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Reference Shelf

Standard References
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The Oxford English Dictionary
The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary
The Oxford English Dictionary for Windows
1987,89,94 Oxford University Press

This is the ultimate reference work on the English language, and everyone who makes a living with that language should have a copy of at least the Compact Edition.  This is the kind of book one buys for an entire lifetime.

William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White, The Elements of Style (3rd ed.)
1979, Prentice Hall
0-02-418200-1

This is another book that no writer should be without.  It is the most concise and direct tutorial on the precise an unambiguous use of the English language. There is no other work on the subject that conveys more useful information in as compact a space.  

John Bartlett, Familiar Quotations (16th ed.)
1992, Little Brown & Company
0-316-08277-5

This is the perennial reference for literary and classical quotations.

Laurence J. Peter, Peter's Quotations
1993, Quill
0-688-11909-3

This is the most entertaining source for modern quotations that I've ever come across.  It is a great source for epigrams and pithy commentary.

Science Fiction/Technical References
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John Clute and Peter Nicholls, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (2nd ed.)
1993, St. Martin's Press
0-312-09618-6

There are a lot of books where one is tempted to say, "If you have only one..."  In this case it's apt.  If you are going to have only one reference about the field of Science Fiction, this is the one.

Orson Scott Card, How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy
1990, Writer's Digest Books
0-89879-416-1

There are innumerable books about how to write, genre and otherwise.  Many aren't worth any particular notice.  This book is an exception.  The chapter on exposition is, IMO, worth the price of the book.

Patrick Moore and Garry Hunt, The Atlas of the Solar System
1990, Crescent Books
0-517-00192-6

This is the best reference on the Solar System as a whole that I've yet to come across.  It has substantially complete maps for most of the planetary bodies, including most of the larger satellites.  It also has information on comets, historical data on astronomers and exploratory missions.

Eugene Mallove and Gregory Matloff, The Starflight Handbook: A Pioneer's Guide to Interstellar Travel
1989, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
0-471-61912-4

This is just a neat collection of many seriously proposed methods of interstellar travel.  If you aren't going to play with FTL travel, you could do worse than starting with some of the ideas in this book.

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