of the World** _ - Gregory S. Paul (1988) _ **The Dinosauria** _ - Edited by David B. Weishampel, Peter Dodson & Halszka Osmolska (1990) ---
**Author:** ![Briny\_Deep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/briny_deep/32/17188_2.png) [@Briny\_Deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Briny_Deep)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/12 "2002-03-19T07:15:53Z")
For writers: Strunk and White, _The Elements of Style_. ---
**Author:** ![Wisest\_Novel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wisest_novel/32/13329_2.png) [@Wisest\_Novel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wisest_Novel)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/13 "2002-03-19T07:37:59Z")
I’m surprised no one’s mentioned: _ **The Elements of Style** _, William Strunk, Jr, & E. B. White, 1918, 1959, usw. Practically a bible for non-professional writing. Saw **masonite’s** post while in preview–props. Much lesser known: _ **A First Course in Real Analysis** _, M. H. Protter and C. B. Morrey, 1977. [Note: While not the best text I used in undergrad or grad studies, this seemed the most “universal.” Looking at it many years later, it also seems the most beat-up and dogeared. Either it was a better reference than I remember, or it took me forever to figure out RA (I think it was the former, but that could be my ego). I’m curious if anyone else used it, and if so, what they thought of it] _**Combat Leader’s Field Guide (11th ed)**_, CSM James J. Gallagher, USA (Ret), 1994. The next two got me through grad school. The first made sure I never bought my own booze, and the second allowed me the zen-like tranquility to finish my thesis on time. _**Scarne on Cards (rev)**_, John Scarne, 1965. _ **The Authoritative Calvin and Hobbes** _. Bill Watterson, 1990. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/14 "2002-03-19T21:04:31Z")
**yojimboguy** , Principia Mathematica was Newton I believe. What about the _ **Oxford English Dictionary** _? ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/15 "2002-03-19T21:42:36Z")
I find James Trager’s “People’s Chronology” very useful for world history—also makes for interesting browsing while you’re pretending to listen to someone on the phone. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/16 "2002-03-19T21:50:03Z")
Oh, and for good recipes, I enjoy “Beard on Food.” For etiquette and grooming tips, I turn to “Food on Beard.” ---
**Author:** ![cj\_finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@cj\_finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cj_finn)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/17 "2002-03-19T22:10:22Z")
Bullfinch’s Mythology - very useful in figuring out those obscure Greek references in anything written before the turn of the last century. Plain good reading all by itself too! The Bluebook - you attorneys know what I’m talking about. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2002, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/18 "2002-03-20T07:28:27Z")
**The World Almanac** **The Statistical Abstract of the United States** **Total Baseball** **Thomas Brothers Map Guide to Los Angeles County** ---
**Author:** ![Theobroma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5a626/32.png) [@Theobroma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Theobroma)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2002, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/19 "2002-03-20T11:13:28Z")
Bergey’s Manual of Bacteriology Goodman & Gilman (pharmacotherapeutics), just referred to as “Goodman & Gilman” Facts & Comparisons (Drug F&C, updated monthly) I’ll second Gray’s Anatomy Gibbon’s Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire I’ll think of more when I’m less tired ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2002, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962/20 "2002-03-20T13:18:00Z")
_Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable._ The _Oxford Companion to Classical Literature._ And I just couldn’t get through the day without my _Oxford Etymological Dictionary_. (OK, that’s an exaggeration… but it’s still a handy thing to have.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-reference-books/98962.md?page=2)